Budgets are tight all across America as people struggle to make ends meet. Every dollar is precious and it’s not hard to argue that if someone lost just a few dollars in their house they would search the couches and under the beds to recover that money.

It doesn’t make sense to be careless with money when purse strings are tight. Working Americans don’t have the luxury of being frivolous with their earnings.

The problem across the nation is that government leaders aren’t as frugal with the tax dollars working Americans are forced to hand over to them. Somehow these “for the people” politicians still can’t respect the value of money and they don’t know how to spend it wisely.

From The Daily Wire:
The state of Oregon’s housing agency lost track of $426 million in federal pandemic-era funds for emergency rental assistance (ERA), according to a new state audit.

The revelation took years to uncover and was detailed in a 43-page audit released this week. The Oregon Audits Division exposed how the Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) couldn’t come up with a clear answer as to where the millions designated to the Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Program landed. The audit showed that OHCS was clueless about the amount of ERA funds distributed and the number of applicants who ended up with the funding.

“The agency has no way of knowing how much of the $426 million went to eligible Oregon recipients and how much was sent to landlords, renters and non-eligible recipients in error,” read the audit.

The audit also criticized the Oregon ERA Program for problems with financial accounting controls, poor contact administrative practices, oversight that shifted around, and lack of staffing. The report said there was “a rushed and reactive planning and response approach” where OHCS “did little” to monitor fraud compliance, eligibility, and financial controls.

The OHCS was criticized in the report for “limited oversight and controls” and how the department submitted inaccurate reports to the U.S. Treasury while failing to accurately track administrative costs. ERA funds for the state flowed from the more than $46 billion in relief money appropriated by Congress in 2020 and 2021. Oregon’s ERA Program lasted from May 2021 to June 2023.

Likely not a surprise to many people, OHCS failed to meet federal guidelines in handing out funds, but it did take extra steps to achieve its desired equity-based goals. Some of the money was allocated to people demographics based in part on disability, substance abuse disorders, mental health issues; the homeless; and Latinos, African Americans, and Asian/Pacific Islanders.

Key Takeaways:

• Oregon busted for losing track of $426 million in pandemic-era relief funds.
• Inside audit of state agencies showed failure to monitor and control money.
• The report stated there is “no way of knowing” if eligible people received funds.

Source: The Daily Wire