House panel considers HUD subpoena over wasteful spending | Katonah NY Real Estate

A House subcommittee will vote Wednesday on whether to subpoena the Department and Housing Development over reportedly wasteful spending through a housing construction program.

Last year, the Washington Post uncovered hundreds of millions of dollars idling in the HOME Investment Partnership Program meant to develop properties in low-income areas. According to the story, more than 700 projects funded with more than $400 million made no progress for as long as a decade in some cases.

At the time, HUD published a blog post in reaction to the story. It claimed the stalled projects represented roughly 2.5% of active developments, and more than 1 million homes have been constructed because of the program.

The House oversight and investigations subcommittee spent the past year looking into the program. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, chairman of the panel, will hold a vote to obtain program documents from HUD.

“The documents we have requested are essential to our ongoing investigation to weed out waste, fraud, and abuse and see whether the HOME Program can be better run,” Neugebauer said. “The documents we are requesting are important to maintain the integrity of our investigation and ensure that taxpayer dollars are not wasted.”

HUD denied claims it has been uncooperative during the investigation.

“We have already provided over 2,000 pages of emails,” a HUD spokesman said. “We feel we have been responsive on this.”