Franklin County Commissioners have agreed to repay 10 thousand dollars to the state SHIP program that was fraudulently received by a local family

Franklin County Commissioners have agreed to repay 10 thousand dollars to the state SHIP program that was fraudulently received by a local family.

SHIP stands for the State Housing Initiatives Partnership program, which provides funds to local governments to help low- and moderate-income residents purchase or maintain their homes.

SHIP program administrator Lori Switzer Mills said the couple applied for the 10 thousand dollars but neglected to put the husband’s income on the application.

When that was added later it turns out they were ineligible for the money, meaning the county has to repay the money immediately and then get the money back from the family.

The family, however, says they cannot pay the money back in one lump sum and instead asked for a 200 dollar a month payment until the debt is paid off.

That led to some concerns from commissioners who said the family is basically getting an interest free loan on the back of local taxpayers.

There is little the county can do at this point but accept the agreement but said they may add tougher language to the SHIP program policy in the future to keep this from happening again.

 

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