The terms of the settlement were not immediately available. Salcido had sued the district following a tenure of less than a year. [background]
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The investigation by HUD will address questions of "agency procurement and contracting" from Jan. 1 to present, Mayor John Cook said.
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He said three investigators would be in El Paso for two weeks of every month until June.
Cook said the procurement and contracting questions "were the same areas of concern (commissioner) Jaime Rubinstein has been bringing up for months."
The HUD OIG "Promotes the integrity, efficiency and effectiveness of HUD programs and operations to assist the Department in meeting its mission; Detects and prevents waste, fraud, and abuse; and Seeks administrative sanctions, civil recoveries and/or criminal prosecution of those responsible for waste, fraud and abuse in HUD programs and operations," according to the agency Web site.
Rubinstein and former board Chairwoman Kenna Ramirez, who resigned Jan. 4, each had requested at a December board meeting for HUD to review contracts.
Rubinstein said at the time he wanted to clear up any issues. He did not specifically acknowledge the questions raised by the NPT report that described his efforts to send a family counseling contract to Aliviane. [nov. 28, 2007 npt report]
Rubinstein later revealed that he became a paid administrator for New Beginnings, a company controlled by Chilo Madrid, who runs Aliviane. [dec. 19, 2007 npt report]
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More Background
-- Dec. 12, 2008: HACEP Board Hammers Out, But Delays, ED Contract; Terms of the contract for Gerald Cichon were reached, but the vote to ratify and execute the contract was delayed until next week. The meeting started with statements against any action by Chairwoman Ramirez; for more than an hour, Cichon, his lawyer and the HACEP attorney negotiated terms (pictured), and the meeting ended with HACEP one step closer to having a new executive director.
-- Dec. 5, 2008: HACEP Under HUD Review; Cichon Contract Meeting Scheduled for Dec. 12; HUD is in El Paso reviewing HACEP "operations, procurement, governance and other issues." Meanwhile, the meeting to ratify a contract offered to Gerry Cichon has been scheduled for Dec. 12.
-- Nov. 29, 2008: Kenna Ramirez Responds, Angrily, to Vote for HACEP ED; A reaction by HACEP board Chairwoman Ramirez to Thursday night's vote to hire Gerry Cichon as executive director, and HUD comments on the Aliviane contract.
Jerry Kurtyka
March 28, 2008
One of the commissioners told me that the HUD investigators arrived this week to start their work.
One item on the Wednesday agenda relating to the 2007 financial results seemed to sail past the board and CEO without even a comment. It took nine months, apparently, to even produce an annual report. This is like flying an airplane and getting your speed, altitude and heading after you have landed!
HACEP is losing money at the rate of $300K+ per month. The board and CEO, Mr. Chicon, seem to have little interest in this situation. On Wednesday there were no questions from either board members or the CEO as to why this situation exists and if there is a plan to bring expenses in line with revenues. Rather, Mr. Chicon seemed more concerned with getting a clarification from the board on their employee education reimbursement policy. Duh...This is like looking for your cigarettes while your house burns down around you!
Local vendors are leaving HACEP because they cannot get their invoices paid, a factor that jeopardizes projects like Alamito. Recent minutes of HACEP board meetings (e.g., Feb 27, 2008) detail multiple instances of over runs on contracts from vendors. There does not appear to be credible financial management or control at HACEP.
And they expect the banks to buy their bonds? HACEP is the best political theatre since the Caballero Council.