The Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority decided in 2022 to privatize management of its federal housing choice voucher program that pays landlords who rent to people using federal housing assistance.
CMHA promised it would save $1 million a year by privatizing. But after three years of problems, the authority switched back to in-house service this year.
The housing authority didn't save $1 million with the switch. In fact, it spent more, according to figures CMHA supplied to WOSU.
Despite higher costs, there wasn’t a significant increase in the people served by the program.
WOSU has asked for someone to explain the figures the housing authority sent over, but the housing authority refused several times over the course of the last few months.
And now, months since CMHA took back operations in March, some tenants and landlords report that the problems that started under the privatization effort still persist.
The voucher program cost $10.7 million to operate in 2021.
It cost more each year starting in 2022, the year CMHA entered the contract with CGI.
Costs were $18.4 million in 2022, $14.4 million in 2023, $13.8 million in 2024, and in 2025, CMHA budgeted $17.4 million to operate the program.
Expenses were higher this year because of the expense to hire staff again, according to CMHA.
WOSU has repeatedly asked CMHA to explain how the organization expected to save $1 million a year, and why the contract with CGI didn’t cap costs.
The organization has refused to provide its chief financial officer or any other executive for an interview with WOSU.
Many tenants and landlords reported worse service under privatization, and some say it hasn’t improved over the last few months since CMHA took back operations.
The housing authority spokesperson acknowledged the problems and blamed a software conversion.
CMHA had to offer special hours to landlords to help them get issues resolved.
One landlord Dean Schiller reached out to WOSU.
“So they went to CGI and it was a nightmare. It was just terrible,” Schiller said.
He’s been renting to people with vouchers since 2013 and said the chaos and uncertainty has plagued his interactions with the housing authority over the last few years.
“It’s just whenever they do something, you know, it seems like everything, the dust is just everywhere and then it takes a while to settle and the tenants and the landlords pay for it,” he said.
Schiller has renters who use vouchers for eight of his properties, six in Franklin County and two in Licking County.
He said he never has a problem receiving payments in Licking County, but the problems in Franklin County have been so prevalent since the switch and switch back that he is thinking of selling the properties.
“I just can't say enough good things about Licking County, but Columbus, I think it's personally, I think it is a leadership problem,” Schiller said.
CMHA's governing board is made up of members selected by the Columbus mayor's office, the county commissioners and several countywide courts.
CMHA did not respond to a request seeking a response to the housing authority’s leadership. The governing board has increased the pay of the CMHA CEO Charles Hillman several times in recent years, making him the highest paid CEO of a housing authority in the country.
Hillman was hired as CEO at $185,000 a year in 2010. The CMHA board gave him several large increases in pay over the last few years, raising his pay to $400,000. The board raised it again last year to $550,000 per year.
WOSU reached out to Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther's office and Franklin County commissioners.
Columbus development director Michael Stevens met with WOSU on the mayor's behalf. He said they aren't worried about CMHA's performance.
"We know that transitions of this scale are complex and we appreciate CMHA's commitment to resolving the issues and strengthening their operations,” Stevens said.
Stevens said he expects the organization’s cost comparison to get more transparent after service has been back in house for a while.
“From a City of Columbus perspective, while CMHA is a separate entity, you know, we do believe that transparency builds trust and are confident that as CMHA continues to restore these services and bring them in-house, the comparisons will likely become clearer,” Stevens said.
Franklin County Administrator Kenneth Wilson said the county has no concerns with their appointee or the board, and that commissioners appoint people to 45 different boards.
“We go through a careful consideration in vetting of appointees that are selected for consideration based on their background and unique experiences. In a specific field depending upon the agencies. And at that point is the board member's role to provide direction, financial oversight when applicable and guide an organization towards long term sustainability and success to carry out the mission of that particular board or commission,” Wilson said.
Though there have been reports of some people losing housing because of late payments, CMHA reports it doesn’t track tenant evictions, so it doesn’t know how many.
Tenants who spoke with WOSU in August as they left appointments at CMHA all had negative experiences to report.
WOSU is keeping their names private, because they expressed fear of losing their housing if they are identified.
"I'm about to be homeless. Even though I work as a teacher, but it's bad and my voucher is about to expire and I just got my vouchers. I have a 6- month-old baby, 6-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter," one woman said.
Others said some landlords have heard of the problems and won't rent to people with vouchers anymore. And, that the housing market is already so competitive that it’s easier for landlords to focus on renters who can pay more or don't have vouchers.
