Honolulu officials say they want to do everything necessary to prevent paying back $7.9 million in federal grant money. Here’s how Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle put it: ”You tell me what to do and what to jump and I’m going to do it.”

But city officials are still waiting for a formal response from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD officials said they have concerns about the city’s plans to bring  Community Development Block Grant recipients into federal compliance.

HUD said a formal reply would follow an in-person meeting that already took place, but as of this week a HUD spokesman said the formal response would be “delayed another week.” 

Investigators with HUD flagged the city for possible grants violations last spring. The federal government’s concerns focus primarily on Wahiawa-based elder care center ORI Anuenue Hale, Inc.