We conducted this evaluation to determine the effectiveness of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) privacy program   We assessed the adequacy of agency strategies, plans, controls and practices at the enterprise and program levels.  We also examined the level of progress achieved since we last evaluated the program in 2014. We found that HUD had updated its privacy impact assessment processes, and took a…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of its Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program.  We conducted the audit as part of our annual audit plan.  Our objective was to determine whether HUD provided adequate oversight of its program. HUD did not provide adequate oversight of its FSS program.  Specifically, HUD did not ensure that grantees (1) always had action plans that complied with…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Inspector General audited HUD’s single-family note sales program.  This is the third in a series of audits on the note sales program.  The first audit, 2017-KC-0006, reported that HUD did not conduct rulemaking or develop formal procedures for its single-family note sales program.  The second audit, 2017-KC-0010, reported that HUD generally ensured that…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Real Estate Assessment Center’s (REAC) inspections process.  We initiated this audit in accordance with our annual audit plan.  Our objective was to determine whether REAC had adequate processes for and controls over the certification and monitoring of contracted inspectors and its public housing units’ physical inspections processes. We found that REAC could…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee program based on a Senate Appropriations Committee request to review the management and oversight of the program.  OIG had previously audited the Section 184 program in 2015 (audit report 2015-LA-0002) and determined that the Office of Loan Guarantee (OLG) did not provide adequate oversight of the program.  The objective of…

We audited the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles’ Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) conversion to the Section 8 Project-Based Voucher Program.  We selected the Authority because review of RAD conversions was aligned with the goals of our annual audit plan and the Authority’s conversion included previously environmentally toxic land that was recently remediated.  The objective of our review was to determine whether the…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Native American Programs’ Indian Housing Block Grant program.  We selected the program based on concerns as to whether grantees invested, obligated, and spent program funds within the required period.  Our audit objective was to determine whether HUD’s Office of Native American Programs ensured that grantees invested, obligated, and spent program funds…

This report reviewed the Office of Native American Programs – Office of Loan Guarantee’s (OLG) Section 184 program to determine whether its IT systems enabled effective management and oversight of the program. We found HUD had not successfully deployed an information technology (IT) system that enabled effective management and appropriate oversight of all Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program (Section 184 program) processes.  Multiple IT…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) approval of Section 232 Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured loans based on our initiative to focus HUD management’s attention on problems areas with the Section 232 program.  Our audit objective was to determine whether HUD approved Section 232 FHA-insured loans for projects that qualified for mortgage insurance in accordance with HUD requirements. HUD…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General audited HUD because we learned while doing unrelated audit work that funds HUD was entitled to would be turned over to a State as unclaimed property if they were not claimed.  This information led us to conduct searches on several States’ unclaimed property websites and find thousands of unclaimed funds listed in HUD’s name or other similar names.…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Community Compass and Technical Assistance and Capacity Building program due to a complaint specific to the Continuum of Care (CoC) and homeless portion of the program.  The complaint alleged that the Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs had been steering technical assistance notice of funding availability applicants toward coordinating or subcontracting with a…

We audited the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, based on an Office of Inspector General risk assessment and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) concerns.  The objective of our audit was to determine whether the Agency used the City of Sacramento’s CDBG funds in accordance with HUD requirements and adequately monitored its subrecipients.  The Agency…

HUD had been aware of negative conditions at Alexander County Housing Authority (ACHA) since at least 2010.  HUD identified issues with ACHA’s governance, including the misuse of funds, conflicts of interest, and a failure to comply with HUD policies and Federal civil rights laws.  Further, about 200 children and their families lived in units with peeling paint; graffiti; pest infestations; and other health and safety hazards, such as…

As part of our annual risk and internal planning process, we audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Block Grant Assistance’s (OBGA) Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery program.  Our analysis noted that Congress had historically provided disaster funding through supplemental appropriations, yet OBGA had not created a formal codified program.  Instead, it had issued multiple…

We audited the City of Modesto’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program.  We selected the City based on a hotline complaint (HC-2017-2082) regarding the City’s rehabilitation program and the U.S. Department of Housing Development’s (HUD) and the HUD Office of Inspector General’s risk assessments.  The objective of the audit was to determine whether the City used CDBG funds in accordance with HUD requirements, focusing on its…

The MRB rules on cases against FHA-approved lenders in which there is evidence of serious violations relating to loan origination, servicing activity, and failure to comply with FHA operational guidelines. When the MRB learns that a lender may not be in compliance with FHA requirements, it may take administrative actions to resolve problems with lenders. It does not consider “loss to the government” in these actions. Administrative actions may…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Community Planning and Development’s (CPD) risk assessment and monitoring of its grantees.  We initiated this assignment due to significant findings previously reported, which showed that CPD did not have effective risk assessment or monitoring of the State Community Development Block Grant program at either the field office or national level. …

The Inspector General Act of 1978 requires the Inspector General to prepare semiannual reports summarizing the activities of the Office of Inspector General for the preceding six-month periods. The semiannual reports are intended to keep the Secretary and the Congress fully informed of significant findings, progress the Agency has made and recommendations for improvement.   Open Recommendations Office of Audit Office of Evaluation…

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) oversight of lead-based paint reporting and remediation in its public housing and Housing Choice Voucher programs.  The audit was part of the activities in our fiscal year 2017 annual audit plan.  The audit objective was to determine whether HUD had adequate oversight of lead‐based paint reporting and remediation in its public housing and Housing Choice Voucher…

On December 21, 2017, smoke spread from a malfunctioning air-handling unit on the 11th floor to parts of many other floors.  While a smoke detector in an air duct functioned properly and the fire department was notified, there was no audible alarm or public announcement to notify occupants to evacuate. People in one suite described the smoke as “heavy” and “thick.” HUD and the General Services Administration believe that the fire safety…