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Open Recommendations (78 total)

Real Estate Assessment Center: HUD Should Improve Physical Inspection Process and Oversight of Inspectors

GAO-19-254
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Real Estate Assessment Center should follow through on REAC's plan to create a process to verify candidate qualifications for contract inspectors—for example, by calling references and requesting documentation from candidates that supports their completion of 250 residential or commercial inspections. The plan should also consider whether certain types of inspections—such as Federal Emergency Management Agency inspections and U.S. Army Office of Housing inspections—satisfy REAC's requirements. (Recommendation 7)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Homelessness: Better HUD Oversight of Data Collection Could Improve Estimates of Homeless Population

GAO-20-433
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Priority Rec.
HUD's Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs should conduct quality assurance checks on the PIT count methodology data it requires CoCs to submit and take actions as appropriate to ensure that HUD's standards for conducting valid and reliable PIT counts are met. (Recommendation 1)
Open – Partially Addressed
In 2023, HUD provided updated guidance to CoCs on count methodology and responded to CoC questions on enumeration issues, such as rural counting and counting tents and vehicles as part of its standard periodic update to HUD's PIT count notice. HUD also updated its PIT count methodology submission questions. In February 2024, HUD officials told us they review CoCs responses to the questions with their PIT count methodology submissions to assess the quality of CoCs' data. In addition, HUD officials told us they evaluate CoCs' data submissions for year-to-year variation and whether any data submission validation flags are being triggered and consult with CoCs that have submissions that raise any data quality questions. To fully implement this recommendation, HUD needs to provide evidence it has assessed the quality of the methodology underlying the information CoCs submit, such as by reviewing such submissions for soundness and accuracy. Without implementing quality assurance checks for its PIT count methodology data, HUD risks counts that underestimate the number of persons experiencing homelessness and that show fluctuations that do not accurately reflect the changes in the homeless population.

Lead Paint in Housing: HUD Should Strengthen Grant Processes, Compliance Monitoring, and Performance Assessment

GAO-18-394
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Director of the Lead Office should develop performance goals and measures to cover the full range of HUD's lead efforts, including its efforts to ensure that housing units in its rental assistance programs are lead-safe. (Recommendation 7)
Open
As of October 2023, HUD officials had not provided additional information to show the agency has taken actions in response to this recommendation. In March 2021, HUD officials told us they still were coordinating internally to develop performance goals and measures that cover HUD's lead efforts. HUD officials noted efforts had been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We will continue to monitor HUD's effort to implement this recommendation.

Disaster Recovery: Additional Actions Needed to Identify and Address Potential Recovery Barriers

GAO-22-104039
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Priority Rec.
The HUD Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development should coordinate with the FEMA Administrator and SBA to design and establish routine processes to be used within and across federal disaster recovery programs to address identified access barriers and disparate outcomes on an ongoing basis. (Recommendation 4)
Open
In February 2024, HUD officials told us that HUD, together with FEMA and SBA, is developing an interagency plan that includes a description of routine processes that they will use to address any equity issues they identify. According to HUD, this interagency plan will be developed by June 2024. For its part, HUD established an Equity Team within its Office of Disaster Recovery to expand data collection, evaluate CDBG-DR implementation processes and identify improvements, provide technical assistance to CDBG-DR grantees, and evaluate quarterly performance reports, according to HUD officials. However, to fully implement this recommendation, HUD must provide evidence it has designed and institutionalized routine processes to be used within and across federal recovery programs to address identified access barriers and disparate outcomes on an ongoing basis. Without routine processes, these programs will lack a mechanism to ensure they can address any potential access barriers or disparate outcomes they might identify, particularly if those barriers or disparate outcomes arise from the interaction between or among programs.

Affordable Housing: Improvements Needed in HUD's Oversight of the Housing Trust Fund Program

GAO-23-105370
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Secretary of HUD should ensure that the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development revises HUD's public reports on HTF to disclose that the amount of non-HTF funds may be underreported and that HTF units are only a portion of the total units in HTF-assisted projects. (Recommendation 5)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Real Estate Assessment Center: HUD Should Improve Physical Inspection Process and Oversight of Inspectors

GAO-19-254
Show
1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Real Estate Assessment Center should develop a process to evaluate the effectiveness of REAC's training program—for example, by reviewing the results of tests or soliciting participant feedback. (Recommendation 8)
Open
When we confirm what actions the agency has taken in response to this recommendation, we will provide updated information.

Homelessness: Better HUD Oversight of Data Collection Could Improve Estimates of Homeless Population

GAO-20-433
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1 Open Recommendations
1 Priority
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development
Priority Rec.
HUD's Office of Special Needs Assistance Programs should assess and enhance the usefulness of its assistance to CoCs' data collection efforts. (Recommendation 3)
Open – Partially Addressed
In March 2023, HUD officials told us they were developing an outreach strategy to work with CoCs on PIT count methodologies. The intent of this outreach strategy is to talk to CoCs about their methodologies, answer questions, and determine if additional guidance or assistance is needed. As of February 2024, officials told us they still intend to assess their outreach efforts but their ability to fully implement this effort is currently limited. Meanwhile, HUD provided evidence it has developed a random sample of CoCs to provide one-on-one outreach and assistance on PIT count data and methodology submissions. HUD also provided evidence of consultations between the Office of Special Needs and Assistance Programs with CoCs seeking additional guidance or clarification of PIT count methodologies, as well as exceptions to use alternative data source in a CoC's PIT count data submission. We will continue to monitor HUD's progress in implementing this recommendation.

Data Governance: Agencies Made Progress in Establishing Governance, but Need to Address Key Milestones

GAO-21-152
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development should direct the Chief Data Officer to assess current staff data literacy and data skills, conduct a gap analysis between the current staff's skills and the skills the agency requires, and establish a baseline performance plan to close the identified data skills and literacy gaps. (Recommendation 7)
Open
HUD generally agreed with our recommendation. In September 2023, HUD published its Data Maturity Assessment Report, which included an assessment of staff data skills. The report states that to move the agency to the next maturity level in data management, the appropriate data skills are the centerpiece to support HUD's different mission-critical activities. According to the report, the Office of the Chief Data Officer (OCDO) will conduct a data skill gap analysis throughout the agency to understand the gaps in the data skills and the training needed to support program operations effectively and to use data as strategic assets. We will continue to monitor HUD's efforts to assess staff data literacy and skills and to conduct a related gap analysis.

Alaska Native Issues: Federal Agencies Could Enhance Support for Native Village Efforts to Address Environmental Threats

GAO-22-104241
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development should direct the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Native American Programs and the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development to review HUD's programs identified in this report and, where the agency determines it feasible and appropriate, implement relevant changes to address program characteristics that are not established in statute that pose obstacles to Alaska Native villages' obtaining assistance, including characteristics we identified and others that HUD may identify. HUD should also document its review, any related consultation with tribes, and any changes made to its programs. (Recommendation 6)
Open
As of August 2023, HUD ONAP has taken steps toward updating its regulations for its Indian Community Development Block Grant Program, which include ICDBG-Imminent Threat grants requirements. HUD issued a Dear Tribal Leader Letter announcing HUD's plans to start the rulemaking process, and intends to conduct formal consultation sessions with Tribes in October and November 2023. According to HUD officials, one potential outcome of the new rulemaking could be to address the fact that recurring events are explicitly ineligible for ICDBG-Imminent Threat grants. HUD plans to complete action to address this recommendation by June 2025. We will continue to monitor HUD's actions in response to this recommendation and evaluate them when complete.

Disaster Recovery: HUD Should Develop Data Collection Guidance to Support Analysis of Block Grant Fraud Risks

GAO-23-104382
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1 Open Recommendations
Agency Affected Recommendation Status
Department of Housing and Urban Development The Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development should develop guidance for CDBG-DR grantees and subrecipients on collecting complete and consistent data to better support applicant eligibility determinations and fraud risk management. (Recommendation 1)
Open
At the time of the report's issuance, HUD agreed with this recommendation. HUD told GAO that it intended to develop guidance for grantee applicant data collection and provide technical assistance to grantees and subrecipients on best practices for data collection, data format, and personally identifiable information protections. In February 2024, HUD stated that it is working with its Privacy Office to develop training or training materials on data collection, data consistency for data analysis purposes, and protection of personally identifiable information and hoped to complete these actions by September 30, 2024. GAO will continue to monitor HUD's efforts to develop guidance for grantee applicant data collection and provide technical assistance.
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