Finding Text
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Assistance Listing Number 93.558) Item 2022-001 - Eligibility Criteria Supportive housing and ancillary services is provided to eligible individuals or families (clients). All clients must be referred by either Human Resources Administration or Department of Homeless Services (DHS), and depending on the type of supportive housing needed, clients must be either with HIV/AIDS, veteran, medically eligible or homeless families with child/children. The Organization?s employees are required to follow the established processes and policies to determine eligibility of the clients. Statement of Condition and Context During our test of compliance related to eligibility, it was noted that 5 out of 25 samples tested did not have the required intake assessment package and did not have the referral from DHS. Moreover, 9 out of 25 samples tested, did not have an independent living plan document which should be completed within 48 hours of client admittance to the program. Questioned Costs None. Cause The condition can be attributed to human error and the lack of internal controls to review and ensure that required documentation is being maintained and applied. Effect Without proper support and approval, although a client is eligible to receive supportive housing under the program, there is no documented evidence that clients are rightful recipients of supportive housing. It allows the opportunity for ineligible clients to be awarded the supportive housing. Identification as a Repeat Finding No. Recommendation We recommend that management implement controls to maintain all the documentation required for determining eligibility of supportive housing clients. These documents should, at a minimum, include the referral letter from Human Resource Administration or Department of Homeless Services, completed intake assessment package that show client's income, status as to whether they are veteran or not, medically eligible, homeless or at risk of being homeless, or families with children, and an independent living plan. Views of responsible official Management has ensured that under the new management team at the New Broadway shelter, all required documentation is being maintained and filed on-site, including referral letters, completed intake assessments, and independent living plans. To ensure compliance, management is conducting regular self-audits, to occur at least quarterly, to verify that these documents have been completed and are readily available for all active clients. In addition, management is scanning these required documents and saving them to an internal shared drive for easy access.