HUD Announces New Financial Controls

HUD last week announced new measures to protect the financial integrity of the agency and correct lax internal processes and controls.

HUD Secretary Ben Carson, who has come under criticism for a now-canceled $31,000 dining room table order at HUD headquarters, directed the department’s newly appointed Chief Financial Officer, Irving Dennis, to design and implement a transformation plan and lead an internal taskforce to combat waste, fraud and abuse.

In a statement, Carson said the Department’s current financial controls are outdated. “We simply need to do better,” he said. “An updated system of internal controls will provide our agency with greater certainty that the dollars we spend are spent in a manner that satisfies all laws and regulations, and most importantly, the American people. We will approach this as any business would by increasing transparency and accountability. In the end, we will also support a culture that respects the fact that HUD funds belong to the public.”

Dennis is a former partner at accounting firm Ernst & Young.

Components of the plan include:
–Agency-wide Governance: Implementing an Agency-wide governance structure that allows for more oversight, transparency, monitoring and accountability;
–Finance Transformation: Developing a plan to restore discipline and accountability in the financial and reporting systems across the Agency.
–Grant Modernization: Developing a holistic grant modernization plan to improve grant processes and reporting, including improved IT systems; and
–Process Improvement: Promoting a HUD culture focused on documented and repeatable process with a focus on transparency and cost reasonableness.

As part of this effort, HUD’s Office of the CFO, with support from the Agency’s Office of the General Counsel, are currently reviewing processes to ensure HUD is within all guidelines and using resources effectively.

Carson is expected to discuss details of the plan this Thursday, Mar. 22, when he appears at a HUD oversight hearing before the Senate Banking Committee. The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. in 538 Dirksen Senate Office Building and can be accessed online at https://www.banking.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/hearings?ID=1D50A583-9D5A-4051-8CAF-EE80981AEFEA.