County suspends rent-assistance contract with Community Action Council

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The Board of County Commissioners suspended today the county's contract with Community Action Council of Lewis, Mason & Thurston Counties (CAC), the regional nonprofit organization that has been distributing rental assistance funds during the pandemic. 

In a press release, the county claims there is "suspected fraud in rental assistance payments" managed by the CAC amounting to $86,000.

“The county is taking the next steps to determine the magnitude of the potential fraud,” read the press release, “as well as working through the process to recover those funds.”

Prior to the suspension, CAC facilitated the county’s Treasury Rent Assistance Program (TRAP), providing financial assistance for rent and utilities to people affected by the pandemic.

According to a statement by the commissioners, the county auditor monitored CAC’s distribution of the emergency rental assistance and found four applications that showed potential fraud, with two more placed on hold by CAC pending additional information.

“It is important to note that this was discovered even during a period when we were quickly responding to the impacts of the pandemic on our community,” County Manager Ramiro Chavez said.

Blindsided

In a statement posted on its website and Facebook page, CAC Chief Executive Officer Kirsten York said they were given no advance notice of the suspension issued today, adding that there are no plans in place for continuing the services provided by the TRAP contracts.

York's statement points out that the county's internal auditor completed a review on Jan. 24 and stated that, “No finding of fraud or suspected fraud was made.”

York said that the auditor said that compliance could be improved by augmenting fraud prevention measures and internal controls, to which CAC asked for clarifications on Feb. 14, “because the new recommendations were inconsistent with prior County recommendations and did not align with the County Program Manager’s recommendations.

York warned that the suspension puts 1,269 households at risk of eviction and that distribution of the remaining $8 million in TRAP funds is at risk.

“The irreparable harm done by this mis-portrayal of our operations and the decision of contract suspension, jeopardizes our organization's ability to provide services to clients and harms vulnerable community members who are eligible for this critical funding,” CAC claimed.

“While this may cause a brief delay in rental and utility assistance funds for our community members, we are working as quickly as we can to have a system in place to continue to provide services to those in need,” said Chavez.

Both the county's press release and CAC's response are attached to this report. 

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  • Thanks JOLT for this really important news. In this case I see you as the impartial voice in a conflicted set of accusations and denials. Could you please follow up on this issue between the Board of County Commissioners and the CAC? In this case I think the truth will be uncovered in the suspected fraud, as the financial matter is looked into. And if the suspension results in only a "brief delay" in rental and utility assistance. Please keep us in the loop!

    Sunday, February 27, 2022 Report this