(Mike Morris, Houston Chronicle)
Federal investigators issued a subpoena for a sweeping range of financial records from the Harris County Housing Authority Wednesday amid allegations that former agency executives wildly misrepresented HCHA’s assets and improperly spent down accounts restricted to its rental voucher program.
The subpoena from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General asks the authority to produce thousands of documents, including personnel and payroll records, bank statements, receipts and vouchers, as well as all paperwork related to investments, procurement, contracts, correspondence with contractors and tax records.
Word of the subpoena came as interim CEO Tom McCasland outlined for the HCHA board preliminary findings from his review of the agency’s books following the March 21 ouster of former CEO Guy Rankin IV. According to McCasland, his predecessors misled board members by inflating HCHA’s assets by at least $5.8 million and claiming hundreds of thousands of dollars in unrestricted cash on hand, when, in reality, there is none.
(Read more at the Houston Chronicle)
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- New Program in Houston Promotes Residential Beautification Projects (KTRK 13 News)
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- EPA to Regulate Air Pollution from Gas Drilling (KUHF Public Radio)