The state’s housing agency did not use all of the $9.4 billion of federal money that was set aside to help financially strapped New Yorkers move into permanent homes, according to an audit released on Thursday.
Auditors from state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s office found that New York State Homes and Community Renewal left millions of dollars worth of housing vouchers unspent.
“Too many New Yorkers are struggling with housing costs to allow available resources to go unused,” DiNapoli said in a news release.
The review covered a five-year period from 2017 to 2021, which included the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when housing needs were acute. The state housing agency was charged with distributing Section 8 housing vouchers.
Charni Sochet, a spokesperson for HCR, says the affordable housing agency has already spent 97% of the available funding and is working to push out more vouchers.
“In spite of an ongoing housing crisis that is driving up rental costs and limiting available housing supply, HCR has taken a proactive approach that has ensured that utilization rates improved over the last seven consecutive months,” Sochet said.
The housing agency failed to meet the federal government’s requirement that states use at least 95% of the housing voucher funds, according to auditors.
“In some areas, low rates of use are related to the lack of affordable housing, whereas in others it is related to issues with the local administration of the program,” according to the audit.
In Brooklyn, auditors found that HCR distributed about 82% of the available vouchers during those five years, even though demand was high.
