City to repay $15 million in HUD funds
Back in March, we noted that the city had been told to repay $15.5 million in HUD grants due to misuse of the funds. After months of negotiations, the city has finally agreed to repay the amount, and city council will vote on the proposed settlement this week (via the Chron's Mike Snyder):
The City Council on Wednesday will consider the five-year repayment plan, which city officials have been negotiating with HUD since May 2007.
The $15.5 million sum is unchanged from the amount HUD demanded in a letter to the city in March, although it is far less than about $32 million the agency once said the city owed. Even so, it represents one of the largest repayments HUD has ever demanded from a local government receiving its funds, the agency said.
Local and federal officials said they believe the settlement will signal a new era of cooperation after a troubled relationship that dates back 20 years. The problems peaked in 2005, when an audit of spending found that Houston's housing department chose projects based on its directors' whims, allowed for massive defaults on loans and created opportunities for conflicts of interest and fraud.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 11/18/08 04:59 AM | Houston Miscellany | Print | Comments (2)
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