Finding Text
Utilities Allowance Calcuation None "In accordance with the 2014 Appropriations Act Section 242, the utility allowance for a family shall be the lower of: (1) The utility allowance amount for the family unit size; or (2) the utility allowance amount for the unit size of the unit rented by the family. However, upon the request of a family that includes a person with disabilities, the PHA must approve a utility allowance higher than the applicable amount if such a higher utility allowance is needed as a reasonable accommodation in accordance with HUD's regulations in 24 CFR part 8 to make the program accessible to and usable by the family member with a disability. This provision applies only to vouchers issued after the effective date of this notice (June 12, 2014) and to current program participants. For current program participants, a PHA must implement the new allowance at the family's next annual reexamination, provided that the PHA is able to provide a family with at least 60 days' notice prior to the reexamination. " During the audit, we noted multiple HUD Forms 50058 had utility allowances calculated not in accordance with the above criteria. The Authority had approximately 230 new admissions during the fiscal year. Of these we reviewed 24 individual utility allowances which were calculate for the tenants and found 3 instances of non-compliance. Software conversion in prior year has several tenant units marked as manufactored home however the tenant is living in a unit that is not a manufactured home. The Authority staff did not correct the unit type and thereby the utility allowance was incorrectly caculated. The Authority was in violation of the Federal Regulation which resulted in errors in calculating housing assistance payments (HAP) and utility reimbursement payments. We recommend that Management implement procedures to ensure compliance with the above regulations as it relates to the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program. The auditee acknowledges the deficiency as highlighted in the finding. In response to this issue, the management commits to implementing a comprehensive Corrective Action Plan.