U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development officials asked the Chicago Housing Authority Thursday to postpone moving forward with an appointment of former Ald. Walter Burnett as CEO due to a need to review his potential conflicts of interest, a HUD official who was not authorized to speak on the record told the Tribune.
The move was in response to a letter interim CHA Board Chair Matthew Brewer sent to the federal agency Wednesday that outlined Burnett’s potential conflicts. The same day it sent the letter, the CHA board scheduled a special meeting for Sept. 2 to appoint the new CEO, according to its board meeting schedule.
HUD officials told CHA the federal agency is currently evaluating the contents of the letter and that it already has some concerns. HUD will need some time to review CHA’s letter and formally respond, the official said, as the local general counsel office must review the CHA’s letter.
The official anticipates that HUD will require CHA to request a waiver for a number of conflicts of interest in Burnett’s case. The local HUD office would then need to review the waiver request, send its recommendation for the waiver to HUD’s Washington headquarters for additional review and send a formal response to CHA, the official said.
If CHA does move forward with Burnett’s appointment without HUD’s waiver approval, it could trigger a default on a contract between HUD and the housing authority.
Burnett told the Tribune Thursday via text that he is “not at liberty to talk about this right now until we see what’s going on or after the vote if there is one.”
HUD, CHA and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office did not immediately respond to Tribune requests for comment.
In an Aug. 22 response to a request for comment regarding the status of Burnett’s potential conflicts of interest under HUD rules, the mayor’s office said that “our understanding is that the Regional HUD office is not the adjudicator on the necessity for any possible requirements for waivers. We are conducting due diligence through appropriate channels and we expect to be in compliance with all laws and regulations with the permanent appointment.” The office then said it expected a vote on the CEO “shortly.”
In CHA’s letter to William Dawson III, HUD’s Chicago public housing office director, a copy of which was obtained by the Tribune, Brewer said he was writing to the federal agency to disclose one known conflict of interest as a result of the board’s “intent to appoint” Burnett as CEO. He also mentioned additional potential other conflicts of interest that CHA does not think are issues.
Burnett and his wife, Darlena Williams-Burnett, have an “ownership interest in” three properties that are occupied by CHA housing voucher holders, the letter states. The vouchers are through the Housing Choice Voucher Program, also known as Section 8, the nation’s primary subsidized housing initiative. The program allows housing authorities to provide subsidies to low-income residents to find housing in the private market. Voucher holders typically pay about 30% of their income toward rent, with housing authorities covering the rest.
The Burnetts initiated the process to move the vouchers to instead be administered by the Housing Authority of Cook County, the letter said.
“With this transfer, (CHA) will not have oversight of the (housing voucher) contracts, eliminating the conflict of interest,” Brewer said in the letter.
The housing authority stated in the letter that it does not believe Burnett’s 30-year tenure as an alderman constitutes a conflict of interest.
“Mr. Burnett, as an alderman, had some influence over the operation of the Authority, through approval of the appointment of members of the Authority’s Board, serving on the City of Chicago’s zoning committee, and serving on ‘working groups’ for the housing authority developments sited in his ward,” the letter said.
Burnett served as the chair of the City Council’s zoning committee since September 2024 through his recent resignation as alderman.
“We do not believe that Mr. Burnett’s role as an Alderman and his responsibilities in that role constitute an ‘interest’ in any projects” as defined by a contract between the housing authority and the federal agency, according to the letter. “Mr. Burnett has no financial interest, direct or indirect, in any public housing properties or contracts related to the public housing authority.”
If there was a financial interest, the contract dictates that CHA would not be permitted to hire Burnett until a year following his tenure.
CHA also wrote in its letter to HUD that Burnett does not violate the agency’s or the city’s ethics policies, in addition to other HUD-related conflict of interest policies.
Burnett’s wife previously worked for CHA as deputy chief of fleet and facilities in CHA’s general services department and violated the housing authority’s ethics policy in 2022, according to documents obtained through a Tribune public records request.
Brewer concludes the letter by telling Dawson to contact CHA’s deputy chief legal officer if he wishes for further discussion.
CHA’s resident board said last month that Burnett is not fit to lead the nation’s third-largest public housing authority.
CHA has been without a permanent leader since November 2024.