SPRINGFIELD — Springfield Metropolitan Housing Authority officials were issued a $966 recovery Thursday due for late fees on bills paid after their due dates.
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The current and former Authority directors received fines after an audit of the 2021 fiscal year, as the inquiry discovered 20 late fees made to vendors in response to past-due payments.
The Ohio Auditor of State’s office determined that the fees were enacted due to user-error on the Authority’s behalf.
“Late fees do not serve a proper public purpose,” stated the Office’s report. “These late fees... could have been avoided had the Authority timely remitted all payments.”
The SMHA responded by stating that delivery of payments were beyond their control, and that they had successfully disputed previous late fees. The Authority is working to avoid future fees by establishing electronic payment methods.
The Authority’s directors, as well as their bonding company, will be jointly responsible for the recovery’s repayment.
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