A newly released report from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reveals that more than $5 billion in federal rental assistance during the final year of the Biden administration went to recipients flagged as “questionable,” including tens of thousands of people listed as deceased and thousands of potential non-citizens, The New York Post reports.
According to the HUD findings, roughly 30,000 payments were made to individuals identified as “deceased tenants,” while “thousands” of others may have been non-citizens. Federal officials said the suspect disbursements were heavily concentrated in New York, California and Washington, DC, though payments to dead recipients were identified in every state — a pattern officials described as widespread misuse of taxpayer funds under the Biden administration.
“A massive abuse of taxpayer dollars not only occurred under President [Joe] Biden’s watch, but was effectively incentivized by his administration’s failure to implement strong financial controls resulting in billions worth of potential improper payments,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in a statement.
“HUD will continue investigating the shocking results and will take appropriate action to hold bad actors accountable. Additionally, the Department is advancing efforts made under President Trump’s first administration to strengthen program integrity and ensure taxpayer-funded assistance serves the vulnerable communities it was intended for.”
The 183-page report from HUD’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer identified $5.8 billion in questionable payments out of nearly $50 billion distributed through federal rental assistance programs in fiscal year 2024. Those funds went to public housing authorities, landlords, contractors and other non-federal entities.
About 11% of HUD’s rental assistance spending went to more than 200,000 tenants who may not have been eligible. Of those, 29,715 individuals — roughly 14% — were listed as deceased, 9,472 — about 4% — were non-citizens, and 165,393 — 82% — received payments that exceeded income limits for their local area, particularly in New Orleans and other major metropolitan regions.
HUD’s rental assistance programs are intended to support low-income residents who would otherwise struggle to afford housing. Officials warned that improper payments could mean fewer resources for those genuinely in need.
The report places blame on a Biden-era directive that prioritized rapid distribution of funds “with minimal oversight,” as well as program structures that placed “substantial trust and responsibility in these non-federal entities … to accurately assess tenant eligibility.”
HUD officials said the agency will now contact public housing authorities and other recipients to determine the full scope of the problem and may suspend or withdraw funding where necessary. Criminal referrals will also be pursued when appropriate.
“HUD is implementing processes and procedures to revoke or pause funding as part of its efforts to hold bad actors accountable,” one official said. “Additionally, the Department could make criminal referrals and exercise other enforcement actions once it has confirmed fraud occurred.”
During the period from October 2023 through September 2024, HUD spent $33 billion on Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (TBRA), covering more than 4 million households, and another $16 billion on Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA). Both programs were reviewed as part of the audit.
The report found that more than 200,000 tenants were flagged for eligibility concerns tied to $1.5 billion in TBRA payments, while approximately $4.3 billion — or 26.4% — of PBRA spending also involved eligibility issues.
Working alongside the Department of Homeland Security, HUD also identified “thousands” of non-citizens receiving Section 8 or Section 9 rental assistance despite being ineligible.
HUD officials said the report aligns with President Trump’s pledges to increase “accountability and transparency” and to protect “taxpayer funds against waste, fraud and abuse.”
The agency’s Office of Inspector General has previously examined HUD’s fraud prevention efforts following the infusion of billions in housing funds from Biden’s 2021 American Rescue Plan Act and Trump’s 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act.
An October 2022 audit concluded that HUD “needed significant improvement” in its antifraud measures and found that officials overseeing both PBRA and TBRA were failing to assess fraud risks.
The audit also noted that HUD “did not have a clear process in place for PHAs [public housing authorities], PBCAs [performance based contract administrators], and grantees to report instances of known or suspected fraud to HUD and HUD’s Office of Inspector General (OIG).”
By February 2024, prosecutors in the Southern District of New York charged 70 current and former employees of the New York City Housing Authority with accepting cash kickbacks from contractors. Authorities said the alleged scheme spanned roughly a decade.
US Attorney Damian Williams described the operation — involving up to $2 million in bribes and $13 million in no-bid contracts — as “the largest single-day bribery takedown in the history of the Justice Department.”
NYCHA, which provides rental assistance to more than 500,000 New Yorkers, received $3.86 billion in HUD funding in 2023. A March 2025 HUD OIG audit found that the agency’s federal funding was at “greater risk of fraud” due to insufficient safeguards and guidance, adds the Post.
