[Federal Register: March 29, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 60)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 15001-15003]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29mr07-32]
[[Page 15001]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Part IV
Department of Housing and Urban Development
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
24 CFR Part 1000
Indian Housing Block Grant Program--Extension of Annual Performance
Report Due Date; Proposed Rule
[[Page 15002]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
24 CFR Part 1000
[Docket No. FR-5109-P-01]
RIN 2577-AC74
Indian Housing Block Grant Program--Extension of Annual
Performance Report Due Date
AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian
Housing, HUD.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This proposed rule would extend the due date for Indian
Housing Block Grant (IHBG) recipients to submit annual performance
reports (APRs). Through the IHBG program, HUD provides housing
assistance to Indian tribes and tribally designated housing entities
(TDHEs). Currently, HUD's regulations require IHBG recipients to submit
APRs 60 days after the end of the recipient's program year. HUD
believes that extending this deadline by an additional 30 days will
provide IHBG recipients with the necessary additional time to prepare
and submit their APRs.
DATES: Comment Due Date: May 29, 2007.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding
this rule to the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel,
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW.,
Room 10276, Washington, DC 20410-0500. Interested persons also may
submit comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal
at http://www.regulations.gov. HUD strongly encourages commenters to
submit comments electronically so that HUD, in turn, can make them
immediately available to the public. Commenters should follow the
instructions provided on that site to submit comments electronically.
Facsimile (FAX) comments are not acceptable. In all cases,
communications must refer to the docket number and title. All comments
and communications submitted to HUD will be available for public
inspection and copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays at the above
address. Due to security measures at the HUD Headquarters building, an
advance appointment to review the public comments must be scheduled by
calling the Regulations Division at (202) 708-3055 (this is not a toll-
free number). Copies of all comments submitted are available for
inspection and downloading at http://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Bullough, Director of Grants
Evaluation, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh
Street, SW., Room 5156, Washington, DC 20410-5000; telephone (202) 402-
4274 (this is not a toll-free number). Hearing- and speech-impaired
persons may access this number through TTY by calling the toll-free
Federal Information Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
As authorized by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA) (25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.), the IHBG
program provides housing assistance under a single block grant to
eligible Indian tribes or their TDHEs. IHBG funds are allocated under a
needs-based formula. The regulations governing the IHBG program are
found in part 1000 of HUD's regulations in Title 24 of the Code of
Federal Regulations. In accordance with section 106 of NAHASDA, HUD
developed those regulations with active tribal participation and using
the procedures of the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990 (5 U.S.C. 561-
570).
On an annual basis, IHBG recipients are required to prepare and
submit an APR that provides a self-assessment of their IHBG-funded
activities. As described in further detail in Sec. 1000.512, the APR
includes a description of the use of grant funds, a comparison of
accomplishments, an analysis and explanation of cost overruns or high
unit costs, and any information regarding the recipient's performance
in accordance with HUD's performance measures, as set forth in Sec.
1000.524. Section 404(c) of NAHASDA requires HUD to establish due dates
for the submission of these APRs. As established in Sec. 1000.514, the
APRs must be submitted to HUD within 60 days of the end of the IHBG
recipient's program year. The regulations also authorize HUD to extend
the APR due date if the recipient submits a justified request.
HUD's experience with the APR submission deadline has been that
recipients do not have sufficient time to prepare APRs within 60 days
of the end of their program year. In recent years, more than 40 percent
of IHBG recipients have requested extensions. This rise in extension
requests may be attributed to the increasing number of complex IHBG-
funded activities such as housing development and leveraged financing.
II. This Proposed Rule
This proposed rule would extend the APR deadline by an additional
30 days. Under the revised Sec. 1000.514, IHBG recipients would be
required to submit their APRs within 90 days of the end of their
program year. An additional, conforming change would be made in Sec.
1000.524(d) to reflect the extended deadline. HUD believes that the
extension will provide adequate time to IHBG recipients to obtain,
review, and analyze accurate financial and programmatic data, and allow
for community consideration, before submission of the completed APR to
HUD. Further, the additional time will reduce the need for extensions
and therefore alleviate the burden on Indian tribes, TDHEs, and HUD
officials related to the preparation and processing of extension
requests.
III. Tribal Consultation
HUD's policy is to consult with Indian tribes early in the
rulemaking process on matters that have tribal implications.
Accordingly, HUD held nine consultation meetings, attended by more than
500 tribal representatives, between January 2005 through May 2005.
During these meetings, attendees expressed support for extending the
due date for the APR to 90 days after the end of the recipient's
program year. Further, tribes have the opportunity to comment on this
proposed rule, and HUD welcomes such comment.
IV. Findings and Certifications
Paperwork Reduction Act
The information collection requirements contained in this proposed
rule have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520) and
assigned OMB Control Number 2577-0218. In accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is
not required to respond to, a collection of information, unless the
collection displays a currently valid OMB control number.
Environmental Impact
This rule does not direct, provide for assistance or loan and
mortgage insurance for, or otherwise govern or regulate, real property
acquisition, disposition, leasing, rehabilitation, alteration,
demolition, or new construction, or establish, review, or provide for
standards for construction or construction materials, manufactured
housing, or occupancy. Accordingly, under 24 CFR 50.19(c)(1), this rule
is
[[Page 15003]]
categorically excluded from environmental review under the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321).
Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) (RFA)
generally requires an agency to conduct a regulatory flexibility
analysis of any rule subject to notice and comment rulemaking
requirements, unless the agency certifies that the rule will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
The proposed rule would extend the period of time, by 30 days, for IHBG
funding recipients to submit their APRs. In the past, many IHBG
recipients have reported that they need additional time to prepare
their APRs and, as a result, request extensions to the current
requirement. By extending the due date, IHBG recipients will have the
additional time they need to prepare thorough APRs without the added
burden of requesting additional time. The regulatory change is
procedural and does not revise or establish new binding requirements on
owners. Accordingly, the undersigned certifies that this rule will not
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Notwithstanding HUD's determination that this rule will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities,
HUD specifically invites comments regarding less burdensome
alternatives to this rule that meet HUD's objectives as described in
this preamble.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) (2
U.S.C. 1531-1538) establishes requirements for federal agencies to
assess the effects of their regulatory actions on state, local, and
tribal governments and the private sector. This rule does not impose
any federal mandate on state, local, or tribal governments or the
private sector within the meaning of UMRA.
Federalism
Executive Order 13132 (entitled ``Federalism'') prohibits an agency
from publishing any rule that has federalism implications if the rule
either imposes substantial direct compliance costs on state and local
governments and is not required by statute, or the rule preempts state
law, unless the agency meets the consultation and funding requirements
of section 6 of that Executive Order. This rule does not have
federalism implications and does not impose substantial direct
compliance costs on state and local governments, nor does it preempt
state law within the meaning of Executive Order 13132.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number is 14.867.
List of Subjects in 24 CFR Part 1000
Aged, Community development block grants, Grant programs-housing
and community development, Grant programs-Indians, Indians, Individuals
with disabilities, Public housing, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
For the reasons stated in the preamble, HUD proposes to amend 24
CFR part 1000, as follows:
PART 1000--NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ACTIVITIES
1. The authority citation for part 1000 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 3535(d).
2. Revise Sec. 1000.514 to read as follows:
Sec. 1000.514 When must the annual performance report be submitted?
The annual performance report must be submitted within 90 days of
the end of the recipient's program year. If a justified request is
submitted by the recipient, the Area ONAP may extend the due date for
submission of the report.
3. Revise Sec. 1000.524(d) to read as follows:
Sec. 1000.524 What are HUD's performance measures for the review?
* * * * *
(d) Accurate annual performance reports were submitted to HUD in
accordance with Sec. 1000.514.
* * * * *
Dated: February 16, 2007.
Orlando J. Cabrera,
Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing.
[FR Doc. E7-5738 Filed 3-28-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P
