D.C. lawmakers had tough questions for District of Columbia Housing Authority Director Brenda Donald, who — despite myriad issues within the agency, including fraud allegations — received a $41,000 bonus.
The District’s long-troubled housing authority is under investigation on allegations of fraud and favoritism following a scathing audit by U.S. Housing and Urban Development investigators. Last week, At-large Council member Robert White, who oversees the housing committee, called for the Inspector General to investigate the agency after allegations of corruption, criminal behavior and financial impropriety were lodged against DCHA.
Donald denied corruption inside the agency or any wrongdoing, calling the allegations individual personnel matters.
In the same news conference, White asked Donald to have answers when she came before the committee to testify about its fiscal year 2024 budget outlook. However, Donald was hesitant to answer some of White’s questions.
When he asked her what criteria she had to meet to receive a recent $41,000 bonus and who approved it, Donald referred to it as a personal matter, insinuating that it wasn’t subject to committee oversight.
“You know, it is common in the public housing industry to have performance bonus opportunities written into employment contracts, and it’s also standard within the public housing industry. Our position is that information is privileged and confidential, and it’s between my board of directors and myself,” Donald said.
White said he felt it was not a personnel issue and asked the question again multiple times, to no avail.
“This is the reason that the agency sits under such a cloud of distrust. What you heard from witness after witness are people who are unhappy with the agency, unhappy with communication and unhappy with performance. And you come to a hearing and refuse to answer questions … If it should have been done, then you would have no problem answering the question,” White said in regard to Donald’s bonus.
In the hours leading up to the director’s testimony, dozens of public housing residents and their advocates testified about moldy, unlivable conditions going unchecked; paperwork issues that caused them to lose their housing despite multiple attempts to reach DCHA; and a feeling that they’re being ignored and mistreated.
“Who from the council is tasked to make sure the money that the council yields or allocates is being used in the units? They are not. The residents are crying out for help,” Patricia Malloy said in her testimony.
Misha Pettway, resident council president at the Potomac Gardens housing property, testified that the moldy conditions in a resident’s unit are so bad it has made her kitchen and bathroom unsafe. Pettway shared photos with the committee to show the effects of the water issue at Potomac Gardens 2, which has not abated.
“She hasn’t been able to use her cabinets for more than a year. Council member (Charles) Allen actually walked through this apartment back in October, and he was able to see some of these very things. The work that maintenance does is not acceptable work. It is not work that I’m sure they wouldn’t even want in their own home,” Pettway said.
White has introduced legislation that aims to make the Housing Authority more transparent.
It’s unclear whether the Inspector General’s office would heed his suggestion to investigate DCHA. The office did not confirm the existence of an investigation.
