Department of Housing and Urban Development – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This final rule amends HUD's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulation to implement the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016. The FOIA Improvement Act enacted a range of procedural issues, including requirements that agencies establish a minimum of 90 days for requesters to file an administrative appeal, and codifies the foreseeable harm standard. In addition, this final rule revises a section of HUD's FOIA regulations to more accurately reflect statutory language.

In accordance with Section 102(a)(4)(C) of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989, this announcement notifies the public of funding decisions made by the Department in a competition for funding under the FY 2016 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) for the Rural Capacity Building for Community Development and Affordable Housing Program. This announcement contains the names and addresses of the award recipients under said NOFA.

This Notice identifies unutilized, underutilized, excess, and surplus Federal property reviewed by HUD for suitability for possible use to assist the homeless.

This Notice identifies unutilized, underutilized, excess, and surplus Federal property reviewed by HUD for suitability for use to assist the homeless.

On June 23, 2016, HUD published a Federal Register notice announcing its intent to establish a HUD Tribal Intergovernmental Advisory Committee (TIAC), consisting of tribal governmental representatives, to assist HUD to further develop and improve its Indian housing programs. The TIAC is intended to further communications between HUD and Federally recognized Indian tribes on HUD programs, make recommendations to HUD regarding current program regulations, and provide advice in the development of HUD's American Indian and Alaska Native housing priorities. This notice also solicits nominations and explains how persons may be nominated for membership on the TIAC.

HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment.

Through this rule, HUD continues its efforts to narrow the digital divide in low-income communities served by HUD by providing, where feasible and with HUD funding, broadband infrastructure to communities in need of such infrastructure. In this final rule, HUD requires installation of broadband infrastructure at the time of new construction or substantial rehabilitation of multifamily rental housing that is funded or supported by HUD, the point at which such installation is generally easier and less costly than when undertaken as a stand-alone effort. The rule, however, recognizes that installation of broadband infrastructure may not be feasible for all new construction or substantial rehabilitation, and, therefore, it allows limited exceptions to the installation requirements. Installing unit-based broadband infrastructure in multifamily rental housing that is newly constructed or substantially rehabilitated with or supported by HUD funding will provide a platform for individuals and families residing in such housing to participate in the digital economy and increase their access to economic opportunities.

This Notice solicits comments and recommendations on developing a revised methodology to be used to track the extent to which Public Housing Agencies (PHAs) in the Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration Program are meeting the statutory requirement in Section 204 of the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996, (1996 MTW Statute) to serve substantially the same number of families had they not combined their funds under the MTW Demonstration Program. This statutory requirement is further reinforced in the Standard MTW Agreements for all 39 current MTW PHAs.

HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment.

HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment.

This proposed rule would revise the minimum payments to states approved as State Administrative Agencies (SAAs) under the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 in order to provide for a more equitable guarantee of minimum funding from HUD's appropriation for this program and to avoid the differing per unit payments to the states that have occurred under the present rule. This rule would base the minimum payments to states upon their participation in the production or siting of new manufactured homes, including for new manufactured homes both produced and sited in the same state.

HUD's housing counseling program provides housing counseling to consumers seeking information about financing, maintaining, renting, or owning a home. The housing counseling statute was amended to improve the effectiveness of housing counseling in HUD programs by, among other things: establishing the Office of Housing Counseling and giving this office the authority over the establishment, coordination, and administration of all regulations, requirements, standards, and performance measures under programs and laws administered by HUD that relate to housing counseling; requiring that organizations providing housing counseling required under or in connection with HUD programs be approved to participate in the Housing Counseling Program (Housing Counseling Agencies, or HCAs) and have all individuals providing such housing counseling certified by HUD as competent to provide such services; prohibiting the distribution of housing counseling grant funds awarded to agencies participating in HUD's Housing Counseling Program that are found in violation of Federal election laws or that have employees found in violation of Federal election laws; and requiring the reimbursement to HUD of housing counseling grant funds that HUD finds were misused. HUD issued a proposed rule on September 13, 2013, to establish in regulation the statutory changes made to the housing counseling program and solicited public comment. This final rule revises HUD's Housing Counseling Program regulations to adopt the new requirements established in the housing counseling statute. Additionally, this rule amends HUD's general and other program regulations to clarify for grantees the requirement that housing counseling under Other HUD Programs must be provided by HCAs. HUD will issue a separate Federal Register notice to announce the start of the testing and certification process, and entities and individuals providing housing counseling will have 36 months to be approved or certified by the Office of Housing Counseling.

In accordance with section 102(a)(4)(C) of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989, this announcement notifies the public of funding decisions made by the Department under the Notices of Funding Availability (NOFAs) for the Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016. This announcement contains the names and addresses of those award recipients selected for funding based on the rating and ranking of all applications and the amount of the awards.

Under the Residential Lead- Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, the Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes (OLHCHH) is authorized to develop, demonstrate, and promote measures to correct lead-based paint-related health and safety hazards in the home environment that affect children, particularly of low-income families. In this notice, the Secretary delegates to the Director of OLHCHH, all authority pursuant to the Lead-Based Paint Poisoning Prevention Act, the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992, sections 501 and 502 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1970, and authorizing legislation pertaining to lead hazard control and healthy homes contained within annual appropriations acts, for matters pertaining to lead hazard control and healthy homes. This includes oversight and enforcement of the Lead Disclosure Rule as well as oversight of the Lead Safe Housing Rule for all HUD programs and enforcement of the Lead Safe Housing Rule for Multifamily Housing programs, the Single Family Asset Management program, and Public and Indian Housing (PIH) programs. PIH enforcement actions include coordination with the appropriate PIH field office.

This notice advises the public that HUD has established an expedited process for the review of requests for relief from HUD regulatory and/or administrative requirements (``HUD requirements'') for public housing agencies (PHAs) that are located in a parish of Louisiana that has been declared a federal disaster area due to severe storms and flooding. Specifically, these PHAs may request waivers of HUD requirements and receive expedited review of such requests.

HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment.

The proposed information collection requirement concerning an American Healthy Homes Survey II in homes across the country will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act. The Department is soliciting public comments on the subject proposal.

Section 106 of the Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (the HUD Reform Act) requires HUD to publish quarterly Federal Register notices of all regulatory waivers that HUD has approved. Each notice covers the quarterly period since the previous Federal Register notice. The purpose of this notice is to comply with the requirements of section 106 of the HUD Reform Act. This notice contains a list of regulatory waivers granted by HUD during the period beginning on July 1, 2016, and ending on September 30, 2016.

On November 16, 2016, HUD published a final rule implementing in HUD's regulations the requirements of the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). After publication, HUD discovered an incorrect compliance date in the preamble and an incorrect paragraph designation in the regulatory text. The compliance date, with respect to completing an emergency transfer plan and providing emergency transfers, and associated recordkeeping and reporting requirements, was incorrectly listed as May 15, 2017, in the preamble. The regulatory text provided the correct date of June 14, 2017. This document makes the necessary correction to the preamble to reflect the compliance date in the regulatory text of June 14, 2017 and the paragraph designations in the regulatory text.

On October 24, 2016, HUD published implementation guidance for the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act. In that document, HUD inadvertently published the incorrect implementation information for changes regarding the Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program (SHOP). This notice corrects that information.

HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment.

HUD has submitted the proposed information collection requirement described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. The purpose of this notice is to allow for an additional 30 days of public comment.

This rule requires each public housing agency (PHA) administering public housing to implement a smoke-free policy. Specifically, no later than 18 months from the effective date of the rule, each PHA must implement a ``smoke-free'' policy banning the use of prohibited tobacco products in all public housing living units, indoor common areas in public housing, and in PHA administrative office buildings. The smoke-free policy must also extend to all outdoor areas up to 25 feet from the public housing and administrative office buildings. This rule improves indoor air quality in the housing; benefits the health of public housing residents, visitors, and PHA staff; reduces the risk of catastrophic fires; and lowers overall maintenance costs.

This rule changes the method by which HUD will determine participating jurisdictions' compliance with the statutory 24-month commitment requirement. Beginning with Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 grants, HUD will implement a grant-specific method for determining compliance with these requirements. This rule also establishes a method of administering program income that will prevent participating jurisdictions from losing appropriated funds when they expend program income.

On July 29, 2016, President Obama signed into law the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016 (HOTMA). One of the statutory amendments made by HOTMA adds an income limit to the Public Housing program. This notice informs the public of how HUD proposes to implement that income limit and solicits comments on that methodology.