We selected the State of California’s 2018 disaster owner-occupied rehabilitation and reconstruction program to audit after an internal risk assessment of disaster grantees showed the grant was newer and had not yet disbursed the majority of its funding. The State received more than $1 billion for the 2018 disasters. Our audit objective was to determine what the State is considering and to what extent resilience-based mitigation efforts help homeowners to withstand potential future disasters, along with how the State is prioritizing its efforts in the program to assist qualified low-to-moderate-income beneficiaries. The State’s owner-occupied rehabilitation and reconstruction program generally planned for resilience-based mitigation efforts and prioritized its efforts to assist qualified low-to-moderate-income beneficiaries. The State faced some challenges, such as verifying structure type and size and assessing ownership and primary residency, in implementing this program due to it being one of the first housing rehabilitation and reconstruction programs addressing a wildfire disaster. The State’s efforts to adjust its program and requirements as it encountered challenges indicate its willingness to address exceptions when known. We recommended that the State should ensure that it has proper documentation for compliance with building standards and ownership and primary residence determinations.
CA
United States
