Finding Text
Finding 2021-004: Special Tests and Provisions - Housing Quality Standards (HQS) Inspections and HQS Enforcement Repeat Finding of Portions of 2020-002 Federal Program: Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers Federal Agency: Department of Housing and Urban Development Pass-Through Entity: N/A Assistance Listing Number: 14.871 Federal Award Numbers: N/A Criteria: Per 24 CFR section 982.405, the Housing Authority must inspect units prior to the initial term of the lease, at least biennially during assisted occupancy, and at other times as needed, to determine if units meet Housing Quality Standards (HQS). The Housing Authority must also conduct supervisory quality control HQS inspections. Per 24 CFR section 982.404, the Housing Authority must take prompt and vigorous action to enforce the owner obligations for HQS. Housing assistance payments must not be made to units that fail to meet HQS, unless the owner corrects the defect within the required period. Condition/Context: During our testing over the related compliance requirements, we observed the following: We were unable to determine whether the Housing Authority performed quality control re inspections, as required by 24 CFR section 982.405(b). Our sample was not statistically valid. Questioned Costs: Not determinable. Cause: The lack of supporting documentation may be related to the Housing Authority changing voucher program administrators during fiscal year 2020. While the current administrator has access to tenant files, the HQS inspections done in fiscal 2020 were done by a previous contractor. Also due to the Housing Authority falling behind on obtaining audits, the documents being requested by auditors are several years old and may have been purged. Effect: Units that fail to meet HQS could endanger the health and safety of tenants. Recommendation: The Housing Authority should ensure the vendor administering the program maintains proper inspection logs and documentation of quality control re-inspections. The Housing Authority should also review its processes to ensure units are inspected based on the requirements in 24 CFR section 982.404. Views of Responsible Officials: WBHA is concerned that the current contract administrator for the HCV Program has failed to comply with providing the requested documentation to prove compliance with HQS inspection requirements. We are engaging with our current HCV Contract Administrator (Allegiant Property Management, LLC) on expectations for compliance in the future. WBHA is also exploring other contract administrators or possibly opting out of the HCV Program altogether and working with WHEDA to administer WBHA’s HCV Program.