Guidance, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements for Grantees in Receipt of Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Funds Under Public Law 113-2: “Buyout” and “Acquisition” Activities; Assistance to Agricultural Enterprises; and State of Colorado Waiver for Tourism Promotion, 72102-72105 [2015-29487]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 222 (Wednesday, November 18, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72102-72105]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-29487]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5696-N-17]


Guidance, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements for Grantees in 
Receipt of Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Funds 
Under Public Law 113-2: ``Buyout'' and ``Acquisition'' Activities; 
Assistance to Agricultural Enterprises; and State of Colorado Waiver 
for Tourism Promotion

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and 
Development, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice provides clarifying guidance for Community 
Development Block Grant disaster recovery (CDBG-DR) grantees in receipt 
of funds under the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013 (the 
Appropriations Act). It provides clarification regarding the 
requirements of ``buyout'' activities authorized in the Department's 
March 5, 2013, Federal Register notice and expands the eligibility 
criteria for buyout activities to include ``Disaster Risk Reduction 
Areas'' as defined by the grantee. It also modifies requirements of the 
March 5, 2013, notice on the prohibition of assistance to businesses 
that do not meet the Small Business Administration (SBA) definition of 
small businesses, permitting assistance also to eligible businesses 
engaged in ``farming operations,'' as determined by the U.S. Department 
of Agriculture (USDA). This notice also provides a waiver to the State 
of Colorado to expend additional CDBG-DR funds and to assist additional 
communities impacted by declared disasters in 2011, 2012, and 2013, 
through tourism promotion activities previously authorized in the 
Department's June 3, 2014, notice.

DATES: Effective Date: November 23, 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stanley Gimont, Director, Office of 
Block Grant Assistance, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 
451 7th Street SW., Room 7286, Washington, DC 20410, telephone number 
202-708-3587. Persons with hearing or speech impairments may access 
this number via TTY by calling the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-
8339. Facsimiled inquiries may be sent to Mr. Gimont at 202-401-2044. 
(Except for the ``800'' number, these telephone numbers are not toll-
free.) Emailed inquiries may be sent to disaster_recovery@hud.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Table of Contents

I. Background
II. Applicable Rules, Statutes, Waivers, and Alternative 
Requirements
III. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
IV. Finding of No Significant Impact

I. Background

    The Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 113-2, approved January 29, 2013) 
made available $16 billion in CDBG-DR funds for necessary expenses 
related to disaster relief, long-term recovery, restoration of 
infrastructure and housing, and economic revitalization in the most 
impacted and distressed areas, resulting from a major disaster declared 
pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5121 et. seq.) (Stafford Act) due to 
Hurricane Sandy and other eligible events in calendar years 2011, 2012, 
and 2013. On March 1, 2013, the President issued a sequestration order 
pursuant to section 251A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 
Control Act, as amended (2 U.S.C. 901a), and reduced the amount of 
funding for CDBG-DR grants under the Appropriations Act to $15.18 
billion. To date, a total of $15.18 billion has been allocated or set 
aside: $13 billion in response to Hurricane Sandy, $514 million in 
response to disasters occurring in 2011 or 2012, $655 million in 
response to 2013 disasters, and $1 billion for the National Disaster 
Resilience Competition.
    This notice applies to grantees in receipt of allocations under the 
Appropriations Act, which are described within the Federal Register 
notices published by the Department on March 5, 2013 (78 FR 14329); 
April 19, 2013 (78 FR 23578); May 29, 2013 (78 FR 32262); August 2, 
2013 (78 FR 46999); November 18, 2013 (78 FR 69104); December 16, 2013 
(78 FR 76154); March 27, 2014 (79 FR 17173); June 3, 2014 (79 FR 
31964); July 11, 2014 (79 FR 40133); October 7, 2014 (79 FR 60490); 
October 16, 2014 (79 FR 62182); January 8, 2015 (80 FR 1039); April 2, 
2015 (80 FR 17772); May 11, 2015 (80 FR 26942); and August 25, 2015 (80 
FR 51589) referred to collectively in this notice as the ``prior 
notices.'' The requirements of the prior notices continue to apply, 
except as modified by this notice.\1\
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    \1\ Links to the prior notices, the text of the Appropriations 
Act, and additional guidance prepared by the Department for CDBG-DR 
grants are available on the HUD Exchange Web site: https://www.hudexchange.info/cdbg-dr/cdbg-dr-laws-regulations-and-federal-register-notices/.
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II. Applicable Rules (Including Clarifying Guidance), Statutes, 
Waivers, and Alternative Requirements

    The Appropriations Act authorizes the Secretary to waive, or 
specify alternative requirements for, any provision of any statute or 
regulation that the Secretary administers in connection with HUD's 
obligation or use by the recipient of these funds (except for 
requirements related to fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor 
standards, and the environment). Waivers and alternative requirements 
are based upon a determination by the Secretary that good cause exists 
and that the waiver or alternative requirement is not inconsistent with 
the overall purposes of Title I of the Housing and Community 
Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) (HCD Act). Regulatory 
waiver authority is also provided by 24 CFR 5.110, 91.600, and 570.5.
    For the waiver and alternative requirements described in this 
notice, the Secretary has determined that good cause exists and that 
the waiver and alternative requirements are not inconsistent with the 
overall purpose of the HCD Act. Grantees may request waivers and 
alternative requirements from the Department as needed to address 
specific needs related to their recovery activities. Under the 
requirements of the Appropriations Act, waivers must be published in 
the Federal Register no later than 5 days before the effective date of 
such waiver.

1. Acquisition of Real Property and Buyouts Outside of Floodplains

    In response to a request from the State of Colorado, HUD is 
authorizing grantees in receipt of CDBG-DR funds under the 
Appropriations Act to acquire property for an amount equal to either 
the property's pre-disaster or post-disaster value (formerly referenced 
in the prior notices as pre- and post-flood values), for the buyout of 
properties in ``Disaster Risk Reduction Areas'' as defined by criteria 
established by the grantee, subject to the limitations of this notice.
    The Department has previously authorized CDBG-DR grantees to carry 
out buyout programs in floodways or floodplains, by allowing grantees 
to offer to acquire properties in hazardous

[[Page 72103]]

flood areas at pre-flood or post-flood value. The Secretary authorized 
this type of acquisition to: (1) Reduce the risk to homeowners from the 
effects of subsequent disasters; (2) assist in the recovery of low- and 
moderate-income households; and (3) protect taxpayer resources that 
might otherwise be needed after future disasters in the same area.
    In previous notices, HUD referred to ``flood buyouts'' and 
recognized that grantees frequently used CDBG-DR funds to match funds 
for buyouts provided under section 404 of the Stafford Act, as amended. 
Section 404 empowers the Director of the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency (FEMA) to provide property acquisition and relocation assistance 
``in providing hazard mitigation assistance under this section in 
connection with flooding . . . .'' Since flooding is by far the most 
prevalent and predictable source of widespread destruction in a 
Presidentially declared disaster, the Department did not address the 
potential need to include other types of hazards. Large scale disasters 
have the potential to create or exacerbate hazards in areas located 
outside of a floodplain or floodway. For example, the wildfires that 
swept through Colorado in 2013 destroyed vegetation in many areas, 
creating erosion and affecting soil stability in a manner that now 
places many homes at risk for mudslides in future disasters, although 
those homes are not located in a floodplain or floodway.
    For the same reasons that buyouts in floodways and floodplains are 
permitted, HUD is amending its alternative requirement to expand the 
scope of authorized buyouts in the prior notices for grantees receiving 
CDBG-DR funds under the Appropriations Act. Accordingly, the definition 
of ``buyout'' in all prior notices is amended to mean ``acquisition of 
properties located in a floodway or floodplain that is intended to 
reduce risk from future flooding, or the acquisition of properties in 
`Disaster Risk Reduction Areas' located outside of floodways and 
floodplains for the purpose of reducing risks from the hazard that was 
the basis of the Disaster Risk Reduction Area designation. `Disaster 
Risk Reduction Areas' must be designated in accordance with the buyout 
requirements of applicable Federal Register Notices.''
    Recognizing that States and units of general local government 
(UGLGs) are best positioned to determine what constitutes an 
unacceptable risk to their communities in exercising this additional 
authority, grantees will need to establish criteria to designate a '' 
Disaster Risk Reduction Area,'' subject to the following requirements: 
(1) The hazard must have been caused or exacerbated by the 
Presidentially declared disaster for which the grantee received its 
CDBG-DR allocation; (2) The hazard must be a predictable environmental 
threat to the safety and well-being of program beneficiaries, as 
evidenced by the best available data and science; and (3) The Disaster 
Risk Reduction Area must be clearly delineated so that HUD and the 
public may easily determine which properties are located within the 
Disaster Risk Reduction Area.
    Once grantees have established criteria to designate a ``Disaster 
Risk Reduction Area,'' and designated a Disaster Risk Reduction Area in 
accordance with the established criteria, the grantee may conduct 
buyouts in the Disaster Risk Reduction Area only if the grantee's 
approved action plan contains a description of the buyouts to be 
conducted in the identified Disaster Risk Reduction Areas and the 
national objective that the buyouts will meet. Any buyouts conducted 
within the Disaster Risk Reduction Area will be subject to the 
requirements applicable to buyouts in the March 5, 2013, notice. These 
requirements include restrictions on redevelopment and the discretion 
to determine the appropriate valuation method (including the use of 
pre- or post-disaster fair market value (FMV)), so long as the 
valuation method is uniformly applied.

2. Clarification of ``Buyout'' and ``Real Property Acquisition'' 
Activities

    CDBG-DR grantees under Public Law 113-2 that choose to undertake a 
buyout program have the discretion to determine the appropriate 
valuation method, including paying either pre-disaster or post-disaster 
FMV. In most cases, a program that provides pre-disaster FMV to buyout 
applicants provides compensation at an amount greater than the post-
disaster FMV. When the purchase price exceeds the current FMV, any 
CDBG-DR funds in excess of FMV are considered assistance to the seller, 
thus making the seller a beneficiary of CDBG-DR assistance. If the 
seller receives assistance as part of the purchase price, this may have 
implications for duplication of benefits calculations or for 
demonstrating national objective criteria, as discussed below. However, 
a program that provides post-disaster FMV to buyout applicants merely 
provides the actual value of the property; thus, the seller is not 
considered a beneficiary of CDBG-DR assistance.
    Regardless of purchase price, all buyout activities are a type of 
acquisition of real property (as permitted by section 105(a)(1) of the 
HCD Act). However, only acquisitions that meet the definition of a 
``buyout'' are subject to the post-acquisition land use restrictions 
imposed by the applicable prior notices. The key factor in determining 
whether the acquisition is a buyout is whether the intent of the 
purchase is to reduce risk from future flooding or to reduce the risk 
from the hazard that lead to the property's Disaster Risk Reduction 
Area designation. The distinction between buyouts and other types of 
acquisitions is important, because grantees may only redevelop an 
acquired property if the property is not acquired through a buyout 
program (i.e., the purpose of acquisition was something other than risk 
reduction). When acquisitions are not acquired through a buyout 
program, the purchase price must be consistent with applicable uniform 
cost principles (the pre-disaster FMV may not be used).

3. Clarification of Ownership and Maintenance Requirements for Property 
Acquired Through a Buyout Program

    Any property acquired with CDBG-DR funds through a buyout program 
is subject to the requirement made applicable by the prior notices that 
property acquired through a buyout program be dedicated and maintained 
in perpetuity for a use that is compatible with open space, 
recreational, or wetlands management practices. In addition, no new 
structure may be erected on the property other than exceptions 
identified in the March 5, 2013, notice, and no subsequent application 
for Federal disaster assistance may be made for any purpose for the 
property. The acquiring entity may lease such property to adjacent 
property owners or other parties for compatible uses in return for a 
maintenance agreement. Although Federal policy encourages leasing 
rather than selling such property, the property may also be sold. In 
all cases, a deed restriction or covenant running with the property 
must require that the buyout property be dedicated and maintained for 
compatible uses in perpetuity.

4. Use of Low- and Moderate-Income Housing National Objective When 
Undertaking Buyout Activities

    In order to demonstrate that a buyout meets the Low- and Moderate-
Income (LMI) Housing National Objective (LMH), grantees must meet all 
requirements of the HCD Act and applicable regulatory criteria 
described below. Grantees are encouraged to

[[Page 72104]]

consult with HUD prior to undertaking a buyout program with the intent 
of using the LMH national objective.
    Section 105(c)(3) of the HCD Act (42 U.S.C. 5305(c)(3)) provides 
that ``[a]ny assisted activity under this chapter that involves the 
acquisition or rehabilitation of property to provide housing shall be 
considered to benefit persons of low- and moderate-income only to the 
extent such housing will, upon completion, be occupied by such 
persons.'' In addition, the State CDBG regulations at 24 CFR 
570.483(b)(3) and entitlement CDBG regulations at 24 CFR 570.208(a)(3) 
apply the LMH national objective to an eligible activity carried out 
for the purpose of providing or improving permanent residential 
structures that, upon completion, will be occupied by low- and 
moderate-income households. Therefore, a buyout program that merely 
pays homeowners to leave their existing homes does not result in an LMI 
household occupying a residential structure and thus cannot meet the 
requirements of the LMH national objective.
    Buyout programs that assist LMI persons can be structured in one of 
the following ways: (1) The buyout program combines the acquisition of 
properties with another direct benefit, LMI housing activity, such as 
down payment assistance,\2\ that results in occupancy and otherwise 
meets the applicable LMH housing national objective criteria in 24 CFR 
part 570 (e.g., if the structure contains more than two dwelling units, 
at least 51 percent of the units must be occupied by LMI households); 
(2) The program meets the low- and moderate-income area benefit 
criteria to demonstrate national objective compliance, provided that 
the grantee can document that the properties acquired through buyouts 
will be used in a way that benefits all of the residents in a 
particular area where at least 51 percent of the residents are low- and 
moderate-income persons. When using the area benefit approach, grantees 
must define the service area based on the end use of the buyout 
properties; or (3) The program meets the criteria for the limited 
clientele national objective, including the prohibition on the use of 
the limited clientele national objective when an activity's benefits 
are available to all residents of the area. A buyout program could meet 
the national objective criteria for the limited clientele national 
objective if it restricts buyout program eligibility to exclusively 
low- and moderate-income persons, and the buyout provides an actual 
benefit to the low- and moderate-income sellers by providing pre-
disaster valuation uniformly to those who participate in the program.
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    \2\ The Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property 
Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, as amended, (URA) applies to the 
use of CDBG funds for down payment assistance. If down payment 
assistance is provided with CDBG funds awarded under the 
Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 113-2), URA requirements apply as 
modified by the March 5, 2013, notice (78 FR 14329). The use of 
other CDBG funds for down payment assistance is subject to the URA 
and regulatory requirements at 24 CFR 570.606. Other direct benefit 
LMI housing activities may also be subject to the URA.
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5. Clarification of Definition of Small Business for Agricultural 
Enterprises

    The March 5, 2013, notice (78 FR 14329) instituted an alternative 
requirement to the provisions at 42 U.S.C. 5305(a), prohibiting 
grantees in receipt of funds under the Appropriations Act from 
assisting businesses, including privately owned utilities, that do not 
meet the definition of a small business as defined by SBA at 13 CFR 
part 121. The objective of this alternative requirement is to ensure 
that grantees target disaster recovery resources to the unmet needs of 
small businesses. HUD is now modifying these criteria to better enable 
assistance for agricultural businesses. Businesses and entities engaged 
in agricultural enterprises may now be assisted if they meet the 
alternative eligibility criteria employed by USDA assistance programs.
    The SBA small business definition establishes a much lower income 
threshold for agricultural enterprises than for other businesses. The 
SBA criteria provides a gross income limit of $750,000 for most 
agricultural businesses, while the gross income limit for businesses in 
other sectors is $7.5 million or higher. These gross income limitations 
for agricultural enterprises may prevent CDBG-DR grantees from 
addressing unmet recovery needs of many agricultural businesses that 
would otherwise be considered small enterprises that meet the intent of 
HUD's requirements.
    Legislation enacted in 1986 withdrew SBA's authority to provide 
disaster assistance loans to agricultural enterprises to ensure 
cooperation between USDA and SBA in the use of each agency's respective 
loan making authorities and to improve the delivery of disaster 
assistance to the agricultural segment of the country. SBA also 
decreased the gross income limits for the agricultural sector in its 
small business criteria, as described above, to further ensure that 
agricultural businesses would apply to USDA for other types of 
financial assistance. Consequently, HUD's use of the SBA definition in 
its March 5, 2013, notice may inadvertently limit small agricultural 
enterprises from accessing financial assistance through grantees' CDBG-
DR programs under the Appropriations Act.
    As HUD's intent to address the unmet recovery needs of small 
agricultural enterprises does not conflict with the goal of directing 
these businesses to USDA for other types of assistance, HUD is 
modifying its criteria for businesses engaged in agricultural 
enterprises to enable them to access CDBG-DR funds necessary for their 
recovery.
    Accordingly, paragraph VI.D.41, of the March 5, 2013, notice is 
amended to read: ``To target assistance to small businesses, the 
Department is instituting an alternative requirement to the provisions 
at 42 U.S.C. 5305(a) to prohibit grantees from assisting businesses, 
including privately owned utilities, that do not meet the definition of 
a small business as defined by SBA at 13 CFR part 121. Grantees may 
also assist businesses that are engaged in ``farming operations,'' as 
defined at 7 CFR 1400.3, and that meet the USDA Farm Service Agency 
(FSA) criteria that are described at 7 CFR 1400.500 which are used by 
the FSA to determine eligibility for certain assistance programs.''
    Grantees are also reminded that this modification may allow them to 
add new beneficiaries or programs described within their CDBG-DR action 
plans for disaster recovery. These changes would constitute a 
substantial amendment to the CDBG-DR action plan as described in the 
March 5, 2013, notice (78 FR 14329) at paragraph VI.A.3.a. If 
applicable, grantees must submit a Substantial Action Plan Amendment 
revising the description of their business assistance program to 
include potential beneficiaries, and this amendment will be subject to 
the citizen participation requirements of the March 5, 2013, notice at 
VI.A.3, which requires no less than 7 calendar days to solicit public 
comment.

6. Waiver To Permit Some Activities in Support of the Tourism Industry 
(State of Colorado Only)

    In the Federal Register notice published on June 3, 2014 (79 FR 
31964), the Department granted the State of Colorado a waiver of 42 
U.S.C. 5305(a) to make eligible the use of up to $500,000 in CDBG-DR 
funds to support the State's tourism industry and to promote travel to 
the most impacted and distressed areas related to the 2013 floods. This 
notice replaces the previous waiver and authorizes the State to provide 
an additional $768,300 in

[[Page 72105]]

CDBG-DR funds to support tourism promotion activities, increasing the 
amount covered by the waiver from $500,000 to $1,268,300. In addition, 
this revised waiver permits the State to support its tourism industry 
and promote travel to the most impacted and distressed counties that 
had a declared major disaster in 2011, 2012, or 2013, including those 
impacted by disasters other than flooding.
    Using the funds provided under the initial waiver, the State 
established its first CDBG-DR Tourism Marketing Grant Program and 
received applications requesting a total of $787,927. Through this 
program, the State awarded eight grants totaling $500,000 in CDBG-DR 
funding to support a variety of activities such as advertising, 
marketing campaigns, promotion of community and spectator events, and 
Web site improvements in targeted areas that had experienced a 
reduction in tourism revenues following the 2013 floods in Colorado. 
This funding fell short of meeting the tourism promotion priorities 
identified through the initial round of State funding by $287,927. The 
State has also subsequently identified $480,373 in additional funding 
opportunities for the original applicants who were constrained by the 
initial grant size limitation, as well as for potential new applicants 
made eligible through the inclusion of areas impacted by disasters 
other than flooding.
    In support of this request, the State has conducted an analysis of 
retail sales that indicates that the flooding and wildfire disasters 
continue to negatively affect local tourism revenues. Tourism is the 
primary economic contributor to the State of Colorado's economy and 
provides a valuable source of business revenue, taxes, and employment. 
According to analyses provided by the State, businesses supported by 
tourism, including hotels, lodges, restaurants, and grocery stores, are 
still experiencing weakened sales revenue. Tax revenue from these 
businesses benefits the State's economy and provides funding for other 
State activities and services. In addition, this industry employs many 
individuals who are of low- and moderate-income; thus, this population 
has been inordinately affected by the decrease in tourism revenue. Some 
of these jobs have been lost as a result of the disasters.
    Because communities are diverting disposable tax revenue to 
physical recovery projects, funding for tourism marketing is scarce and 
communities face a worsening economic cycle from which the areas cannot 
recover without the injection of supplemental assistance. Therefore, 
the State has requested that an additional $768,300 of its total CDBG-
DR award be made eligible for such tourism promotion activities. HUD 
continues to support the use of CDBG-DR funds in this scenario as a 
recovery tool in a damaged regional economy that depends on tourism for 
many of its jobs and tax revenue.
    As the State of Colorado is proposing to use these additional funds 
for advertising and marketing activities that broadly support its 
tourism industry, rather than direct assistance to tourism-dependent 
businesses, and because long-term benefit from the proposed activities 
must be derived using indirect means, 42 U.S.C. 5305(a) is waived only 
to the extent necessary to make eligible an additional $768,300 to 
support tourism promotion activities. The State must award the 
additional $768,300 in CDBG-DR funds competitively through its existing 
CDBG-DR Tourism Marketing Grant Program to public or nonprofit entities 
that promote travel to or within a community or communities in general, 
provided the assisted activities are designed to support tourism to 
areas most impacted and distressed by a major disaster declared in 
2011, 2012, or 2013.
    As an additional condition of expanding this waiver, the State must 
demonstrate that funds will supplement and not replace State and local 
funding sources for this purpose. In its request for this waiver, the 
State indicated that entities selected for an award also pledged nearly 
a one-for-one match for their projects. The State may demonstrate that 
CDBG-DR funds will supplement, but not replace, local funding by 
requiring a match, including provision for in-kind contributions, 
similar to the existing competitive grant program offered by the 
Colorado Tourism Office. However, if the State does not require a 
match, the State must identify another means to adequately demonstrate 
that funds will supplement, but not supplant, State and local resources 
typically dedicated to promote tourism in these impacted areas.
    The additional funds provided through this waiver for the State's 
CDBG-DR Tourism Marketing Grant Program are subject to all requirements 
in the notice published on June 3, 2014 (79 FR 31964), unless otherwise 
modified through this notice. The funds permitted under this waiver are 
subject to the same obligation and expenditure deadline applicable to 
all funds under the Appropriations Act. Therefore, this waiver remains 
in effect until 2 years following HUD's obligation of the funds 
permitted under this waiver.
    The State is reminded that this expanded waiver will allow them to 
add new beneficiaries described within their CDBG-DR action plans for 
disaster recovery. These changes would constitute substantial 
amendments as described in the March 5, 2013 notice (78 FR 14329), at 
paragraph VI.A.3.a. If applicable, the State must submit a Substantial 
Action Plan Amendment revising its description of its CDBG-DR Tourism 
Marketing Grant Program to include potential beneficiaries, and this 
amendment will be subject to the citizen participation requirements of 
the March 5, 2013, notice at VI.A.3, which requires no less than 7 
calendar days to solicit public comment.

III. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for the disaster 
recovery grants under this notice is 14.269.

IV. Finding of No Significant Impact

    A Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) with respect to the 
environment has been made in accordance with HUD regulations at 24 CFR 
part 50, which implement section 102(2)(C) of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)). The FONSI is 
available for public inspection between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays in 
the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel, Department of 
Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW., Room 10276, 
Washington, DC 20410-0500. Due to security measures at the HUD 
Headquarters building, an advance appointment to review the docket file 
must be scheduled by calling the Regulations Division at 202-708-3055 
(this is not a toll-free number). Hearing- or speech-impaired 
individuals may access this number through TTY by calling the Federal 
Relay Service, toll-free, at 800-877-8339.

    Dated: November 10, 2015.
Nani Coloretti,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2015-29487 Filed 11-17-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P