Public Housing

GAO was asked to review the extent to which funds appropriated by Congress to modernize the nation's public housing are not being spent in a timely manner. This fact sheet discusses the extent of, reasons for, and federal and local efforts to reduce the accumulation of unobligated modernization funds. In summary, through fiscal year 1994, the Congress has appropriated approximately $9.3 billion that either has not been approved for local use by the Department of Housing and Urban Development or which public housing authorities have not obligated for modernization projects.

GAO found that: (1) there is approximately $9.3 billion in appropriated funds that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has not approved for local use or public housing authorities (PHA) have not obligated for modernization projects; (2) HUD expects PHA to obligate their approved funds within 2 years, but it allows PHA to take up to 3 years to obligate funds; (3) HUD considers only $434.5 million of the funds as backlogged, but HUD failed to calculate the unobligated balance approved in fiscal year (FY) 1991; (4) most of the backlog consists of approved funds from fiscal years 1990 and 1991; (5) most of the unobligated modernization funds are designated for larger PHA; (6) factors contributing to the backlogs at PHA include the time needed to comply with federal and local laws, federal and local public housing policies and procedures, litigation, and insufficient management resources; (7) HUD and PHA have made operational and regulatory changes to speed up the obligation of funds by increasing HUD and PHA management attention to and resources for the program; and (8) since FY 1982, HUD has taken back over $59 million of unobligated funds from PHA.