Louisiana Administrative Code
Title 70 - TRANSPORTATION AND DEVELOPMENT
Part XVII - Real Estate
Chapter 1 - Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition for Federally and Federally-Assisted Programs and State Programs
Section XVII-113 - Certification

Universal Citation: LA Admin Code XVII-113

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 12, December 20, 2024

A. Purpose. This Section permits the department to fulfill its responsibilities under the Uniform Act by certifying that it shall operate in accordance with state laws and regulations which shall accomplish the purpose and effect of the Uniform Act, in lieu of providing the assurances required by §101 D

B. Certification Application

1. General
a. The state governor, or his or her designee, on behalf of any state agency or agencies may apply for certification in accordance with this Section.

b. The governor may designate a lead agency to administer certification in accordance with this Section.

2. Responsibilities of the Department
a. The department's application shall be submitted to the governor or his or her designee, for approval or disapproval.

b. The department application shall contain a statement that the department shall carry out the responsibilities imposed by the Uniform Act. The department application shall include a copy of the state laws and regulations which shall accomplish the purpose and effect of the Uniform Act.

3. Responsibilities of Governor or His or Her Designee
a. The governor, or his or her designee, shall approve or disapprove the department's application.

b. The governor, or his or her designee, shall have discretion to disapprove any state agency application.

c. The governor, or his or her designee, shall analyze state law and regulations and shall certify that they accomplish the purpose and effect of the Uniform Act.

d. The governor, or his or her designee, shall determine in writing whether the department's professional staffing is adequate to fully implement the state law and regulations.

e. If the department's application is approved by the governor, or his or her designee, it shall be transmitted to the federal agency providing financial assistance to the department, with an information copy to the federal lead agency.

f. When a determination is received from the federal funding agency, the governor, or his or her designee, shall notify the state agency.

4. Responsibilities of Federal Funding Agency
a. The federal funding agency shall accept the approved application for certification provided by the governor or his or her designee and shall not conduct an independent review unless or until future monitoring or other appropriate indicators reveal program deficiencies originating therefrom.

b. The federal funding agency shall transmit all complete, approved applications, for certification to the federal lead agency.

c. At the same time as transmission to the federal lead agency or during the public comment period, the federal funding agency shall provide its written assessment of the department's capabilities to operate under certification.

d. The federal funding agency shall promptly notify the governor, or his or her designee, of the federal lead agency's determination described in §113. B.5 b

e. The federal funding agency shall recognize the department's certification within 30 days of the federal lead agency's finding.

5. Responsibilities of Federal Lead Agency
a. The lead agency shall:
i. accept the approval provided by the governor, or his or her designee, and shall not conduct an independent review, except as provided for in §113. B.5.a ii-iv, unless future monitoring or other appropriate indicators reveal program deficiencies originating therefrom;

ii. analyze the extent to which the provisions of the applicable state laws and regulations accomplish the purpose and effect of the Uniform Act, with particular emphasis on the definition of a displaced person, the categories of assistance required, and the levels of assistance provided to persons in such categories;

iii. provide a 60-day period of public review and comment, and solicit and consider the views of interested general purpose local governments within the state, as well as the views of interested federal and state agencies; and consider all comments received as a result;

iv. consider any extraordinary information it believes to be relevant.

b. After considering all the information provided, the lead agency shall either make a finding that the department will carry out the federal agency's Uniform Act responsibility in accordance with state laws and regulations which shall accomplish the same purpose and effect as the Uniform Act, or shall make a determination that a finding cannot be made; and shall so inform the federal funding agency.

C. Monitoring and Corrective Action

1. The federal lead agency shall, in coordination with other federal agencies, monitor from time to time department implementation of programs or projects conducted under the certification process and the state agency shall make available any information required for this purpose.

2. A federal agency that has accepted the department's certification pursuant to this Section may withhold its approval of any federal financial assistance to or contract or cooperative agreement with the department if it is found by the federal agency to have failed to comply with the applicable state law and regulations.

3. A federal agency may, after consultation with the lead agency, and notice and consultation with the governor, or his or her designee, rescind any previous approval provided under this Section if the certifying state agency fails to comply with its certification or with applicable state law and regulations.

4.Section 103(b)(2) of the Uniform Act, as amended, requires that the head of the lead agency report biennially to the Congress on state agency implementation of §103 To enable adequate preparation of the prescribed biennial report, the lead agency may require periodic information or data from affected federal or state agencies.

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with 42 USC 4601 - 4655, 52 FR 45667, 49 CFR 1.48(dd), and R.S. 38:3107.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Louisiana may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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