Effective: September 1, 2009
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has advised public housing authorities administering the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program to develop a written fraud policy and demonstrate the importance and commitment to combating fraud, waste and abuses in federal housing programs. In response to that recommendation, this policy has been developed for use with MSHDA’s HCV program, and including developments participating in the Moderate Rehabilitation Program (MRP)/Single Room Occupancy (SRO) program with MSHDA.
All participants (including tenants, landlords, MSHDA staff, MRP/SRO Development management staff, and contracted Housing Agents) of the HCV Program are charged with preventing, identifying and reporting fraud. All suspected program abuses or fraud in the HCV or Mod Rehab Programs must be reported immediately upon discovery to MSHDA’s Office of Housing Voucher Program (OHVP) Compliance Enforcement Coordinator (CEC).
HUD has identified, and MSHDA has adopted the following definition of fraud.
Fraud: Refers to a single act or pattern of actions that constitute a material, false statement, misrepresentation, omission, or concealment of a substantial fact made by any participant (i.e. tenant, landlord, employee, or contractor) with the intent to deceive or mislead. This includes, but is not limited to, any of the following activities: