Augusta official suspended as city repays feds millions
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - A top Augusta official was taken off the job after the city had to repay more than $6 million in unspent grant money that was supposed to help people pay their rent if they faced eviction.
And the city is going to conduct an audit to check for other problems.
News of Housing and Community Development Director Hawthorne Welcher’s suspension emerged after Augusta Commission voted to return the money – plus interest.
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Millions of dollars flow into Augusta from the federal government every year to keep people housed.
The funds were coming to Welcher’s department long before the pandemic sent more families to the streets, but it certainly flowed freely after COVID struck.
From rental assistance and hotel stays to brand-new homes and rehabilitated ones, Housing and Community Development runs the programs financed by the federal government.
But the money comes with strings attached: You have to spend it, and you have to use it for what it’s meant for.
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The city got a letter from the federal government saying it expected to get more than $6 million of its money back because the city hadn’t spent it by the deadline of Sept. 30, 2022.
In addition to the principal of $6.3 million, the city was charged nearly $43,000 in interest.
The federal government’s demand wasn’t common knowledge to a wider group of city officials until months after it was received.
City Tameka Allen informed Augusta Commission and Mayor Garnett Johnson about it on March 21. She said she’d learned from the interim finance director that the federal government had notified Welcher in November.
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Allen told officials she’d spoken with Welcher and a meeting was scheduled “to discuss how to address this request for payment.”
News 12 obtained these emails and the federal invoices through an open records request.
Replying to the email from Allen, Commissioner Tina Slendak wrote:
“I have a LOT of questions and concerns. I look forward to hearing the details of the meeting with Mr. Welcher.”
Commissioner Catherine Smith-Rice wrote: “I have lots of concerns. Why do we owe $6.5M back? Interested in hearing how the meeting goes tomorrow.”
It’s not clear whether the suspension and repayment are connected or just happened to occur around the same time.
The Augusta Commission went into a closed executive session during the April 1 meeting. The agenda for that legal meeting included “personnel.”
When commissioners came out of the session, they made a motion for Augusta to deliver to the U.S. Treasury unused emergency assistance funds and expenses totaling $6.54 million.
The motion carried 9-1 with Commissioner Stacy Pulliam voting no, and Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle not present.
Johnson confirmed Welcher’s suspension to News 12 on Thursday.
Also Thursday, News 12 learned the city requested bids for a grant compliance audit of the Housing and Community Development Department. The bids are due at 11 a.m. April 30.
News 12 reached out to Welcher for comment, and he has not responded.
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