Finding Text
Condition: Out of an approximate population of 585 Low Rent Public Housing tenants the following deficiencies were noted:
• One file did not have an annual recertification performed within twelve months,
• One file did not have a flat rent option sheet,
• One file did not have a birth certificate for a minor household member,
• One file did not use the correct income calculation, and
• Nine files did not contain evidence of timely unit inspections being performed.
Criteria: The Authority’s ACOP and 24 CFR 960.259 requires internal controls to be in place to ensure proper procedures are being followed in compliance with HUD requirements regarding timely, complete and accurate tenant files. In addition, 24 CFR 5.705 requires each unit be periodically inspected.
Context: The auditor randomly selected 40 tenant files out of the population, which we consider to be a statistically valid sample size. The auditor reviewed the tenant files and support to ensure that proper procedures are being followed and that the Authority is in compliance with HUD requirements regarding timely, complete, and accurate tenant files.
Cause: The Authority experienced staffing and operational challenges and did not have the available staff to follow the established internal controls to ensure proper compliance with regards to timely recertifications and collection of required HUD documentation to verify eligibility, calculate accurate tenant rent amounts and provide support for inspections performed.
Effect: The Authority is not in compliance with HUD requirements regarding eligibility which could result in the incorrect amount of rental assistance provided.
Questioned Costs: Unknown.
Auditor Recommendations: The Authority should reevaluate their established procedures and controls in place to ensure full compliance in regards to eligibility, the timeliness of recertifications and inspections performed. The Authority needs to correct the deficiencies noted in the tested files and consider the impact to the rest of the population of tenant files that were not selected as part of the auditor’s sample.
Management Response: See Corrective Action Plan.