[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 70 (Monday, April 12, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19211-19213]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-8138]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-4732-N-06]


Modification of the Statutory and Regulatory Waivers Granted to 
New York State for Recovery from the September 11, 2001, Terrorist 
Attacks

AGENCY: Office of Community Planning and Development, HUD.

ACTION: Notice of waivers granted.

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SUMMARY: This notice advises the public of modifications of the waivers 
of regulations and statutory provisions granted to the State of New 
York for the purpose of assisting in the recovery from the September 
11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City. This notice describes an 
eligibility waiver and a change to alternative requirements related to 
public benefit documentation for the Empire State Development 
Corporation's retail recovery grant (RRG) program.

[[Page 19212]]


DATES: Effective Date: April 19, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jan C. Opper, Senior Program Officer, 
Office of Block Grant Assistance, Department of Housing and Urban 
Development, Room 7286, 451 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410-
7000, telephone number (202) 708-3587. Persons with hearing or speech 
impairments may access this number through TTY by calling the Federal 
Information Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Fax inquiries may be sent 
to Mr. Opper at (202) 401-2044. (Except for the ``800'' number, these 
telephone numbers are not toll-free.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority to Grant Waivers

    The three grants covered by this notice are governed by provisions 
of the fifth proviso under the 2001 Emergency Supplemental 
Appropriations Act for Recovery from and Response to Terrorist Attacks 
on the United States (Pub. L. 107-38, approved September 18, 2001); by 
section 434 of the Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and 
Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002 
(Pub. L. 107-73, approved November 26, 2001) (FY 2002 HUD 
Appropriations Act); by chapter 13 of division B of the Department of 
Defense and Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Recovery from and 
Response to Terrorist Attacks on the United States Act, 2002 (Pub. L. 
107-117, approved January 10, 2002) (FY 2002 Department of Defense 
Appropriation); and by the 2002 Supplemental Appropriations Act for 
Further Recovery From and Response to Terrorist Attacks on the United 
States (Pub. L. 107-206, approved August 2, 2002) (FY 2002 Recovery and 
Response to Terrorist Attacks Supplemental).
    The third proviso of section 434 of the FY 2002 HUD Appropriations 
Act, and the FY 2002 Supplemental, authorize the Secretary to waive, or 
specify alternative requirements for, any provision of any statute or 
regulation that the Secretary administers in connection with the 
obligation by the Secretary or use by the recipient of these grant 
funds, except for requirements related to fair housing, 
nondiscrimination, labor standards, and the environment.
    The Department finds that the following waivers and alternative 
requirements (together with previously granted waivers and alternative 
requirements) are necessary to facilitate the use of the $700 million 
awarded to New York State's Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) 
and the $2.0 billion and $783 million awarded to New York State's Lower 
Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) (collectively, the grantees).
    The Department also finds that such uses of funds, as described 
below, are not inconsistent with the overall purpose of the Housing and 
Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, or the Cranston-Gonzalez 
National Affordable Housing Act, as amended.
    Except as noted by published waivers and alternative requirements, 
statutory and regulatory provisions governing the Community Development 
Block Grant program for states, including those at 24 CFR subpart I, 
shall apply to the use of these funds. In Federal Register notices 
published March 18, 2002 (67 FR 12042, and effective March 25, 2002), 
May 22, 2002 (67 FR 36017, and effective May 28, 2002), and May 16, 
2003, (68 FR 26640, and effective May 21, 2003), the Department 
promulgated waivers and alternative requirements necessary to 
facilitate the use of the $700 million in disaster recovery funds 
awarded to New York State's Empire State Development Corporation and 
the $2.0 billion and $783 million awarded to New York State's Lower 
Manhattan Development Corporation.
    Eligibility waiver. This notice waives requirements at 42 U.S.C. 
5305(a) to the extent necessary to allow new construction of housing, 
including affordable housing. HUD is taking this action because the 
grantee, after consultation with citizens, has determined that 
additional housing units will support its disaster recovery and 
economic revitalization efforts and is developing an Action Plan 
including an activity to support new housing construction.
    RRG Program. This notice also modifies the published alternate 
requirements related to reports and documentation for the retail 
recovery grant (RRG) program implemented by Empire State Development 
Corporation in the immediate wake of the disaster. ESDC established the 
RRG immediately after September 11, 2001, in an effort to expedite 
financial assistance to those small retail businesses in lower 
Manhattan that were affected by the attack on the World Trade Center. 
The program provided grant funding to eligible businesses based on a 
percentage of their gross revenue figures, reflecting three days of 
business activity. Because this program was established so soon after 
the September 11, 2001, disaster, prior to New York State's award of 
HUD CDBG disaster assistance funding, ESDC did not collect all of the 
information that is now required by HUD for certain programs 
implemented thereafter. The application for the RRG program collected 
information sufficient to meet core CDBG requirements related to a 
special economic development activity undertaken under the urgent need 
national objective, but the program was implemented so rapidly that it 
predated the additional requirements of the referenced notices related 
to documentation of salary ranges and job types. HUD approved the 
action plan containing the RRG activity and is now clarifying in this 
notice what documentation requirements apply.
    The text below indicates the paragraphs being updated.

Description of Modifications

    1. A new paragraph 21 is added to the requirements of the notice 
published on May 22, 2002 (67 FR 36017) by adding text to read as 
follows:
    21. New construction of housing. Limitations of 42 U.S.C. 5305(a) 
are waived to the extent necessary to allow new construction of housing 
as an eligible use of funds.
    2. Paragraph 1 of the notice published on May 16, 2003 (68 FR 
26640), which modified Paragraphs 12 and 16 of the notice published on 
May 22, 2002 (67 FR 36017), is amended to read as follows:
    12. Public benefit standards for economic development activities. 
Currently, grantees are limited in the amount of CDBG assistance they 
may spend per job retained or created, or per low- and moderate-income 
person to which goods or services are provided by the activity, that 
will be considered to meet public benefit standards. Public benefit 
standards at 42 U.S.C. 5305(e)(3) and 24 CFR 570.482(f)(1), (2), (3), 
(4)(i), (5), and (6) are waived, except that, the grantee shall report 
and maintain documentation on the creation and retention of (a) total 
jobs, (b) number of jobs within certain salary ranges, and (c) types of 
jobs. For the Bridge Loan program included in the Empire State 
Development Corporation's January 30, 2002, Action Plan and for the 
Retail Recovery Grant program, the grantee shall report and maintain 
public benefit documentation only on the total number of jobs created 
and retained. Paragraph (g) of 24 CFR 570.482, regarding amendments to 
economic development projects after review determinations, is also 
waived to the extent its provisions are related to public benefit.
    16. Performance reports. Generally, grantees submit an annual 
performance report ninety days after the jurisdiction's program year. 
The conferees for Pub. L. 107-73 directed that HUD submit reports to 
the

[[Page 19213]]

Committees on Appropriations quarterly on the obligation and 
expenditure of the CDBG funds appropriated under the Emergency Response 
Fund. Therefore, 42 U.S.C. 12708(a)(1) and 24 CFR 91.520 are waived 
with respect to these funds, and HUD is establishing an alternative 
requirement that the State must submit a quarterly report, as HUD 
prescribes, no later than 30 days following each calendar quarter, 
beginning after the first full calendar quarter after grant award and 
continuing until all funds have been expended and that expenditure 
reported. Each quarterly report will include information on the project 
name, activity, location, national objective, funds budgeted and 
expended, Federal source and funds (other than CDBG disaster funds), 
numbers and North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes 
of businesses assisted by activity, total number of jobs created and 
retained by activity, numbers of such jobs by salary ranges (to be 
defined by HUD), numbers of properties and housing units assisted; for 
activities benefiting low- and moderate-income persons, the number of 
jobs taken by persons of low- and moderate-income, and numbers of low- 
and moderate-income households benefiting. For the Bridge Loan program 
included in the Empire State Development Corporation's January 30, 
2002, Action Plan, and for the Retail Recovery Grant program, the 
grantee is not required to report by salary ranges on the numbers of 
created and retained jobs. Quarterly reports must be submitted using 
HUD's web-based Disaster Recovery Grant Reporting system. Annually 
(i.e., with every fourth submission), the report shall include a 
financial reconciliation of funds budgeted and expended, and 
calculation of the status of administrative costs.
    Section 434 of the FY 2002 HUD Appropriations Act requires HUD to 
publish these waivers in the Federal Register no later than five days 
before their effective date. The effective date of these waivers is 
April 19, 2004.

    Dated: April 2, 2004.
Roy A. Bernardi,
Assistant Secretary for Community Planning and Development.
[FR Doc. 04-8138 Filed 4-9-04; 8:45 am]
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