WASHINGTON (AP) – One of the largest providers of military housing in the United States continues to respond inadequately to mold and other structural problems, threatening the health and safety of service members and their families, according to a Senate panel’s investigation.
The allegations against Balfour Beatty Communities LLC are focused on housing provided to service members stationed at Fort Gordon Army Base in Georgia and Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas. The company oversees about 1,700 homes at the two bases.
Balfour pleaded guilty in December to committing fraud against the United States from 2013 to 2019. The company was ordered to pay $65.4 million in fines and restitution and was placed under an independent compliance monitor for three years. The Senate panel, led by Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., released a report Tuesday concluding that Balfour’s practices since 2019 mirror those that occurred in previous years.
Ossoff said that the eight-month investigation by the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations stemmed from the complaints he heard from military families about their maintenance requests being ignored. He said that the investigation revealed “grave risks to the health and safety of servicemembers and their families.”
Two service members recounted their harrowing experiences with military housing at a hearing Tuesday.