Finding Text
Federal Program: Assistance Listing Number 21.023, Emergency Rental Assistance Program, Federal Award Identification Number 20220000044, U.S. Department of Treasury, Passed through Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs Criteria: The entity must establish and maintain effective internal control to provide reasonable assurance that only eligible individuals receive assistance or services under the federal award program. Certifications must be obtained for COVID-19 Impact, Housing Instability, and Household Income. In addition, the participant may not have duplication of benefits through another federal program. Condition: We selected a sample of 25 participants out of 154 for testing. Overall, participant files for 3 individuals did not contain a properly completed intake form and lacked documentation as follows: (1) Two files did not have certification regarding the participant experiencing financial hardship during or due directly or indirectly to the COVID-19 pandemic; (2)Two files did not have certification regarding housing instability; (3) One file did not have support regarding no duplication of benefits for the participant. Cause: Personnel not adhering to prescribed procedures. Potential Effect: Lack of proper documentation could lead to ineligible individuals receiving benefits. Questioned Costs: None Recommendation: The period for this grant contract ended on March 31, 2024. We recommend that The Home ensure that chart audits were performed for all participants in the program to address situations where lack of documentation may exist. Views of Responsible Officials: These participants received services during 2024; however, they were enrolled in the program during 2023. Our processes were updated during 2023 to ensure eligibility information was consistently captured for participants. The employee responsible for the errors is no longer with The Home and the grant was officially closed by the State during 2024, noting no issues. We have instituted quarterly audits of records to catch data entry errors.