Brace yourself for a jaw-dropping misuse of taxpayer money that could make even the most hardened fiscal hawk wince.
A recent U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development report has exposed that billions in federal rental assistance, distributed during the previous administration, ended up in the hands of questionable recipients, including tens of thousands of deceased individuals and potential non-citizens.
This stunning revelation comes straight from HUD’s fiscal year 2025 Agency Financial Report, a document obtained by the New York Post that paints a troubling picture of oversight gone awry.
During fiscal year 2024, HUD shelled out roughly $50 billion in rental assistance to non-federal entities across the country.
Of that staggering sum, a whopping $5.8 billion was flagged as questionable payments, raising serious concerns about accountability.
The funds disproportionately flowed to areas like New York, California, and Washington, D.C., though payments to deceased recipients were identified in every single state.
Through an automated comparison of its records with a U.S. Treasury database, HUD uncovered that 30,054 deceased tenants were either enrolled in or received rental assistance posthumously.
Additionally, thousands of potential non-citizens also benefited from these funds, highlighting a systemic failure to verify eligibility.
One can’t help but wonder how such a colossal lapse happened under the watch of an administration that promised competence and transparency.
HUD’s internal financial review and analytics brought these issues to light, but the report points a finger at the prior administration for pushing rapid fund disbursement with scant oversight.
According to the findings, the Biden team failed to equip HUD with the necessary tools to ensure compliance with rental assistance guidelines, leaving the program vulnerable to abuse.
“A massive abuse of taxpayer dollars not only occurred under President Biden’s watch, but was effectively incentivized by his administration’s failure to implement strong financial controls resulting in billions worth of potential improper payments,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner told the New York Post, and frankly, it’s hard to argue with that assessment when the numbers are this damning.
“HUD will continue investigating the shocking results and will take appropriate action to hold bad actors accountable,” Turner added, signaling a return to the tougher integrity measures seen in earlier years.
Before any drastic steps are taken, HUD must confirm the extent of potential fraud to decide whether to halt funding or pursue criminal referrals.
With new procedures in the works to pause or revoke payments to problematic recipients, there’s hope that taxpayer dollars will finally serve the vulnerable communities they’re meant for, not phantom tenants or ineligible parties.
