WASHINGTON \u2014 A US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) report found more than $5 billion in taxpayer funds went to \u201cquestionable\u201d rental assistance recipients during the final year of the Biden administration \u2014 including to around 30,000 \u201cdeceased tenants\u201d and \u201cthousands\u201d of potential non-citizens, The Post can reveal.<\/p>\n
HUD officials said a \u201clarge concentration\u201d of the suspicious payments went to New York, California and Washington, DC, with dead recipients getting at least some funds in all 50 states \u2014 in what federal officials are calling widespread abuse of taxpayers\u2019 dollars under the Biden administration.<\/p>\n
\u201cA massive abuse of taxpayer dollars not only occurred under President Biden\u2019s watch, but was effectively incentivized by his administration\u2019s failure to implement strong financial controls resulting in billions worth of potential improper payments,\u201d HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement.<\/p>\n
A US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) report found more than $5 billion in taxpayer funds went to \u201cquestionable\u201d rental assistance recipients during the final year of former President Joe Biden\u2019s administration. REUTERS<\/p>\n
\u201cHUD will continue investigating the shocking results and will take appropriate action to hold bad actors accountable. Additionally, the Department is\u00a0advancing efforts made under President Trump\u2019s first administration to strengthen program integrity and ensure taxpayer-funded\u00a0assistance serves the vulnerable communities it was intended for.\u201d<\/p>\n
HUD\u2019s Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFC) uncovered $5.8 billion of the \u201cquestionable\u201d payments out of nearly $50 billion in total federal rental assistance to public housing authorities, contractors, landlords and other non-federal entities in fiscal year 2024, the 183-page report<\/a> disclosed.<\/p>\n The around 11% of taxpayer dollars from HUD went to more than 200,000 possibly ineligible tenants \u2014 of which 29,715 were dead, 9,472 were non-citizens and 165,393 were receiving sums that exceeded the threshold for assistance in their geographic region, particularly in New Orleans and other large metro areas.<\/p>\n The HUD programs are designed to help low-income residents who wouldn\u2019t otherwise be able to afford shelter \u2014 and the possible grift means those truly in need could have been left out in the cold.<\/p>\n HUD officials faulted the Biden administration for a directive \u201cto push funding out the door with minimal oversight\u201d as well as rent assistance programs placing \u201csubstantial trust and responsibility in these non-federal entities \u2026 to accurately assess tenant eligibility.\u201d<\/p>\n Now, HUD will have to reach out to the public housing authorities and other entities to confirm the extent of the fraud \u2014 and either pause or revoke funding. Officials will also make criminal referrals when warranted.<\/p>\n HUD Secretary Scott Turner is demanding answers about the \u201cquestionable\u201d rental assistance payments. Brigitte Stelzer<\/p>\n \u201cHUD is implementing processes and procedures to revoke or pause funding as part of its efforts to hold bad actors accountable,\u201d one official said. \u201cAdditionally, the Department could make criminal referrals and exercise other enforcement actions once it has confirmed fraud occurred.\u201d<\/p>\n Between October 2023 and September 2024, $33 billion was spent on Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA) for more than 4 million households and $16 billion was spent on Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) \u2014 all of which the audit reviewed.<\/p>\n The more than 200,000 tenants were flagged for eligibility issues as part of the $1.5 billion in TBRA payments from HUD, while roughly $4.3 billion \u2014 or 26.4% \u2014 of all PBRA payments also had eligibility issues.<\/p>\n In partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, HUD identified \u201cthousands\u201d of non-citizens were also receiving some form of Section 8 or 9 rental assistance \u2014 despite not being eligible.<\/p>\n HUD\u2019s financial report was aimed at following through on President Trump\u2019s commitments to increasing \u201caccountability and transparency\u201d as well as protecting \u201ctaxpayer funds against waste, fraud and abuse.\u201d Getty Images<\/p>\n HUD\u2019s financial report was aimed at following through on President Trump\u2019s commitments to increasing \u201caccountability and transparency\u201d as well as protecting \u201ctaxpayer funds against waste, fraud and abuse.\u201d<\/p>\n The department\u2019s Office of Inspector General previously audited HUD\u2019s fraud risk management after an infusion of billions of dollars for housing from Biden\u2019s 2021 American Rescue Plan Act and President Trump\u2019s 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.<\/p>\n