**Houston Housing Authority to Pay $600,000 to Settle Whistleblower Fraud Lawsuit**

**HOUSTON, TX** – The Houston Housing Authority (HHA) board of commissioners voted Tuesday to approve a $600,000 settlement, bringing an end to a 2018 whistleblower lawsuit that alleged fraudulent practices and improper payments to contractors. The settlement resolves claims brought forward by the agency’s former counsel, Karen Miniex.

Under the terms of the agreement, the HHA will pay $500,000 to the United States government and $100,000 to Miniex. The original lawsuit, filed in 2018, accused the housing authority of paying contractors with federal funds without the necessary oversight between 2012 and 2018.

The allegations in the lawsuit were later substantiated by a federal audit, which found that the HHA had inappropriately paid more than $3.2 million in federal funds during that period. This settlement marks the second significant payment related to Miniex, who previously won a separate $2.2 million suit against the agency.

Following the board’s vote to approve the payment, Jody Proler, chair of the Houston Housing Authority board of commissioners, expressed relief at closing this chapter for the agency.

“So I’m pleased that this is behind us,” Proler stated.

The settlement officially concludes the long-running legal dispute, with Mayor John Whitmire’s administration now overseeing the housing authority as it moves forward from the case.