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Read our report on six communities’ experiences with pandemic funding and programs, which provides valuable lessons learned to improve federal emergency response programs.

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Search reports, investigative results, and agency plansShowing 11 - 20 of 28 results
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Fraud Risk Inventory for the Tenant- and Project-Based Rental Assistance, HOME, and Operating Fund Programs’ CARES and ARP Act Funds

In coordination with the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, we conducted an audit to identify potential fraud schemes that could affect HUD’s pandemic funds. We reviewed the funds appropriated by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act for the Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA), Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA), HOME Investment Partnerships, and Public Housing Operating Fund programs to identify the fraud risks and potential fraud schemes that they face while delivering services to the public. Our objective was to...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Community Development Block Grant CARES Act Implementation Challenges

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act program. Our audit objective was to determine what challenges grantees faced in using program funds for activities that prepare for, prevent, or respond to the coronavirus and its impact. We used a survey questionnaire to gather feedback and insight directly from 1,047 program grantees. As of July 30, 2022, grantees had drawn more than $1.79 billion, or 36 percent, of the $4.99 billion in program funds. We performed this audit to...
Small Business Administration OIG

COVID-19 and Disaster Assistance Information Systems Security Controls

This report presents the results of our audit to determine whether the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) maintained effective management control activities and monitoring of the design and implementation of third-party operated SBA systems. SBA needed information technology systems from third-party service providers that could improve the system efficiency and productivity to process high transaction volumes, transmit data between other information systems, and safeguard the integrity and confidentiality of the personally identifiable information processed by the programs. We found the...
Small Business Administration OIG

COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan Applications Submitted from Foreign IP Addresses

We evaluated the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) controls to flag or prevent potentially fraudulent Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications submitted from foreign Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. Although the agency implemented several layers of controls to prevent or reduce fraud from foreign countries, individuals at foreign IP addresses were able to access the COVID-19 EIDL application system. SBA received millions of attempts to submit COVID-19 EIDL applications from foreign IP addresses and stopped most of them; however, the agency...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Emergency Solutions Grants CARES Act Implementation Challenges

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Emergency Solutions Grants Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) (ESG-CV) program. Our audit objective was to determine what challenges ESG-CV grant recipients faced in implementing the program and using grant funds. We used a survey questionnaire to gather feedback and insight directly from the 362 recipients of ESG-CV grants. At the time we initiated this audit in July 2021, ESG-CV grant recipients had spent $563,178,336 of available $3.96 billion grant funds. We performed this audit to assist...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Challenges Faced by Section 232 Nursing Homes During the Pandemic

We conducted a limited review of nursing home owners to identify their operational challenges and needs of nursing homes in responding to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Our objective was to determine the biggest challenges operators of Section 232 nursing home facilities face related to the COVID-19 pandemic and whether nursing homes are prepared to meet their future financial obligations. Most of the owners who responded to our survey indicated that nursing homes experienced financial and operational challenges during the pandemic. These challenges included staffing...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

HUD Did Not Always Comply With Its Internal Guide When Transitioning Offices From Mandatory to Maximum Telework During the COVID-19 Pandemic

We audited the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) transitioning of offices from mandatory to maximum telework during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, based on a request from Representative Gerald Connolly, to review whether HUD was employing best practices and existing guidance when deciding whether or when to require Federal employees to return to their offices. Transitioning an office to maximum telework allowed HUD employees to voluntarily return to an office. We focused our audit on whether HUD complied with its internal Resuming Normal Operations...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

FHA Borrowers Did Not Always Properly Receive COVID-19 Forbearances From Their Loan Servicers

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG), completed an audit to determine whether FHA-insured borrowers properly received the COVID-19-related forbearance. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), signed into law on March 27, 2020, provided a mortgage payment forbearance option for all borrowers who suffered a financial hardship due to the COVID-19 national emergency. We found that at least one-third of the nearly 335,000 borrowers who were delinquent on their FHA-insured loans and not on forbearance in November...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Public Housing Agencies’ Experiences and Challenges Regarding the Administration of HUD’s CARES Act Funds

We conducted a limited review of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act supplemental public housing operating funds (supplemental funds). Our objective was to assess public housing agencies’ (PHA) experiences and challenges and HUD’s efforts in providing guidance related to the administration of the supplemental operating funds under the CARES Act. We found that the PHA survey respondents generally cited positive experiences and no major challenges related to the administration of supplemental funds under the...
Department of Housing and Urban Development OIG

Lessons Learned and Key Considerations From Prior Audits and Evaluations of the CDBG Disaster Recovery Program

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act made available $5 billion in supplemental CDBG funding for grants to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the coronavirus pandemic (CDBG-CV grants). Because of similarities, we reviewed 132 CDBG-DR program audits and evaluations issued from May 2002 to March 2020 to summarize the common CDBG-DR program weaknesses and risks for CPD to consider to help its CDBG-CV grantees effectively and efficiently manage their CDBG-CV program operations. We found that grantees had common areas of weaknesses and risks in the...