Federal Housing Finance Agency 2022 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or the Agency) is issuing a final rule on the multifamily housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) for 2023 and 2024. The Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 (the Safety and Soundness Act) requires FHFA to establish annual housing goals for mortgages purchased by the Enterprises. Under FHFA's existing housing goals regulation, the multifamily housing goals for the Enterprises include benchmark levels through the end of 2022 based on the total number of affordable units in multifamily properties financed by mortgage loans purchased by the Enterprise each year. This final rule amends the regulation to establish benchmark levels for the multifamily housing goals for 2023 and 2024 based on a new methodologythe percentage of affordable units in multifamily properties financed by mortgages purchased by the Enterprise each year.

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is seeking public comments concerning an information collection known as the ``National Survey of Mortgage Originations'' (NSMO), which has been assigned control number 2590-0012 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). FHFA intends to submit the information collection to OMB for review and approval of a three-year extension of the control number, which is due to expire on June 30, 2023.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or Agency), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites public comments on a new information collection titled ``Tech Sprints,'' as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). This information collection has not yet been assigned a control number by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). FHFA intends to submit the information collection to OMB for review and approval of a three- year control number.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or Agency) is proposing to amend its Enterprise Duty to Serve Underserved Markets regulation to add a definition of ``colonia census tract,'' which would serve as a census tract-based proxy for a ``colonia,'' and to amend the definition of ``high-needs rural region'' in the regulation by substituting ``colonia census tract'' for ``colonia.'' The proposed rule would also revise the definition of ``rural area'' in the regulation to include all colonia census tracts regardless of their location. These changes would make activities by the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) (collectively, the Enterprises) in all colonia census tracts eligible for Duty to Serve credit. The intent of the changes is to facilitate the Enterprises' ability to operationalize their Duty to Serve activities and thereby help increase liquidity in these underserved communities.

In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or the Agency) is seeking public comments concerning an information collection known as ``Community Support Requirements,'' which has been assigned control number 2590-0005 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). FHFA intends to submit the information collection to OMB for review and approval of a three-year extension of the control number, which is due to expire on September 30, 2023.

In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, (Privacy Act), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or Agency) is establishing FHFA-28, ``Government-Sponsored Enterprise Prospective Employee Directory'' (System) in order to collect information FHFA will use to evaluate prospective senior-level employees and executives for the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and any affiliate thereof and the Federal Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac) and any affiliate thereof (collectively, the ``GSEs''), in carrying out the statutory authorities of the Director to oversee the prudential operations of each regulated entity.

In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, (Privacy Act), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or Agency) is proposing to modify the current FHFA system of records titled, ``FHFA-18, Reasonable Accommodation and Personal Assistance Services Information System'' (System) in order to collect information related to sincerely held religious beliefs, practices, or observances when necessary to evaluate requests for religious accommodations. FHFA is also publishing this revised system of records to reflect updates to the authorities and to expand the system's purpose, scope of categories of individuals, categories of records, and record source categories. FHFA is also proposing to modify certain routine uses, and make general and administrative updates to the remaining sections in the System.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA or the Agency) is adopting a final rule (final rule) that amends the Enterprise Regulatory Capital Framework (ERCF) by refining the prescribed leverage buffer amount (PLBA or leverage buffer) and credit risk transfer (CRT) securitization framework for the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac, and with Fannie Mae, each an Enterprise). The final rule also makes technical corrections to various provisions of the ERCF that was published on December 17, 2020.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is adopting this final rule amending its Rules of Practice and Procedure and other agency regulations to adjust each civil money penalty within its jurisdiction to account for inflation, pursuant to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015.