[Federal Register: April 5, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 65)]
[Notices]
[Page 16809-16811]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr05ap07-113]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-4837-D-62]
Delegation of Authority to Regional Directors To Waive Certain
Handbook and Directives Provisions
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HUD.
ACTION: Notice of delegation of authority to regional directors in the
HUD regional offices.
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SUMMARY: In this notice, the Secretary delegates to the Regional
Directors the authority to waive certain HUD handbook provisions and
directives and announces the procedures that will govern these waivers.
Specifically, the delegation provides Regional Directors with
concurrent authority to waive certain HUD handbook provisions and
directives. Currently, the Regional Directors are located in Region I
(Boston, MA); Region II (New York, NY); Region III (Philadelphia, PA);
Region IV (Atlanta, GA); Region V (Chicago, IL); Region VI (Fort Worth,
TX); Region VII (Kansas City, KS); Region VIII (Denver, CO); Region IX
(San Francisco, CA); and Region X (Seattle, WA).
Any waiver of HUD handbook provisions and directives made in the
field must be in writing and must specify the grounds for granting it.
All waiver decisions by a Regional Director in the Office of Field
Policy and Management must be jointly concurred in by the appropriate
regional program director or Assistant Secretary. In addition, the
Department will make available for public inspection, for at least a 3-
year period, a record of all waivers of HUD handbook provisions and
directives.
EFFECTIVE DATE: March 30, 2007.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aaron Santa Anna, Assistant General
Counsel for Regulations, Office of Legislation and Regulations, Office
of General Counsel, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451
Seventh Street, SW., Room 10276, Washington, DC 20410; telephone number
(202) 708-3055 or Mark Borum, Field Management Officer, Office of Field
Policy and Management, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451
Seventh Street, SW., Room 7122, Washington, DC 20410; telephone number
(202) 708-1123. (These are not toll-free numbers.) These
[[Page 16810]]
numbers may be accessed through TTY by calling the Federal Information
Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Comments or questions can be submitted
through the Internet to
Aaron_Santa_Anna@hud.gov or to Mark_G._Borum@hud.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 106 of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (Pub. L. 101-235, approved
December 15, 1989) added section 7(q) to the Department of Housing and
Urban Development Act (HUD Act) (42 U.S.C. 3535(q)). Section 7(q)
provides that any waiver of a HUD regulation or handbook provision must
be in writing, specify the grounds for the waiver, and be indexed and
made available for public inspection (42 U.S.C. 3535(q)(4)).
Pursuant to section 7(q) of the HUD Act, a regulation can be waived
only by the Secretary or a designated Assistant Secretary or equivalent
rank. The Secretary is the ultimate repository of the authority both to
issue and to waive the regulations of the Department. The Secretary may
delegate each of these powers to other HUD officers. Under section 7(q)
of the HUD Act, however, the Secretary may not delegate the authority
to waive a regulation below the Assistant Secretary rank. Individuals
serving in an ``acting'' capacity may exercise the authority contained
in this delegation. This delegation is subject to the provisions of the
Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (5 U.S.C. 3345 et seq.).
Definitions as used in this delegation:
Assistant Secretary means an Assistant Secretary of the Department
under section 4(a) of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
Act (42 U.S.C. 3533(a)), or an individual of equivalent rank.
Individual of equivalent rank means an individual with rank
equivalent to an Assistant Secretary. The term includes the following
HUD officers: The General Counsel; the Inspector General; the President
of the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA); the Chief
Financial Officer; and other positions appointed by the President
requiring Senate confirmation.
Regional Director means an individual who is responsible for
managing a HUD regional office.
Directive \1\ means a non-Federal Register publication, as defined
in HUD's handbook on the ``HUD Directives System'' (Handbook No. 000.2
REV-2 or such successor edition) and includes a handbook (including a
change or supplement), notice, interim notice, special directive, and
any other issuance that the Department may classify as a directive.
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\1\ By its terms, section 106 reaches only HUD ``handbooks.''
This is the one class of HUD directives, as defined in this Notice.
In order to give section 106 the widest possible coverage, the
Department has decided, as a matter of agency discretion, to subject
all the Department's directives to the provisions of section 106.
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Handbook means a directive that communicates information of a non-
temporary nature (including clarification of policies, instructions,
guidance, procedures, forms, and reports) for HUD staff or program
participants. The non-temporary nature distinguishes a handbook from
temporary HUD directives, such as notices. (See paragraph 2-1A, HUD
Handbook 000.2, HUD Directives System, or successor edition.)
Notice, in the context of a directive, means a non-Federal Register
directive that is used to provide HUD program participants with
temporary instructions involving HUD programs or to amend previous
instructions until a handbook revision or change is issued. A notice
must carry an expiration date of not to exceed one year, and may be
extended. (See paragraph 2-1D, HUD Handbook 000.2, HUD Directives
System, or successor edition.)
Interim Notice means a non-Federal Register directive that is
issued at the discretion of an Assistant Secretary under emergency
circumstances. Interim notices carry an expiration date not to exceed
120 days, and may not be extended. (See paragraph 2-1E, HUD Handbook
000.2, HUD Directives System, or successor edition.)
Regulation means ``rule'' or ``regulation,'' as these terms are
defined in Part 10 of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and
includes any material contained in Title 24 of the Code of Federal
Regulations; any notice published in the Federal Register announcing
the availability of funds, or the criteria to be used to select
recipients of the funds, under any program administered by the
Department; and any other notice published in the Federal Register that
establishes program requirements pursuant to a statute that authorizes
the Department to administer the program by Federal Register
publication, pending issuance of effective regulations amending Title
24 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
Waiver of Directives and Handbook Provisions:
Form and Content of Waivers. Section 7(q) within the Department of
Housing and Urban Development Act, 42 U.S.C. 3535(q), provides that any
waiver of a HUD handbook or directive provision must be in writing,
specify the grounds for the waiver, and be indexed and made available
for public inspection.
Waivers of Directive or Handbook Provisions That Restate or
Summarize a Regulation. Waiver of a directive or handbook provision
that restates or summarizes a regulation may constitute a regulatory
waiver for purposes of this Notice. The Office of General Counsel will
determine whether a handbook or directive provision is to be treated as
a regulatory waiver. If the handbook or directive provision is
determined to be a regulatory waiver, it must comport with section 7(q)
of the HUD Act, which requires the signature of the Assistant Secretary
or equivalent.
All Prohibitions Against Discrimination. All prohibitions against
discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin,
religion, handicap, age, or familial status, and all related
affirmative obligations that are direct derivatives of regulations
governing prohibitions of discrimination are considered regulatory
prohibitions.
Public Inspection of Waivers. A record of each waiver of a HUD
directive or handbook provision (including the grounds for granting the
waiver) will be maintained in indexed form, and will be made available
to the public at the HUD Headquarters office with program authority
over the HUD directive. The record will be maintained for not less than
the 3-year period beginning on the date the waiver is granted.
Executive Order 12612, Federalism. The General Counsel, as the
Designated Official under section 6(a) of Executive Order 12612,
Federalism, has determined that this delegation will not have
substantial direct impact on states or their political subdivisions, or
on the relationship between the federal government and the states, or
on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various
levels of government. The delegation only states procedures for
granting waivers of regulations and directives, and for notifying the
public of the waiver. As a result, this delegation is not subject to
review under the Executive Order.
It should be noted that the actual grant of a waiver pursuant to
this delegation may involve federalism implications. If this occurs,
the relationship of the waiver to the Executive Order will be assessed
at that time and in that context.
Section A: Authority Delegated
The Secretary delegates to each Regional Director concurrent
authority within his or her respective jurisdiction, to waive those
directives and handbook provisions pertaining to programs in the
Offices of Housing, Public and Indian
[[Page 16811]]
Housing, Community Planning and Development, and Fair Housing and Equal
Opportunity. All waivers by the Regional Directors in the Office of
Field Policy and Management must be jointly concurred in by the
appropriate Regional Program Director or Assistant Secretary, as
directed by the applicable Assistant Secretary.
Section B: Directives, Handbooks, and Provisions Excluded
The waiver authority delegated herein does not include the
authority to waive regulations, or those Departmental directives and
handbook provisions mandated by or directly predicated on a statute,
executive order, or regulation, including, but not limited to,
environmental, ethics, fair housing, civil rights enforcement and
compliance, procurement, and other provisions. Additionally, the waiver
authority delegated herein does not include the authority to waive
provisions contained in the HUD Litigation Handbook.
Section C: Authority Revoked
Any previous delegated or redelegated authority to Regional
Directors inconsistent with this delegation of authority is hereby
revoked.
Section D: Authority To Redelegate
This authority may not be redelegated.
Authority: Section 7(q), Department of Housing and Urban
Development Act (42 U.S.C. 3535(a)); Section 7(d), Department of
Housing and Urban Development Act (42 U.S.C. 3535(d)); Federal
Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (5 U.S.C. 3345 et seq.).
Dated: March 30, 2007.
Alphonso Jackson,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E7-6390 Filed 4-4-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P