H.R. 8489

119 HR 8489 IH: HUD Payment Integrity and Accountability Act of 2026
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2026-04-23
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 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I
 119th CONGRESS  2d Session
 H. R. 8489
 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 April 23, 2026
  Mr. Meuser  introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Financial Services
 A BILL
To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to conduct an improper payment assessment for project-based and tenant-based assistance, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   HUD Payment Integrity and Accountability Act of 2026  .
2.
Definitions
In this Act:
(1)
Department
The term  Department  means the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
(2)
Project-based assistance; tenant-based assistance
The terms  project-based assistance  and  tenant-based assistance  have the meanings given those terms in section 8(f) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 ( 42 U.S.C. 1437f(f) ).
(3)
Public housing agency
The term  public housing agency  has the meaning given the term in section 3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 ( 42 U.S.C. 1437a(b) ).
(4)
Secretary
The term  Secretary  means the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
3.
Mandatory compliance date
(a)
In general
Not later than December 1, 2027, the Secretary shall include, as part of the agency financial report for fiscal year 2027 required under OMB Circular No. A–36, a compliant improper payment assessment for project-based assistance and tenant-based assistance.
(b)
Detailed plan and timeline
The Secretary shall develop and execute a detailed plan and timeline for testing and reporting improper payment estimates in the Office of Public and Indian Housing’s Tenant-Based Rental Assistance program and the Office of Multifamily Housing's Project-Based Rental Assistance program, in full compliance with Federal law and applicable guidance issued by the Office of Management and Budget.
4.
Identifying fraud in housing and rental assistance
(a)
Public and section 8 housing
(1)
In general
Not later than 60 days after making a determination described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall notify the Inspector General of the Department of the determination.
(2)
Determination
A determination described in this paragraph is a determination that—
(A)
the aggregate amount of housing assistance payments or grants paid under the United States Housing Act of 1937 ( 42 U.S.C. 1437 et seq. ) for a ZIP Code and county or county equivalent increased by more than 100 percent in a single year; or
(B)
the number of owners, landlords, or public housing agencies receiving Federal rental assistance or operating subsidies increased in a ZIP Code and county or county equivalent by more than 100 percent in a single year.
(b)
Community development and disaster recovery grants
(1)
In general
Not later than 60 days after making a determination described in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall notify the Inspector General of the Department of the determination.
(2)
Determination
A determination described in this paragraph is a determination that—
(A)
the aggregate amount paid under the Community Development Block Grant program under title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 ( 42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq. ) or funds paid under the Community Development Block Grant program for Disaster Recovery for a specific project or within a ZIP Code and county equivalent increased by more than 100 percent in a single year; or
(B)
the number of sub-recipients or contractors receiving payments under the programs described in subparagraph (A) in a specific jurisdiction increased by more than 100 percent in a single year.
(c)
Audit by the Inspector General of HUD
Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Inspector General of the Department shall—
(1)
identify, based on the results of notifications received under subsection (a)(1) or (b)(1), any program or geographic area in which the aggregate amount paid or the number of participating housing providers increased by not less than 400 percent during the preceding 5-year period; and
(2)
audit any such program, agency, or recipient to ensure compliance with improper payment testing requirements and to detect potential fraudulent activity.
5.
Inspector General oversight
(a)
Pre-Validation
Not later than 180 days before the deadline described in section 3(a), the Inspector General of the Department shall certify whether or not—
(1)
the methodology chosen by the Secretary for the assessment described in that section is statistically sound and addresses all material findings from financial statement audits and program audits conducted by the Inspector General related to improper payment testing, eligibility tier verification, and validation of payments to property owners; and
(2)
the Secretary made a serious effort to conduct a data draw and receive supporting documents needed to conduct the assessment described in section 3(a).
(b)
Fraud risk assessment
(1)
In general
The Inspector General of the Department shall conduct, and submit to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on, a separate fraud risk assessment specifically for the approximately $50,000,000,000 expended annually for rental assistance, including tenant-based ad project-based assistance under section 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 ( 42 U.S.C. 1437f(o) ), to identify high-risk nodes in the payment chain.
(2)
Data draw and analytics
In conducting the assessment under paragraph (1), the Inspector General shall of the Department shall—
(A)
execute a comprehensive data draw from all relevant departmental and third-party contract administrator systems to reconcile payments at the eligibility tier;
(B)
identify specific barriers preventing the Department from reestablishing computer matching agreements with the  Do Not Pay  database of the Department of the Treasury; and
(C)
include in the report an analysis on how system enhancement funding provided in previous fiscal years has been utilized to specifically address noncompliance with subchapter IV of  chapter 33  of title 31, United States Code, and other provisions of law related to improper payments.