Ehrlich on Washington column, August 9, 1998

MEWS FROM Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. Second Congressional District of Maryland 1407 York Road, Suite 304 Lutherville, Maryland 2 1 093 3 1 5 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 EHRLICH ON WASHINGTON Week of August 9, 1998 By Congressman Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. HUD INVESTIGATION IS NECESSARY Every year, Congress appropriates a significant amount of taxpayer dollars (your money) to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). These funds are dispersed through the HUD federal bureaucracy and then filtered down to government programs and local housing agencies. To provide accountability and to ensure your tax dollars are not misused, President Clinton appoints and Congress appropriates money for an independent watchdog known as an Inspector General (IG) to monitor how HUD funds are spent and to investigate any evidence of wrongdoing. Last year, Congress appropriated an additional $9 million to HUD IG Susan Gaffney for the purpose of conducting a comprehensive, in-depth review of selected cities to identify and prosecute fraud affecting HUD programs and funds. This provision should be supported by anyone who has either spent HUD money in an appropriate manner or by anyone who cares about tax dollars reaching those who need housing assistance. After careful consideration by the HUD IG and her staff, Ms. Gaffney selected Baltimore City as one of the three cities to be reviewed. This announcement came in the wake of a painstakingly reported series of articles in the Baltimore Sun that highlights serious problems within the Baltimore City Housing Administration (BCHA). These Sun reports include, but are not limited to, a 1992 HUD Audit stating the BCHA