Clarify whether assistance provided under its community development programs, such as HOPWA, are considered “Federal public benefits” and are, therefore, subject to PRWORA’s noncitizen eligibility restrictions.

Consult with the Office of the Attorney General to establish whether HOPWA and other homeless assistance programs are a Federal public benefit that meets the definition of “providing assistance for the protection of life or safety” and are, therefore, exempt from PRWORA noncitizen eligibility restrictions.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reimburse its CDBG line of credit for $568,629 in ineligible costs for its violation of procurement requirements. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reimburse its CDBG line of credit for $572,929 in ineligible costs for its violation of Federal requirements and procurement procedures when it acquired a property with CDBG funding. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to implement technical assistance and guidance received from HUD to ensure compliance with requirements.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to obtain technical assistance from HUD related to differentiating between subrecipients and contractors and ensuring that the correct procurement requirements are followed when obtaining a subrecipient or contractor.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to update its CDBG written agreements to include the specific language required.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to develop contracts to include all Federal requirements and to be signed by both the City and the contractors awarded bids with CDBG funding.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to amend and implement its conflict-of-interest policy and procedures to ensure that it complies with Federal conflict-of-interest requirements and includes elected and appointed positions.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to support that environmental requirements and client eligibility were met for dental services or repay $59,604 to its CDBG line of credit from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to support that environmental requirements were met for the roof replacement of a food bank or repay $260,000 to its CDBG line of credit from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to support that environmental requirements were met for homeowner rehabilitation or repay $181,053 to its CDBG line of credit from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reimburse its CDBG line of credit for $73,186 in ineligible costs for its statutory violation of environmental requirements when it rehabilitated a home without completing the environmental review. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to provide training for staff members to ensure that they know their roles and responsibilities with respect to CDBG program oversight and that documentation and other requirements are met.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reimburse its CDBG line of credit for $507,218 in ineligible costs for its violation of its home rehabilitation policy and procedure when it exceeded the allowed maximum assistance per home with no cost justifications. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reimburse its CDBG line of credit for $110,647 in ineligible costs for the rehabilitation costs that exceeded the allowed HOME value limits. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reimburse its CDBG line of credit for $474 in ineligible costs for violation of Federal travel regulations. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to reclassify the $9,476 to program administration and recalculate its cap to determine whether it exceeded the allowed 20 percent. Any amount that is over the allowed cap would be ineligible, and repayment of the overage amount to its CDBG line of credit would be required. Reimbursement must be from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to support payroll wages charged to the CDBG grant or repay $69,254 to its CDBG line of credit from non-Federal funds.

We recommend that the Director of HUD’s Albuquerque Office of Community Planning and Development require the City of Albuquerque’s Department of Family and Community Services to implement recommendations made from its internal and external auditors that will ensure compliance with applicable regulations related to cost reasonableness and eligibility and that costs are adequately supported.