Finding Text
Finding 2025-001 Program Affected Assistance Listing – 14.881 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Moving-to-Work Demonstration Program Award Year January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2025 Criteria Per 24 CFR sections 982.401 through 982.405, housing quality standards (HQS) is mandatory for all units receiving Section 8 payments, and require that payments be withheld or terminated if units do not comply. Condition and Context During testing of HQS inspections and procedures, 22 tenants were evaluated for proper compliance with HQS. During our testing, it was noted that 3 units failed HQS inspections and remained in a failed state for an excessive period without subsequent inspections occurring within the 30-day required window. In all three instances, this was not due to a lack of effort to correct the issues by the tenants but rather due to a breakdown in providing timely updates between the inspector and the program director within the housing software to allow for timely follow-up with the tenant to occur. All three tenants later received passing scores, however, the correction could have happened sooner than the time of the final passing inspection. As a result, the reasonableness of abatement procedures and a cut-off of Section 8 assistance payments could not be determined due to not knowing when the tenant truly made the corrections. Cause and Effect The inspector acknowledged the Section 8 assistance payments continued due to a lack of oversight which caused the significant delays in the final inspections. Questioned Costs None noted. Recommendation We recommend management reinforce HQS enforcement procedures for timely resolution of inspection findings and termination of payments for units that fail to achieve compliance within the required timeframe. Regular training and oversight of inspectors is also recommended to prevent recurrence. Identification as a Repeat Finding, if Applicable Not applicable. Views of Responsible Officials and Planned Corrective Action Management agrees with the finding. See attached Corrective Action Plan.