Reports of mismanagement and voucher fraud at the D.C. Housing Authority (DCHA) continue to pile up, At-large Councilmember Robert White insisted at a press conference on March 30.
White, who has chaired the council’s Housing Committee since January, highlighted four instances of alleged wrongdoing within DCHA — three of which were already investigated by DCHA and have been the subject of news coverage — to point to systemic issues at the agency, which oversees D.C.’s public housing and voucher programs. Speaking to reporters after White’s press conference, DCHA Director Brenda Donald acknowledged the findings but said there was no indication of pervasive fraud in the agency.
“This is not widespread corruption throughout this agency,” Donald said. “There are isolated incidents that, when brought to my attention, I referred to our internal auditor for investigation.”
Audit reports for two of the allegations found that a lack of checks and balances — as well as poor supervision of new employees, management failures and an inadequate understanding of program rules — could have contributed to the issues.