Investigates: JEA willing to take direct deposits from JHA despite unenthusiastic response

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Action News Jax Investigates is digging deeper into the Inspector General’s report on the Jacksonville Housing Authority.

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Action News Jax first told you Tuesday when the IG concluded that there was wasteful spending at the agency, involving nearly $2 million worth of pre-loaded utility debit cards.

Action News Jax’s Ben Becker learned that claims made by JHA are being refuted by another local agency.

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The 20-page IG report that was released on Tuesday detailed not just wasteful spending, but also recommendations, including JHA paying JEA directly on behalf of families.

The Office of Inspector General reported that nearly $2 million was loaded onto about 1,600 Jacksonville Housing Tenant utility reimbursement paying cards.

However, only 13% or $268,473.42 were spent on utilities. More than $1.7 million were spent on things unrelated to utilities.

Read: IG report concludes almost $2M of utility cards not used for stated purpose as ANJ first reported

In the report, the Housing Authority said it “reached out to JEA several years ago” about a direct payment option instead of debit cards, but the “administrative burden” for both was a “cause of concern.”

Becker reached out to JEA, and they gave him the following statement:

“As a JEA internal audit manager noted in the report, JEA does accept direct payments from a number of agencies and nonprofit organizations on behalf of our customers. JEA works on a daily basis to make it easier for all of our customers to do business with us. We stand ready to support JHA’s ongoing efforts on behalf of its constituents.”

The feeling doesn’t appear to be mutual. JHA CEO Dwayne Alexander responded to the IG report by saying that the debit cards also have an ATM cash option, and HUD has no requirements on how families can use reimbursement payments. In other words, they didn’t break any rules.

Read: Source: IG to recommend Jacksonville Housing Authority utility payments be made directly to JEA

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