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HUD secretary says agency found potential $5 billion in improper rental payments, sends teams to Minnesota
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Summary
HUD Secretary Scott Turner said a HUD report identified more than $5 billion in potentially improper rental-assistance payments (including payments to deceased recipients) and that HUD has personnel in Minnesota working with the Department of Justice to investigate and tighten verification of recipients.
Scott Turner, U.S. Housing and Urban Development secretary, said a recent HUD report identified more than $5,000,000,000 in potentially improper rental-assistance payments during the final year of the prior administration and that HUD has dispatched teams to investigate.
"It is really just gross negligence and bad stewardship during the Biden administration," Turner said. He added HUD has "boots on the ground" in Minnesota and staff working with the agency's chief financial office to find "waste, fraud, and abuse" and to hold those responsible "accountable." The report, introduced by the program's host during the interview, alleges payments went to more than 30,000 deceased recipients and to thousands of possible noncitizen recipients and noted concentrations of suspicious payments in New York, California and Washington, D.C.
Turner said the state of Minnesota — specifically the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area — receives about $150,000,000 in HUD housing funds and that HUD personnel are on site to verify that taxpayer dollars are being used "in the appropriate manner." He said investigators are coordinating with the Department of Justice and that HUD is reviewing verification systems for rental assistance, Section 8 vouchers and related programs to prevent improper payments going forward.
The host cited reporting that allegations in Minnesota could total up to $9,000,000,000; Turner described the underlying problem as weak financial controls in the prior administration and said the current HUD leadership is working to strengthen verification and transparency.
Former HUD secretary Marcia Fudge and her deputy, Adrienne Todman, have not yet publicly commented on the report, the host said. Turner said the department will continue investigations and pursue accountability where fraud is found.
The department's next steps, as described by Turner in the interview, include on-site reviews in Minnesota, coordination with DOJ and a mandate to public housing authorities to provide comprehensive occupant accounts for HUD-funded housing programs so HUD can verify recipients.
