[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 245 (Wednesday, December 20, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79903-79904]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-32371]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-4560-N-15]


FY 2000 Super Notice of Funding Availability (SuperNOFA) for 
HUD's Housing, Community Development and Empowerment Programs and 
Section 8 Housing Voucher Assistance; Notice of Amendment and 
Clarification to the Continuum of Care Program

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and 
Development, HUD.

ACTION: Super notice of funding availability (SuperNOFA) for HUD grant 
programs; notice of amendment and clarification to the continuum of 
care program.

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SUMMARY: On February 24, 2000, HUD published its Fiscal Year 2000 Super 
Notice of Funding Availability (SuperNOFA) for Housing, Community 
Development and Empowerment Programs, and Section 8 Housing Voucher 
Assistance. This document makes one clarification and two amendments to 
the Continuum of Care program requirements in the FY 2000 SuperNOFA. 
First, this document clarifies that funding for Shelter Plus Care 
renewal projects will be made from the separate McKinney Act 
appropriation established by the Congress for this purpose under the FY 
2001 HUD Appropriations Act. This document also makes two amendments to 
the Continuum of Care program to reflect the establishment of this 
separate appropriation in HUD's implementation of the 30 percent 
permanent housing funding requirement under the FY 2000 HUD 
Appropriations Act.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Clifford Taffet, Office of Special 
Needs Assistance, Office of Community Planning and Development, U.S. 
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh Street, SW., 
Room 7266, Washington, DC 20410; telephone (202) 708-1234 (this is not 
a toll-free telephone number). Hearing and speech-impaired individuals 
may access this number via TTY by calling the toll-free Federal 
Information Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On February 24, 2000 (65 FR 9322) published 
its Fiscal Year 2000 Super Notice of Funding Availability (SuperNOFA) 
for Housing, Community Development and Empowerment Programs, and 
Section 8 Housing Voucher Assistance. This document makes one 
clarification and two amendments to the Continuum of Care program 
requirements contained in the FY 2000 SuperNOFA (beginning at 65 FR 
9850). The clarification and changes made by this document are as 
follows:

A. McKinney Act Funding for Shelter Plus Care Renewal Projects

    The Continuum of Care program section of the FY 2000 SuperNOFA, 
reserved for HUD the right to skip over eligible Shelter Plus Care 
renewal projects submitted in the competition and to fund them from 
sources ``other than the McKinney Act'' should the Congress pass 
legislation allowing this (see 65 FR 9851, third column). At the time 
of publication of the FY 2000 SuperNOFA, HUD believed that, were 
Congress to act, the source of funds for these renewals would be the 
Section 8 Housing Certificate Fund. However, the FY 2001 HUD 
Appropriations Act (Public Law 106-377, approved October 27, 2000) 
establishes a separate appropriation under the McKinney Act for this 
purpose. Therefore, HUD is publishing this document to inform 
interested parties that these non-competitive awards will be funded 
from this separate special appropriation under the McKinney Act.

[[Page 79904]]

B. Permanent Housing Funding Requirements

    The FY 2000 HUD Appropriations Act (Public Law 106-24, approved 
October 20, 1999) requires that ``not less than 30 percent of these 
funds shall be used for permanent housing'' (which the FY 2000 
Continuum of Care NOFA defines to include Shelter Plus Care renewal 
projects). The action taken by Congress to fund Shelter Plus Care 
renewal projects, a significant component of permanent housing funding 
in previous years, from a source other than the FY 2000 Homeless 
Assistance Grants appropriation, prevents these projects from counting 
toward the 30 percent permanent housing requirement contained in the FY 
2000 HUD Appropriations Act. As a consequence, HUD will find it 
necessary, as contemplated in the FY 2000 Continuum of Care program 
section of the SuperNOFA, to skip over higher scoring non-permanent 
housing projects in order to reach the 30 percent requirement. However, 
in order to reduce the impact on existing homeless programs in 
implementing this statutory requirement, and in keeping with expressed 
Congressional intent to maintain existing programs and infrastructure 
for homeless assistance, HUD is amending the FY 2000 Continuum of Care 
NOFA as follows:

1. Funding for Supportive Housing Program (SHP) Renewal Projects 
Assigned 40 Need Points.

    Section III(A)(2) of the FY 2000 Continuum of Care NOFA reserved 
for HUD the authority to use FY 2001 funds, if available, to 
conditionally select for one year of funding lower-rated eligible 
Supportive Housing Program (SHP) renewal projects that were assigned 40 
need points if two criteria were met. The first criterion was that 
these projects had to be part of Continuum of Care systems ``that would 
not otherwise receive funding.'' Since the recent Congressional action 
will result in at least one permanent housing project being funded in 
many Continua of Care which scored below the projected funding line, 
these Continua of Care would be made ineligible for renewal funding 
under this authority. In order to avoid this unintended consequence of 
the congressional action, the criterion is being amended to read ``that 
would not otherwise receive funding for these projects'' so that it 
would apply specifically to these lower rated eligible SHP renewal 
projects that were assigned 40 need points, thus allowing these renewal 
projects to be funded under this authority.

2. Skipping Over of Higher Scoring Non-Permanent Housing Projects.

    Section V(A)(7) of the FY 2000 Continuum of Care NOFA described the 
30 percent permanent housing funding requirement established by 
Congress for the Continuum of Care competition. This section is being 
amended to permit HUD to first skip over new non-permanent housing 
projects when making project selections in order to meet the 30 percent 
requirement. If the 30 percent requirement has not been met after 
skipping over the new non-permanent housing projects, then HUD will 
skip over non-permanent housing renewal projects. In skipping over new 
non-permanent housing projects, HUD will begin with the lowest rated 
(eligible) fundable new non-permanent project at the projected funding 
line and continue up the rating and ranking until the 30 percent 
requirement is met. If HUD is required to skip over non-permanent 
housing renewal projects, HUD will proceed in the same way.
    Accordingly, in the Super Notice of Funding Availability for 
Housing, Community Development, and Empowerment Programs and Section 8 
Housing Voucher Assistance for Fiscal Year 2000, notice document 00-
4123, beginning at 65 FR 9322, in the issue of Friday, February 24, 
2000, the following clarifications and corrections are made to the 
Continuum of Care NOFA, commencing at 9851:
    1. On page 9853, the last paragraph starting in the first column is 
amended to read as follows:
* * * * *
    Your local needs analysis process must consider the need to 
continue funding for projects expiring in calendar year 2001, and 
you must assign a priority to those projects requesting renewal. HUD 
will not fund renewals out of order on the priority list except as 
may be necessary to achieve the new 30 percent overall permanent 
housing requirement. HUD reserves the authority to use FY 2001 
funds, if available, to conditionally select for one year of funding 
lower-rated eligible SHP renewal projects that are assigned 40 need 
points in continuum of care systems that: (1) Would not otherwise 
receive funding for these projects; and (2) have not previously been 
awarded funds under this authority.
* * * * *
    2. On page 9856, the last full paragraph starting in the third 
column is amended to read as follows:
* * * * *
    In accordance with the appropriation for homeless assistance 
grants in the Fiscal Year 2000 Appropriation Act for HUD (Pub.L. 
106-24, approved October 20, 1999; 113 Stat. 1047), HUD will use not 
less than 30 percent of the total FY 2000 homeless grant assistance 
appropriation to fund projects that meet the definition of permanent 
housing. Projects meeting the definition of permanent housing are: 
(1) New Shelter Plus Care projects; (2) Section 8 SRO projects; and 
(3) new and renewal projects designated as permanent housing for 
homeless persons with disabilities under the Supportive Housing 
Program. Since the FY 2000 homeless grant assistance appropriation 
is $1.020 billion, not less than $306 million must be awarded to 
permanent housing projects unless an insufficient number of 
approvable permanent housing projects is submitted in which case HUD 
will carry over the amount of the permanent housing funding 
shortfall to next year's competition. This permanent housing funding 
requirement may result in higher scoring non-permanent housing 
projects being skipped over to fund lower scoring permanent housing 
projects or, within a continuum, higher priority non-permanent 
housing projects being skipped over to fund lower priority permanent 
housing projects. HUD will first skip over new non-permanent housing 
projects when making project selections in order to meet the 30 
percent requirement. If the 30 percent requirement has not been met 
after skipping over the new non-permanent housing projects, then HUD 
will skip over non-permanent housing renewal projects. In skipping 
over new non-permanent housing projects, HUD will begin with the 
lowest rated (eligible) fundable new non-permanent project at the 
projected funding line and continue up the rating and ranking until 
the 30 percent requirement is met. If HUD is required to skip over 
non-permanent housing renewal projects, HUD will proceed in the same 
way.
* * * * *

    Dated: December 14, 2000.
Cardell Cooper,
Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development.
[FR Doc. 00-32371 Filed 12-19-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-29-P