Housing authority finances

The state auditor’s office reported on Feb. 2 that the Shrewsbury Housing Authority failed to meet the Commonwealth’s minimum level for an operating reserve, but Auditor Suzanne Bump has since exonerated the authority, explaining that an accounting error in the numbers her office received was responsible for the reported problem. The authority’s assistant executive director declined to comment last week, and the executive director did not respond to a request for further information. Originally, Bump’s office issued a statement indicating the Housing Authority’s reserve was more than $150,000 below the state-mandated minimum operating reserve. On Feb. 9, however, Bump told The Boston Globe that the numbers reported were inaccurate and that the Shrewsbury Housing Authority appeared to be operating with sufficient reserves to satisfy state requirements. - James O’Brien