COLUMBUS, Ohio — A federal audit is forcing changes at the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority.
“CMHA appreciates the comprehensive review conducted by the OIG and acknowledges the findings. We are committed to ensuring the highest standards of housing quality and have taken significant, proactive steps to address each concern,” CMHA wrote in a statement to 10TV.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development audit laid the blame not only on CMHA but the contractor, CGI Federal.
The audit found that CMHA did not consistently stop housing assistance payments to owners for uncorrected unit issues.
CMHA reportedly did not ensure that its contractors categorized the issues as life-threatening, which would require corrective actions within 24 hours, or conduct the required number of quality control inspections in 2022.
The audit reports that CMHA "did not comply with HUD’s reporting and data collection requirements of the Lead Safe Housing Rule for cases of children with elevated blood lead levels.”
The housing in question is commonly known as the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program.
CMHA says it will not renew the contract with its contractor CGI Federal when their contract expires in March 2025.
“It’s important to note for context that according to its report, HUD OIG reviewed a sample of 84 (CMHA) units that had passed a recent HQS inspection and determined that 48 units had deficiencies. That total sample size represents less than 0.003% of CMHA’s entire portfolio of Housing Choice Voucher units,” CMHA said in a statement.
More than 56% of the 48 units had issues that existed before the last inspection.
CMHA’s contract with CGI Federal is worth more than $7 million.
“CMHA remains committed to providing safe, decent, and sanitary housing for all residents. CMHA’s continuous improvements and rigorous oversight will ensure ongoing compliance with HUD's requirements and enhance the quality of housing in the communities served by CMHA. CMHA is dedicated to maintaining transparency and ongoing communication with HUD to ensure effective implementation and sustainability of all measures," the Authority said.
Moving forward, the Housing Authority says it will do the following:
- Establishing a robust documentation process to ensure that all identified deficiencies are corrected. If owners fail to make corrections, CMHA will take remedial action and implement its stop-payment procedures.
- Reinforcing CMHA’s quality control process. This process includes regular inspections and detailed reviews of quality assurance inspection reports, as well as monitoring of key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Implementing stringent controls over its inspection processes to ensure that emergency failures are properly identified, reinspected, and corrected within 24 hours. If corrections are not made within the required timeframe, housing assistance payments to the owner are promptly stopped.
- Emphasizing the need for consistent and ongoing training programs for inspectors, focusing specifically on identifying and categorizing life-threatening deficiencies. All inspectors have undergone rigorous training sessions, and ongoing training is provided to ensure they stay updated on the latest standards.
You can read the full audit here.