September 29, 2011

Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area – Weatherization Assistance Program Funds Provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act), the Department of Energy's (Department) Weatherization Assistance Program (Weatherization Program) received $5 billion to increase the energy efficiency of dwellings owned or occupied by low-income persons.  Subsequently, the Department awarded a 3-year, $267 million Recovery Act weatherization grant to the State of Ohio's Department of Development.  The State of Ohio allocated about $18 million of its grant to the Community Action Partnership of the Greater Dayton Area (Dayton) to weatherize 2,144 homes.  The Department's Office of Inspector General contracted with Lopez and Company, LLP, an independent public accounting firm, to conduct an examination of the weatherization activities of Dayton. 
Lopez and Company, LLP found that Dayton had not always complied with laws, regulations, and program guidelines.  For example, weatherization materials, equipment, and services were procured without evidence of a cost or price analysis or competitive bidding.  As a result, Lopez and Company, LLP questioned over $70,000 in Dayton's procurements.  In addition, of 34 homes Lopez and Company, LLP reviewed for quality of work, 19 had final inspections that identified follow-up work needed.  Further, Dayton did not comply with Federal regulations requiring all timecards to have employee signatures or supervisory approval.  Finally, Dayton did not track and document the number of follow-up contacts with households for which weatherization work had been completed as required by the State.  Dayton officials concurred with the findings and recommendations and submitted planned corrective actions to remedy deficiencies noted in the report.

Topic: Financial Assistance