Kimberly Henderson, who on Thursday was named executive director of the Employer Office of Inclusion and Advancement to support the mayor’s $250 million initiative, led Ohio’s Job and Family Services Department until she resigned in March 2021.
In May 2021, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost asked the Ohio Highway Patrol and Columbus Police to open a criminal investigation into how the department handled substantial fraudulent claims amid a deluge of new applications as the pandemic unfolded.
Yost wrote that the state auditor’s office “did not have confidence in the financial information provided by the Department of Job and Family Services or its then director, Kimberly (Hall) Henderson.”
The department did not implement federally required controls to monitor fraud and overpayment, and did not disclose to the auditor knowledge of suspected fraud, he said in his letter the police agencies.
The letter was provided to the Observer on Friday by the Ohio attorney general’s office.
Fraud problems during Henderson’s tenure in Ohio were first reported locally by WCNC.
Attempts to reach Henderson through the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, where her new position is based and through a spokeswoman affiliated with the equity initiative were unsuccessful Friday.
Yost asked the police agencies to investigate whether any criminal statutes were violated, including “Dereliction of Duty, Obstruction of Official Business and/or Falsification by the former director and/or any other staff members.”
Requests to the Ohio Highway Patrol and Columbus Police seeking information about the outcome of the investigation were not returned Friday afternoon.
An October 2021 Ohio state audit, published more than six months after Henderson resigned, found $475 million in fraudulent payments were made to people who did not qualify, with an additional $3.3 billion in overpayments.
That audit pointed to a “failure of early action and prevention,” combined with an antiquated system and unprecedented demand during the pandemic. The department oversees a broad range of social and workforce programs including the state’s public assistance, unemployment, child and adult protective services and child care programs, according to the state website.
Henderson is not referred to by name in the audit. But the document refers to a former director who gave contradictory responses about how soon they were aware of fraud within the department, according to the audit.
Information about the extent of the fraud provided by the department for an earlier audit did not match testimony Henderson gave to two Ohio House of Representatives committees, according to the October 2021 document. The reason for that, the audit continued, was department staff’s belief that the request was about internal fraud and not by residents filing false claims.
Big Money for Equity
In her new job, Henderson will have a leading role in shaping the implementation of the mayor’s namesake equity pledge, the largest investment to advance Black and brown residents in the city’s history.
The initiative is a public-private partnership with a $250 million goal toward racial equity investments, including bolstering Johnson C. Smith University and bridging the digital divide.
Henderson will directly oversee the effort to increase diversity in hiring and promotion for Charlotte’s biggest employers, as well as the other areas of focus.
Charlotte, N.C., Mayor Vi Lyles did not respond to a request for comment through a city spokesman.
“Mrs. Henderson is an employee of the Alliance and the City was not involved in the hiring or selection process,” city spokesman Cory Burkarth said in a written statement Friday afternoon.
Burkarth did not address the Observer’s questions about whether the mayor was aware of the audit and related criminal investigation or about the mayor’s confidence in Henderson’s ability to perform in the new position.
Tanya Mendis, spokeswoman for the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, declined to comment on the audit and the attorney general’s request for an investigation.
Henderson became director of the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services in early 2019, according to local media reports of her resignation.
Before that, she worked for six years as the senior vice president of administration and general counsel for Columbus State Community College, according to the college’s announcement of her departure.
That announcement also stated she had previously worked as deputy chief counsel in the Ohio Attorney General’s office.
About a year after Henderson became director for the Department of Job and Family Services, the coronavirus pandemic began and, like in several other states, caused major delays in the disbursement of unemployment benefits, according to cleveland.com.
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