Lafayette housing authority ordered to repay $2.9M

The Lafayette Housing Authority, which has been under federal control for two years, has been ordered to repay $2.9 million in mismanaged funds. An investigation by the U.S. Office of Inspector General concluded that LHA had violated U.S. Housing and Urban Development procurement requirements and paid for unreasonable and unnecessary contract work. According to the OIG report, a copy of which was obtained by The (Lafayette) Daily Advertiser, seven contractors were overpaid more than $350,000, and some employees at the federal Disaster Housing Assistance Program were paid excessive salaries or were paid without executed contracts. HUD took over the Lafayette Housing Authority in March 2011 following more than six months of upheaval that started when an independent 2008-09 audit revealed mismanagement and possible fraud in connection with contracts and spending. Complete details can be found in the full story here.