Finding 401322 (2023-001)

Significant Deficiency
Requirement
E
Questioned Costs
-
Year
2023
Accepted
2024-06-20

AI Summary

  • Core Issue: 16% of tenant files reviewed had errors, including missing income verification and miscalculations.
  • Impacted Requirements: Compliance with federal regulations and HUD guidelines for maintaining Housing Choice Voucher tenant files.
  • Recommended Follow-Up: Conduct a tenant file audit and enhance monitoring and training for staff to reduce errors.

Finding Text

Finding 2023-001 – Housing Choice Voucher Tenant Files – Eligibility – Internal Control over Tenant Files - Noncompliance & Significant Deficiency Housing Choice Voucher Program – ALN #14.871 Condition & Cause: During our review of eighty (80) Housing Choice Voucher tenant files, we noted that there were thirteen (13) files containing errors of noncompliance, or 16% of our sample. These errors consisted of missing or outdated verification of income or deductions, miscalculations of annual income, and one immaterial HAP register disagreement. We were able to extrapolate the misstatements of HAP expense and found that these errors were not pervasive to the financial statements. We noted that during the fiscal year the Authority experienced high staff turnover in the HCV department. At the time of the audit, one Housing Specialist position remained vacant. We attribute this as the cause for the noncompliance. Criteria: The Code of Federal regulations, the Housing Authority Administrative Plan and specific HUD guidelines in documenting and maintaining Housing Choice Voucher tenant files. Recommendation: We recommend that the Agency conduct a tenant file audit of existing tenants in the HCV program to determine the extent of any additional misstatements of HAP expense. We also recommend that the Agency increase their monitoring and review of the HCV program files to determine whether occupancy specialists need additional training or procedures added to ensure compliance. Our experience with agencies that increase monitoring and review of the files is that there are dramatically decreased error rates. Questioned Costs: None Repeat Finding: No Was sampling statistically valid? Yes Views of responsible officials: The PHA agrees with the results of the audit and recommendations.

Corrective Action Plan

CORRECTIVE ACTION PLAN Finding 2023-001 - Housing Choice Voucher Tenant File s - Eligibility - Int ernal Control over Tenant Files - Non compliance & Significant Deficiency - Housing Choice Voucher Program - ALN 14.871 CORRECTIVE ACTION PLAN: 1. All of Jonesboro HCV Specialists and HCV Manager took a Nan McKay Workshop, HCV and Public Housing Rent Calculation Course. The dates of this course were May 7, 2024 - May 9, 2024. 2. JHA has discussed the issues of the 13 files discovered during the audit and spoken to staff about making sure they know what to do. Additional training and discussion of the errors has been scheduled for next Wednesday, May 29, 2024. This was delayed due to JHA recently hiring a new full time HCV Specialist and JHA wanted to ensure all caseworkers were present and had proper training on the specific errors we incurred during the audit. 3. Peer Review - Janet Wiggins was the only one reviewing caseworker files. Janet reviews about 20 files per month. JHA has had discussion and will be expanding the number of files that are reviewed on a monthly basis. Janet Wiggins will still randomly select files as she has been doing, but each caseworker will also audit up to 5 random files from other caseworkers throughout the month to double the amount of files per month that are reviewed, which will also help us catch errors if they exist. PERSON RESPONSIBLE: N an M cKay / Paul G. Wright / Janet Wiggins ANTICIPATED COMPLETIO N DATE ( See Below ): 1. #l from above was Completed May 7, 2024 through May 9, 2024 by a Trainer from Nan McKay. 2. #2 was discussed in a staff meeting on May 29, 2024. I, Paul Wright, went over the 13 files with staff and discussed the importance of making sure that we ensure proper documentation is in the file whether full time status of children or EIV that is used to make a computation, we ensure that we are using the appropriate and proper amount of check stubs and that they are consecutive, we discussed making sure that our calculations themselves are correct if weekly, bi-weekly,monthly or annual income is used. We discussed making sure if working on a file that already has had an annual that we make sure any interim is inserted properly and we pay the correct amount on our HAP check run. 3. #3 was discussed during staff meeting on May 29, 2024 by Paul G. Wright and Janet Wiggins. I had previously spoken with HCV Manager, Janet Wiggins, and Assistant HCV Manager, Nora Schmidt, about increasing the number of files that we audit on a monthly basis. Janet examines each file when she performs a move or transfer, which is typically over 20 per month. All caseworkers will review 5 files per month from another caseworker for accuracy and make sure everything looks and is correct. This will about double the amount of files that are being reviewed on a monthly basis. This is being implemented currently and will continue moving forward. All the steps listed in the corrective action plan have been addressed and staff has been advised and trained. Peer review has begun and will continue moving forward to help increase the number of files that audited/ reviewed on a monthly basis. It is with these efforts that JHA hopes to reduce and hopefully eliminate the errors that we received during the 2023 Fiscal Year Audit.

Categories

HUD Housing Programs Subrecipient Monitoring Eligibility Significant Deficiency Internal Control / Segregation of Duties

Other Findings in this Audit

  • 977764 2023-001
    Significant Deficiency

Programs in Audit

ALN Program Name Expenditures
14.871 Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers $574,991
14.850 Public and Indian Housing $177,042
14.896 Family Self-Sufficiency Program $155,169
14.872 Public Housing Capital Fund $87,023