HUD audit: Columbus Housing Authority's contractor CGI missed problems in Section 8 homes
The Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority — through its contractor — failed to ensure all Section 8 housing met quality standards, according to a new report.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Inspector General released a report Tuesday on Columbus’ housing choice voucher program, often called Section 8. The program for low-income families, the elderly, and people with disabilities serves about 13,000 households in central Ohio.
The report comes a month after the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority decided not to renew its contract with CGI Federal, Inc. to manage the voucher program. The current contract will expire in March 2025 and CMHA has said it is still considering how to manage the program after that, whether it will hire another contractor or go back to directly managing the program.
The report says the audit was initiated in part because of recent media attention. The Dispatch has previously reported on tenants' and landlords’ complaints about CGI.
The HUD report found CGI did not “thoroughly inspect units in a consistent manner.”
HUD auditors looked at 84 local homes and apartments in the voucher program that passed CGI inspection. The HUD auditors failed more than half of the surveyed properties and found more than 248 deficiencies in the units.
Examples in the report included a roof leak, possible mold, standing water in a basement and peeling paint that could contain lead in a home with a young child.
A spokesperson for the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority issued a statement Wednesday morning:
"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."
The statement pointed out that the HUD audit sampled less than .003% of CMHA's voucher units.
As noted in the HUD report, CMHA has already taken steps to comply with the auditor's recommendations. According to CMHA, that includes beefing up its documentation process to ensure identified deficiencies are corrected and if owners fail to make corrections, CMHA will stop paying. CMHA also said it is emphasizing consistent and ongoing training for inspectors focused on identifying life-threatening deficiencies.
The Office of the Inspector General also found the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority did not adequately collect and report data related to elevated lead levels in young children's blood.
“It is imperative that Public Housing Authorities ensure that their inspections are conducted in an effective manner that not only identify unit deficiencies, but also ensure that those deficiencies are repaired timely,” said HUD Inspector General Rae Oliver Davis in a release. “Additionally, PHAs should guard against Elevated Blood Lead Levels going unreported because of the severe adverse health effects associated with exposure to lead.”
The CMHA statement said, "as noted in the HUD OIG's report, CMHA took prompt action during the audit to further develop and implement comprehensive policies and procedures that ensure compliance with the Lead Safe Housing Rule."
This includes collaborating with local health departments to monitor and address lead hazards.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: CMHA did not meet quality Section 8 housing standards, per HUD report
