Community Development Laws and Regulations

The rules and regulations governing the activites of Community Development programs are broken down into three categories: the Laws as enacted by Congress, the Regulations created by HUD to achieve the result prescribed by the Laws, and the Policy Memoranda that address specific instances and questions. Notices are available for guidance.

Laws

When Congress passed the Housing and Community Development (HCD) Act of 1974, it broke down the barriers of prevailing practice -- where under separate categorical programs, the Federal Government had made the decisions about every community development project undertaken by cities. The HCD Act departed from this model by creating the CDBG program. CDBG merged 7 categorical programs into a block of flexible community development funds distributed each year by a formula that considers population and measures of distress including poverty, age of housing, housing overcrowding, and growth lag. Grantees now determine what activities they will fund as long as certain requirements are met, including that each activity is eligible and will meet one of the three broad national objectives of the program.

	Sec. 5301- Congressional findings and declaration of purpose
	Sec. 5302- Definitions
	Sec. 5303- Grants to States, units of general local government and Indian tribes; authorizations

	Sec. 5304- Statement of activities and review
	Sec. 5305- Activities eligible for assistance
	Sec. 5306- Allocation and distribution of funds
	Sec. 5307- Special purpose grants
	Sec. 5308- Guarantee of loans for acquisition of property
	Sec. 5309- Nondiscrimination in programs and activities
	Sec. 5310 - Labor standards; rate of wages; exceptions; enforcement powers
	Sec. 5311- Remedies for noncompliance with community development requirements
	Sec. 5312- Use of grants for settlement of outstanding urban renewal loans of units of general local government
	Sec. 5313- Reporting requirements
	Sec. 5314- Consultation by Secretary with other Federal departments, etc
	Sec. 5315 - Interstate agreements or compacts; purposes
	Sec. 5316 - Transition provisions
	Sec. 5317- Liquidation of superseded or inactive programs
	Sec. 5318 - Urban development action grants
	Sec. 5318a - John Heinz Neighborhood Development Program. (This section is not included)
	Sec. 5319 - Fair Participation for Small Communities
	Sec. 5320 - Historic preservation requirements
	Sec. 5321- Suspension of requirements for disaster areas

Regulations

The regulations created by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Community Planning and Development that pertain to Community Development programs are contained within Part 570 - Community Development Block Grants.

Policy Memoranda

CDBG Policy Guidance Memoranda presented on this website is considered public information and may be distributed or copied. The policy guidance presented herein was provided based on the policy question and circumstances presented at the time the guidance was written. Every attempt has been made to be as current and correct as possible. The guidance presented herein is meant to be general guidance and makes no representation that the content is appropriate or authorized for use for all jurisdictions receiving Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding. This information is not meant to substitute for statutory requirements, CDBG regulations, nor policy guidance provided through HUD's Community Planning and Development (CPD) Field Staff. If there are questions or concerns regarding particular CDBG activities and policies discussed in the guidance herein, consult a Community Planning and Development representative in the HUD Field Office near you. Search the Memoranda.

Community Development Notices

CPD Notices provide detailed guidance on a specific CPD subject. Notices relating to Community Development explain how the CDBG program regulations should be interpreted or applied.