[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 47 (Wednesday, March 10, 2004)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 11349-11351]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-5395]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

24 CFR Part 990

[Docket No. FR-4874-N-04]


Operating Fund Program; Establishment of Negotiated Rulemaking 
Committee and Notice of First Meeting

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian 
Housing, HUD.

ACTION: Establishment of negotiated rulemaking advisory committee and 
first meeting.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: HUD announces the establishment of a negotiated rulemaking 
advisory committee under the Federal Advisory Committee Act and the 
Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990. The purpose of the committee is to 
provide advice and recommendations on developing a rule for 
effectuating changes to the Public Housing Operating Fund Program in 
response to the Harvard University Graduate School of Design's ``Public 
Housing Operating Cost Study.'' The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 
2004 requires publication of a final rule developed under the 
Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1990, by July 1, 2004. The committee 
consists of representatives with an interest in the outcome of the 
changes. This document announces the committee members and the dates, 
location, and agenda for the first committee meeting.

DATES: The first committee meeting will be held on March 30-April 1, 
2004. On each day, the meeting will start at approximately 8:30 a.m. 
and run until approximately 5 p.m., unless the committee agrees 
otherwise.

ADDRESSES: The first committee meeting will take place at the HUD 
Headquarters Building (Basement Rooms 176, 178, and 180), 451 Seventh 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410. Committee members and the public are 
to enter the HUD Headquarters Building through the entrance at the 
corner of Seventh and D Streets, SW. (the North entrance). Committee 
members and the public should arrive early to ensure timely access to 
the building. A photo ID is required.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Kubacki, Director, Funding and 
Financial Management Division, Public and Indian Housing--Real Estate 
Assessment Center, Suite 800, Department of Housing and Urban 
Development, 1280 Maryland Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20024-2135;

[[Page 11350]]

telephone (202) 708-4932 (this telephone number is not toll-free). 
Individuals with speech or hearing impairments may access this number 
through TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service 
at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Statutory Background

    HUD currently uses a formula approach called the Operating Fund 
Formula to distribute operating subsidies to public housing agencies 
(PHAs). A regulatory description of the Operating Fund Formula can be 
found at 24 CFR part 990. The Operating Fund Formula regulations were 
developed through negotiated rulemaking procedures. Negotiated 
rulemaking for an Operating Fund Formula was initiated in March 1999, 
and resulted in a proposed rule, published on July 10, 2000 (65 FR 
42488), which was followed by an interim rule published on March 29, 
2001 (66 FR 17276). The March 29, 2001, interim rule established the 
Operating Fund Formula that is currently in effect.
    Generally, the amount of subsidy received by a PHA is the 
difference between an ``allowable expense level'' and projected rental 
income. Each PHA calculates its Operating Fund Formula eligibility 
annually and submits a request for funding as part of its budget 
process. The amount of subsidy can vary from one year to the next as a 
result of the annual appropriations process and accounts for 
approximately 57 percent of a PHA's total operating revenue, the 
balance coming from rents and other sources (e.g., fees). For fiscal 
year 2003, HUD distributed over $3.34 billion in operating subsidies to 
PHAs.
    On January 28, 2004 (69 FR 4212), HUD published a document 
announcing its intent to establish an advisory committee to provide 
advice and recommendations on developing a rule for effectuating 
changes to the Operating Fund Program in response to the Harvard 
University Graduate School of Design's ``Public Housing Operating Cost 
Study'' (Harvard Cost Study). A correction to the document was 
published on February 6, 2004 (69 FR 5796), which corrected an error in 
the list of proposed committee members. During the negotiated 
rulemaking for the Operating Fund Formula, Congress in the Conference 
Report (H. Rept. 106-379, October 13, 1999) accompanying HUD's Fiscal 
Year (FY) 2000 Appropriation Act (Pub. L. 106-74, approved October 20, 
1999) directed HUD to contract with the Harvard University Graduate 
School of Design (Harvard GSD) to conduct a study on the costs incurred 
in operating well-run public housing. Harvard GSD issued a final 
report, the Harvard Cost Study, on June 6, 2003. In Section 222 of the 
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004 (Pub. L. 108-199, approved 
January 23, 2004), Congress directed the Secretary to conduct 
negotiated rulemaking with the publication of a final rule by July 1, 
2004. HUD's January 28, 2004, document: (1) Advised the public of HUD's 
intent to establish the negotiated rulemaking committee; (2) solicited 
public comments on the proposed membership of the committee; and (3) 
explained how persons could be nominated for membership on the 
committee.

II. HUD's Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee on the Operating 
Fund Program

    This document announces HUD's establishment of the Negotiated 
Rulemaking Advisory Committee on the Operating Fund Program. The 
purpose of the committee is to provide advice and recommendations on 
developing a rule for effectuating changes to the Public Housing 
Operating Fund Program in response to the Harvard Cost Study. As noted 
above, the January 28, 2004, document tentatively identified a list of 
possible interests and parties to be represented on the negotiated 
rulemaking committee, and requested public comment on the proposed 
committee membership. The public comment period on the January 28, 
2004, document closed on February 27, 2004. HUD received 30 comments on 
the document, including comments from PHAs, PHA associations, nonprofit 
organizations, and other interested parties. After careful 
consideration of all the comments received on the January 28, 2004, 
document HUD has revised the proposed list of committee members by 
adding the following members to the committee:
     Meade County Housing and Redevelopment 
Commission, Sturgis, SD.
     Veronica Sledge, President of Resident Advisory 
Board and President of Victory Point RMC, Jacksonville, FL.
    The final list of committee members includes representatives of 
PHAs, PHA organizations, tenant groups, other interested parties, and 
HUD. HUD believes the group as a whole represents a proper balance of 
interests that are willing and able to work within a consensus 
framework on the new Operating Fund Program. The PHA representatives on 
the committee have been selected to reflect the diversity of PHAs in 
terms of size, location, and special circumstances.
    The final list of members for the Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory 
Committee on the Operating Fund Program is as follows:
 Housing Agencies
1. Atlanta Housing Authority, Atlanta, GA
2. New York City Housing Authority, NYC, NY
3. Puerto Rico Housing Authority, San Juan, PR
4. Chicago Housing Authority, Chicago, IL
5. Dallas Housing Authority, Dallas, TX
6. Anne Arundel Housing Authority, Anne Arundel, MD
7. Indianapolis Housing Authority, Indianapolis, IN
8. Albany Housing Authority, Albany, NY
9. Jackson Housing Authority, Jackson, MS
10. Boise City/Ada County Housing Authority, Boise City, ID
11. Reno Housing Authority, Reno, NV
12. Alameda County Housing Authority, Hayward, CA
13. Athens Housing Authority, Athens, GA
14. Housing Authority of East Baton Rouge, Baton Rouge, LA
15. Housing Authority of the City of Montgomery, Montgomery, AL
16. Meade County Housing and Redevelopment Commission, Sturgis, SD
 Tenant Organizations
1. Jack Cooper, Massachusetts Union of Public Housing Tenants, Boston, 
MA
 Public Housing Tenant
1. Veronica Sledge, President of Resident Advisory Board and President 
of Victory Point RMC, Jacksonville, FL
 Other Interests/Policy Groups
1. Ned Epstein, Housing Partners, Inc.
2. Howard Husock, Director of Kennedy School Case Program
3. Greg Byrne, Project Director for Harvard Cost Study
4. Dan Anderson, Bank of America
5. David Land, Lindsey and Company
6. Council of Large Public Housing Agencies
7. National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials
8. Public Housing Authorities Directors Association
9. National Organization of African Americans in Housing
 Federal Government
1. Assistant Secretary Michael Liu, U.S. Department of Housing and 
Urban Development

[[Page 11351]]

2. Deputy Assistant Secretary William Russell, U.S. Department of 
Housing and Urban Development

III. First Committee Meeting

    The first meeting of the Negotiated Rulemaking Committee on the 
Operating Fund Program will be held on March 30, March 31, and April 1, 
2004. On each day, the meeting will start at approximately 8:30 a.m. 
and run until approximately 5 p.m., unless the committee agrees 
otherwise. On all three days, the meetings will take place at the HUD 
Headquarters Building (Basement Rooms 176, 178, and 180), 451 Seventh 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20410. The agenda planned for the meeting 
includes: (1) Orienting members to the negotiated rulemaking process; 
(2) establishing a basic set of understandings and ground rules 
(protocols) regarding the process that will be followed in seeking a 
consensus; and (3) discussion of the issues relating to the development 
of changes in response to the Harvard Cost Study.
    The meeting will be open to the public without advance 
registration. Public attendance may be limited to the space available. 
Members of the public may make statements during the meeting, to the 
extent time permits, and file written statements with the committee for 
its consideration. Written statements should be submitted to the 
address listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 
document. Summaries of committee meetings will be available for public 
inspection and copying at the address in the same section.

IV. Future Committee Meetings

    A second meeting is scheduled for April 13-15, 2004, at the same 
location. Each day of the April meeting is tentatively scheduled to 
begin at approximately 8:30 a.m. and run until 5 p.m., unless the 
committee agrees otherwise. Notices of all future meetings will be 
published in the Federal Register. HUD will make every effort to 
publish such notices at least 15 calendar days prior to each meeting.

    Dated: March 4, 2004.
Paula O. Blunt,
General Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing.
[FR Doc. 04-5395 Filed 3-9-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-33-P