Poor oversight and limited outreach delayed home repairs for New York veterans with disabilities and left most available program funding unspent, according to an audit released by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.
The audit examined the state’s Access to Home for Heroes/Veterans Program from April 2022 through December 2025. Auditors found that only $1.2 million, or 36%, of the $3.3 million awarded during the three-year period had been spent as of October 2025.
Only 81 projects were completed across 15 of New York’s 62 counties.
“Affordable, accessible housing remains out of reach for many of New York’s veterans,” DiNapoli said. “This program is supposed to deliver critical home repairs, but poor oversight and weak outreach left veterans waiting for help.”
The program assists low- and moderate-income veterans with disabilities by funding emergency repairs, accessibility improvements and corrections of housing code violations. Individual projects are generally capped at $25,000.
New York is home to approximately 173,000 veterans with disabilities.
The program is administered by the Office of Community Renewal within New York State Homes and Community Renewal. Local governments and nonprofit organizations apply to serve as local program administrators and receive reimbursement for eligible project costs.
Auditors found that just 14 local organizations applied for funding during the audit period, with 12 receiving awards.
Since the program began in 2015, approximately 31% of the $19.6 million allocated to it has been spent. The program has completed an average of 33 projects annually statewide.
Delays and Oversight Problems Identified
The audit found that state officials did not adequately monitor the performance of local program administrators or identify underserved areas with large populations of veterans with disabilities.
A review of 10 contracts found that seven local administrators missed at least one major contract milestone 80% of the time. Two missed a key deadline by nearly three years.
Other findings included:
- Two contracts had not submitted required initial project reviews despite being 10 months into their terms.
- Seven contracts contained incomplete or inaccurate records.
- Some administrators failed to follow competitive bidding requirements.
- Bidding problems included one contractor’s bid being shared with another contractor.
- Two contracts did not comply with conflict-of-interest requirements, including one case in which an administrator hired a relative.
- Only two of nine organizations that promised to advertise the program online had done so.
Auditors said state monitoring was largely limited to the beginning and end of contracts, with little review while projects were underway. Although officials contacted local administrators about missed deadlines, the same organizations continued to miss milestones.
In some cases, those problems caused veterans to wait longer for needed repairs.
Many Counties Received No Assistance
The audit also found significant gaps in public awareness.
Auditors identified 35 counties with large populations of veterans with disabilities. Nineteen of those counties had no program applicants. Officials in some municipalities with sizable veteran populations told auditors they had never heard of the program.
The Comptroller’s Office recommended that Homes and Community Renewal strengthen oversight of local administrators, conduct more site visits and reviews, and enforce eligibility, purchasing and conflict-of-interest rules.
Auditors also called for a broader statewide marketing campaign and targeted outreach in counties with large populations of veterans with disabilities.
Homes and Community Renewal officials generally agreed with some of the audit’s recommendations.
