Free pass for Section 8 fraud

When businesses take bailout money, they become subject to intense governmental scrutiny. Structure, salaries, products and advertisement suddenly fall under governmental authority.

The public largely accepts this. After all, the business leaders failed in their venture and then asked us to save them.

But then we have our Section 8 program, which is essentially bailout money for individuals. A few recipients fit the compassion-stirring profile we all like to imagine, but even the administrators admit that fraud is rampant. An inspector recently told me that he sees tenant fraud being committed in at least 75 percent of the homes he inspects.

Administrators are largely indifferent to this. Where is the oversight? Where is the effort to root out fraud? Where is the support for landlords?

There is none. There are no surprise inspections to count people, beds and toothbrushes? All inspections require enough notice to allow for evidence to be hidden. Daily evidence such as more cars in the driveway 24/7 than authorized adults, enough garbage for a household of eight when supposedly it's only a family of three and residency admissions on police reports is disregarded.

Landlords are told that tenants face losing their voucher if they commit fraud but the reality, which administrators admit, is that there is almost nothing that will cause a voucher to be revoked. And pity the landlord who tries to evict a bad subsidized tenant. Voucher holders are also entitled to free legal representation that will make the OJ trial look modest.

That same legal representation will fight the housing authority if it attempts to revoke a voucher.

So our bailed-out businesses, which actually produce something, are held to high standards to supposedly protect the interests of us taxpayers and yet societal parasites - the people committing Section 8 fraud - are given a free pass.

Stefanie Wilson

Addison