[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 194 (Tuesday, October 7, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60490-60492]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-23967]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-5696-N-12]
Additional Waivers and Alternative Requirements for Grantees in
Receipt of Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Funds
Under the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013
AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and
Development, HUD.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This Notice provides an additional waiver and alternative
requirements for Minot, North Dakota, a Community Development Block
Grant (CDBG) disaster recovery grantee in receipt of funds under
Section 239 of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
Appropriations Act, 2012 (Pub. L. 112-55) and the Disaster Relief
Appropriations Act, 2013 (Pub. L. 113-2). Minot, ND initially received
disaster assistance under Public Law 112-55 and was provided with
additional assistance through Public Law 113-2 (together, the
supplemental Acts). The waiver in this Notice specific to Minot, ND
applies to both its 112-55 funds and 113-2 funds as described herein.
To date, the Department has allocated nearly $15.5 billion under the
supplemental Acts to assist recovery in the most impacted and
distressed areas identified in major disaster declarations in calendar
years 2011, 2012 and 2013.
DATES: Effective Date: October 14, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stan Gimont, Director, Office of Block
Grant Assistance, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th
Street SW., Room 7286, Washington, DC 20410, telephone number 202-708-
3587. Persons with hearing or speech impairments may access this number
via TTY by calling the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339. Facsimile
inquiries may be sent to Mr. Gimont at 202-401-2044. (Except for the
``800'' number, these telephone numbers are not toll-free.) Email
inquiries may be sent to [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Background
II. Applicable Rules, Statutes, Waivers, and Alternative
Requirements
III. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
IV. Finding of No Significant Impact
I. Background
Section 239 of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
Appropriations Act, 2012 (Pub. L. 112-55, approved November 18, 2011)
makes available up to $400 million, to remain available until expended,
in CDBG funds for necessary expenses related to disaster relief, long-
term recovery, restoration of infrastructure and housing, and economic
revitalization in the most impacted and distressed areas resulting from
a major disaster declared pursuant to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.)
(Stafford Act) in 2011.
Additionally, the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013 (Public
Law 113-2, approved January 29, 2013) made available $16 billion
(reduced to $15.18 billion after sequestration) \1\ in Community
Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for necessary expenses related to
disaster relief, long-term recovery, restoration of infrastructure and
housing, and economic revitalization in the most impacted and
distressed areas resulting from a major disaster declared pursuant to
the Stafford Act, due to Hurricane Sandy and other eligible events in
calendar years 2011, 2012, and 2013.
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\1\ On March 1, 2013, the President issued a sequestration order
pursuant to section 251A of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
Deficit Control Act, as amended (2 U.S.C. 901a), and reduced funding
for CDBG-DR grants under the Public Law 113-2 to $15.18 billion.
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To describe these allocations and the accompanying requirements,
the Department published multiple Federal Register notices: March 5,
2013 (78 FR 14329), April 19, 2013 (78 FR 23578), May 29, 2013 (78 FR
32262), August 2, 2013 (78 FR 46999), November 18, 2013 (78 FR 69104),
March 27, 2014 (78 FR 17173), June 3, 2014 (79 FR 31964), and July 11,
2014 (79 FR 40133). For Minot, North Dakota, allocations and
requirements under Public Law 112-55 can be found in the Notice
published April 16, 2012 (77 FR 22583). These are referred to
collectively in this Notice as the ``Prior Notices.'' The requirements
of the Prior Notices continue to apply, except as modified by this
Notice.\2\
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\2\ Links to the Prior Notices, the text of the supplemental
Acts, and additional guidance prepared by the Department for CDBG-DR
grants, are available on HUD's Web site under the Office of
Community Planning and Development, Disaster Recovery Assistance:
http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/comm_planning/communitydevelopment/programs/drsi. The same
information is also available on HUD's OneCPD Web site: https://www.onecpd.info/cdbg-dr/.
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As the supplemental Acts require funds to be awarded directly to a
State, or unit of general local government (hereinafter, local
government), at the discretion of the Secretary, the term ``grantee''
refers to any jurisdiction that has received a direct award from HUD
under the supplemental Acts.
II. Applicable Rules, Statutes, Waivers, and Alternative Requirements
The supplemental Acts authorize the Secretary to waive, or specify
alternative requirements for, any provision of any statute or
regulation that the Secretary administers in connection with HUD's
obligation or use by the recipient of these funds (except for
requirements related to fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor
standards, and the environment). Waivers and alternative requirements
are based upon a determination by the Secretary that good cause exists
and that the waiver or alternative requirement is not inconsistent with
the overall purposes of Title I of the HCD Act. Regulatory waiver
authority is also provided by 24 CFR 5.110, 91.600, and 570.5.
This Notice modifies requirements of the Prior Notices. The waivers
and alternative requirements in this Notice apply to Minot, North
Dakota, as identified herein. For the waiver and alternative
requirements described in this Notice, the Secretary has determined
that good cause exists and the action is not inconsistent with the
overall purpose of Title I of the HCD Act. Grantees may request
additional waivers and alternative requirements from the Department as
needed to address specific needs related to their recovery activities.
Under the requirements of the supplemental Acts, waivers must be
published in the Federal Register no later than five days before the
effective date of such waiver.
1. General note. Except as described in this Notice, the statutory,
regulatory, and notice provisions that shall apply to the use of these
funds are those governing the funds appropriated under
[[Page 60491]]
Public Law 112-55 and Public Law 113-2 and already published in the
Federal Register.
2. Waiver of Section 414 of the Stafford Act and Alternative
Requirements. (City of Minot, North Dakota, only).
Section 414 of the Stafford Act provides that that no person
otherwise eligible for a replacement housing payment under the Uniform
Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of
1970, as amended (URA), may be denied eligibility for that payment as a
result of being unable because of a major disaster as determined by the
President to meet the occupancy requirements set by the URA.
Accordingly, residential occupants displaced from their homes as a
result of the 2011 floods in Minot, North Dakota, would be eligible for
relocation assistance upon implementation of a rehabilitation program
affecting homes that had been previously vacated.
The city of Minot has requested a waiver of section 414 of the
Stafford Act, as amended, for its Small Rental Rehabilitation and
Reconstruction Program (SRRRP). This Notice grants the city's request
and provides alternative requirements consistent with the purpose of
the supplemental Acts.
Section 414 of the Stafford Act (including its implementing
regulation at 49 CFR 24.403(d), which is found among the regulations
implementing the URA), is waived to the extent that it would apply to
the CDBG disaster recovery-funded program SRRRP initiated by the city
of Minot under approved Action Plans for Disaster Recovery for its
grants under Public Law 113-2 and Public Law 112-55 provided that the
program or affiliated projects were not planned, approved, or otherwise
underway prior to the disaster.
The Department has surveyed other federal agencies' administration
of Section 414 and found varying strategies for long-term, post-
disaster projects involving the acquisition, rehabilitation, or
demolition of disaster-damaged housing. Under the supplemental Acts,
HUD has the authority to waive Section 414 and impose alternative
requirements. The Department has, in specific circumstances, previously
granted a waiver and provided alternative requirements of Section 414
to CDBG-DR grantees, including the Gulf States impacted by disasters in
2005 and 2008 (see 72 FR 48804).
The severe flood of 2011 substantially damaged Minot's affordable
rental housing stock resulting in increased housing burden among the
city's renters. According to the city, approximately one quarter of the
city's rental units were damaged by the flood. Nearly half of Minot's
rental households are now cost- burdened for housing, a portion that
has increased in part because of disaster-related damage to available
affordable housing. The city hopes to restore rental housing units by
using CDBG-DR funds to rehabilitate those units that were damaged by
the flood. The SRRRP will commence more than three years after the
flood, and many of the residential occupants occupying the housing
units at the time of the disaster have since obtained permanent housing
elsewhere. The Department has determined that without a statutory
waiver and the establishment of alternative requirements for the
application of Section 414, the city's SRRRP is unlikely to achieve its
goals of contributing to the restoration of the city's affordable
housing stock because former residential occupants that left the
properties long ago could be eligible to receive replacement housing
payments under the URA because of Section 414, reducing amounts that
would otherwise be directed toward SRRRP activities.
Due to the specific circumstances of Minot's recovery process, the
Department is providing a statutory waiver and establishing alternative
requirements in the application of Section 414 of the Stafford Act. For
the program covered by this waiver (SRRRP), the city must adhere to the
requirements specified in this Notice. In addition to the following
requirements, the Department strongly encourages the city to offer low
and moderate income former residential occupants preferred status in
the residential application process once rehabilitation is complete.
1. For residential occupants that have vacated housing units
damaged by the flood, prior to provision of funds for SRRRP activities,
the city of Minot must:
a. Establish a publicly available re-housing plan for the program
and ensure that it is provided in accessible formats, as necessary, to
ensure effective communication with persons with disabilities and those
who are limited English proficient. This plan must include, at minimum,
the following:
i. A regularly updated registry of the units and/or complexes to be
rehabilitated with CDBG-DR funds and those persons eligible for
residence so that displaced households and other interested residential
occupants may apply to live in these units;
ii. Contact information and a description of any applicable
application process, including any deadlines;
iii. A description of other services to be made available,
including, at minimum, outreach efforts to eligible persons, housing
counseling providing information about available housing resources, and
placement services for former and prospective residential occupants;
iv. Operating procedures requiring the city to collect from
property owners the contact information of former residential occupants
to inform them of the availability of units rehabilitated under the
program.
b. In order to contact residential occupants that were displaced
from their homes due to the flood, the city must require owners to meet
with the city to fill out the site occupant record which will provide
information on the residential occupants that occupied the structure at
the time of the flood. This information is to be in the agreement to
provide assistance to property owners participating in the SRRRP. The
city must ask the owner for the residential occupants' latest contact
information, and the city must make a good faith effort to contact the
residential occupants. The city should also make utilize newspaper and
other public media advertisements to locate displaced households.
c. The city must, where necessary, refer former residential
occupants to housing counseling programs.
2. In its request, the city has committed to ensure that all units
restored with CDBG-DR funds meet the affordability requirements defined
by HUD's HOME Program Rents for a period of five years, as described in
the SRRRP's published program information.
Justification for Waiver
The Department's basis for this waiver and alternative requirements
are unique to the city of Minot as documented in its request to the
Department. The Department has considered the city's request and
determined that good cause exists and that the waiver and alternative
requirements are not inconsistent with the overall purposes of Title I
of the HCD Act.
1. The 2011 flood caused unprecedented destruction in the city of
Minot. Twenty to 30 percent of the rental housing stock was damaged,
which was concentrated in an area of the city that had the highest
percentage of affordable housing. The destruction has contributed to an
increase in housing cost burden for nearly half of all rental
households. Based on information from the city's 2012
[[Page 60492]]
Assessment, there are 837 fewer affordable homes in Minot today then
there were in 2010, a shortage contributing to the widespread lack of
affordable housing in the city.
2. The SRRRP will commence three years after the units in question
were rendered uninhabitable. According to the city, 2,328 households
were displaced as a result of the flood, 2,062 were provided with
temporary housing, but only 20 households continue to reside in
temporary housing units which are assisted through other programs with
other forms of assistance.
3. In the absence of this waiver, any assistance provided to former
residential occupants under the URA might duplicate insurance proceeds
and federal, state, or local housing assistance that has already been
disbursed.
4. The waiver will simplify the administration of a disaster
recovery program (SRRRP) initiated years following the disaster and
expedite recovery in a location where rehabilitation activities are
restricted to a very short building season due to the region's climate.
This waiver does not apply to persons in physical occupancy of real
property who are displaced by the SRRRP or other HUD-funded disaster
recovery programs or projects. Such persons will continue to be
eligible for relocation assistance and payments under the URA.
Additionally, persons displaced by the effects of the disaster may
continue to apply for assistance under the city's approved disaster
recovery programs. This waiver does not address programs or projects
receiving other HUD funding or funding from other federal sources. The
city or the State of North Dakota may already be performing some
elements of a re-housing plan, such as providing a public rental
registry or undertaking outreach and placement services to those former
residents still receiving FEMA housing assistance. The city will
provide a description in the re-housing plan of how those existing
efforts will be available for the SRRRP to satisfy the requirements of
this Notice.
III. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for the disaster
recovery grants under this Notice is as follows: 14.269; 14.218;
14.228.
IV. Finding of No Significant Impact
A Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) with respect to the
environment has been made in accordance with HUD regulations at 24 CFR
part 50, which implement section 102(2)(C) of the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)). The FONSI is
available for public inspection between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays in
the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel, Department of
Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW., Room 10276,
Washington, DC 20410-0500. Due to security measures at the HUD
Headquarters building, an advance appointment to review the docket file
must be scheduled by calling the Regulations Division at 202-708-3055
(this is not a toll-free number). Hearing or speech-impaired
individuals may access this number through TTY by calling the toll-free
Federal Relay Service at 800-877-8339.
Dated: October 1, 2014.
Clifford Taffet,
General Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and
Development.
[FR Doc. 2014-23967 Filed 10-6-14; 8:45 am]
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