Two top Senate Democrats are asking the internal watchdog at the Department of Housing and Urban Development to investigate recent changes to a disaster recovery program.
In a letter shared exclusively with POLITICO’s E&E News on Wednesday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), ranking member on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), ranking member on the Appropriations Committee, write to HUD’s inspector general asking whether workforce reductions and other recent actions at the agency have thwarted its ability to dole out disaster funding.
“The last three months have been marked by chaos, confusion, and poor communication with the people and communities that rely on this funding the most,” Warren and Murray write, noting that HUD’s workforce has been reduced by roughly a quarter in recent months.
The letter comes as the Banking Committee is set to hold a hearing Thursday on insurance markets and disaster mitigation efforts.
