[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 65 (Thursday, April 5, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16809-16811]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-6390]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-4837-D-62]


Delegation of Authority to Regional Directors To Waive Certain 
Handbook and Directives Provisions

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HUD.

ACTION: Notice of delegation of authority to regional directors in the 
HUD regional offices.

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SUMMARY: In this notice, the Secretary delegates to the Regional 
Directors the authority to waive certain HUD handbook provisions and 
directives and announces the procedures that will govern these waivers. 
Specifically, the delegation provides Regional Directors with 
concurrent authority to waive certain HUD handbook provisions and 
directives. Currently, the Regional Directors are located in Region I 
(Boston, MA); Region II (New York, NY); Region III (Philadelphia, PA); 
Region IV (Atlanta, GA); Region V (Chicago, IL); Region VI (Fort Worth, 
TX); Region VII (Kansas City, KS); Region VIII (Denver, CO); Region IX 
(San Francisco, CA); and Region X (Seattle, WA).
    Any waiver of HUD handbook provisions and directives made in the 
field must be in writing and must specify the grounds for granting it. 
All waiver decisions by a Regional Director in the Office of Field 
Policy and Management must be jointly concurred in by the appropriate 
regional program director or Assistant Secretary. In addition, the 
Department will make available for public inspection, for at least a 3-
year period, a record of all waivers of HUD handbook provisions and 
directives.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 30, 2007.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Aaron Santa Anna, Assistant General 
Counsel for Regulations, Office of Legislation and Regulations, Office 
of General Counsel, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 
Seventh Street, SW., Room 10276, Washington, DC 20410; telephone number 
(202) 708-3055 or Mark Borum, Field Management Officer, Office of Field 
Policy and Management, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 
Seventh Street, SW., Room 7122, Washington, DC 20410; telephone number 
(202) 708-1123. (These are not toll-free numbers.) These

[[Page 16810]]

numbers may be accessed through TTY by calling the Federal Information 
Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Comments or questions can be submitted 
through the Internet to [email protected] or to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 106 of the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (Pub. L. 101-235, approved 
December 15, 1989) added section 7(q) to the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development Act (HUD Act) (42 U.S.C. 3535(q)). Section 7(q) 
provides that any waiver of a HUD regulation or handbook provision must 
be in writing, specify the grounds for the waiver, and be indexed and 
made available for public inspection (42 U.S.C. 3535(q)(4)).
    Pursuant to section 7(q) of the HUD Act, a regulation can be waived 
only by the Secretary or a designated Assistant Secretary or equivalent 
rank. The Secretary is the ultimate repository of the authority both to 
issue and to waive the regulations of the Department. The Secretary may 
delegate each of these powers to other HUD officers. Under section 7(q) 
of the HUD Act, however, the Secretary may not delegate the authority 
to waive a regulation below the Assistant Secretary rank. Individuals 
serving in an ``acting'' capacity may exercise the authority contained 
in this delegation. This delegation is subject to the provisions of the 
Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (5 U.S.C. 3345 et seq.).
    Definitions as used in this delegation:
    Assistant Secretary means an Assistant Secretary of the Department 
under section 4(a) of the Department of Housing and Urban Development 
Act (42 U.S.C. 3533(a)), or an individual of equivalent rank.
    Individual of equivalent rank means an individual with rank 
equivalent to an Assistant Secretary. The term includes the following 
HUD officers: The General Counsel; the Inspector General; the President 
of the Government National Mortgage Association (GNMA); the Chief 
Financial Officer; and other positions appointed by the President 
requiring Senate confirmation.
    Regional Director means an individual who is responsible for 
managing a HUD regional office.
    Directive \1\ means a non-Federal Register publication, as defined 
in HUD's handbook on the ``HUD Directives System'' (Handbook No. 000.2 
REV-2 or such successor edition) and includes a handbook (including a 
change or supplement), notice, interim notice, special directive, and 
any other issuance that the Department may classify as a directive.
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    \1\ By its terms, section 106 reaches only HUD ``handbooks.'' 
This is the one class of HUD directives, as defined in this Notice. 
In order to give section 106 the widest possible coverage, the 
Department has decided, as a matter of agency discretion, to subject 
all the Department's directives to the provisions of section 106.
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    Handbook means a directive that communicates information of a non-
temporary nature (including clarification of policies, instructions, 
guidance, procedures, forms, and reports) for HUD staff or program 
participants. The non-temporary nature distinguishes a handbook from 
temporary HUD directives, such as notices. (See paragraph 2-1A, HUD 
Handbook 000.2, HUD Directives System, or successor edition.)
    Notice, in the context of a directive, means a non-Federal Register 
directive that is used to provide HUD program participants with 
temporary instructions involving HUD programs or to amend previous 
instructions until a handbook revision or change is issued. A notice 
must carry an expiration date of not to exceed one year, and may be 
extended. (See paragraph 2-1D, HUD Handbook 000.2, HUD Directives 
System, or successor edition.)
    Interim Notice means a non-Federal Register directive that is 
issued at the discretion of an Assistant Secretary under emergency 
circumstances. Interim notices carry an expiration date not to exceed 
120 days, and may not be extended. (See paragraph 2-1E, HUD Handbook 
000.2, HUD Directives System, or successor edition.)
    Regulation means ``rule'' or ``regulation,'' as these terms are 
defined in Part 10 of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and 
includes any material contained in Title 24 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations; any notice published in the Federal Register announcing 
the availability of funds, or the criteria to be used to select 
recipients of the funds, under any program administered by the 
Department; and any other notice published in the Federal Register that 
establishes program requirements pursuant to a statute that authorizes 
the Department to administer the program by Federal Register 
publication, pending issuance of effective regulations amending Title 
24 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
    Waiver of Directives and Handbook Provisions:
    Form and Content of Waivers. Section 7(q) within the Department of 
Housing and Urban Development Act, 42 U.S.C. 3535(q), provides that any 
waiver of a HUD handbook or directive provision must be in writing, 
specify the grounds for the waiver, and be indexed and made available 
for public inspection.
    Waivers of Directive or Handbook Provisions That Restate or 
Summarize a Regulation. Waiver of a directive or handbook provision 
that restates or summarizes a regulation may constitute a regulatory 
waiver for purposes of this Notice. The Office of General Counsel will 
determine whether a handbook or directive provision is to be treated as 
a regulatory waiver. If the handbook or directive provision is 
determined to be a regulatory waiver, it must comport with section 7(q) 
of the HUD Act, which requires the signature of the Assistant Secretary 
or equivalent.
    All Prohibitions Against Discrimination. All prohibitions against 
discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin, 
religion, handicap, age, or familial status, and all related 
affirmative obligations that are direct derivatives of regulations 
governing prohibitions of discrimination are considered regulatory 
prohibitions.
    Public Inspection of Waivers. A record of each waiver of a HUD 
directive or handbook provision (including the grounds for granting the 
waiver) will be maintained in indexed form, and will be made available 
to the public at the HUD Headquarters office with program authority 
over the HUD directive. The record will be maintained for not less than 
the 3-year period beginning on the date the waiver is granted.
    Executive Order 12612, Federalism. The General Counsel, as the 
Designated Official under section 6(a) of Executive Order 12612, 
Federalism, has determined that this delegation will not have 
substantial direct impact on states or their political subdivisions, or 
on the relationship between the federal government and the states, or 
on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various 
levels of government. The delegation only states procedures for 
granting waivers of regulations and directives, and for notifying the 
public of the waiver. As a result, this delegation is not subject to 
review under the Executive Order.
    It should be noted that the actual grant of a waiver pursuant to 
this delegation may involve federalism implications. If this occurs, 
the relationship of the waiver to the Executive Order will be assessed 
at that time and in that context.

Section A: Authority Delegated

    The Secretary delegates to each Regional Director concurrent 
authority within his or her respective jurisdiction, to waive those 
directives and handbook provisions pertaining to programs in the 
Offices of Housing, Public and Indian

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Housing, Community Planning and Development, and Fair Housing and Equal 
Opportunity. All waivers by the Regional Directors in the Office of 
Field Policy and Management must be jointly concurred in by the 
appropriate Regional Program Director or Assistant Secretary, as 
directed by the applicable Assistant Secretary.

Section B: Directives, Handbooks, and Provisions Excluded

    The waiver authority delegated herein does not include the 
authority to waive regulations, or those Departmental directives and 
handbook provisions mandated by or directly predicated on a statute, 
executive order, or regulation, including, but not limited to, 
environmental, ethics, fair housing, civil rights enforcement and 
compliance, procurement, and other provisions. Additionally, the waiver 
authority delegated herein does not include the authority to waive 
provisions contained in the HUD Litigation Handbook.

Section C: Authority Revoked

    Any previous delegated or redelegated authority to Regional 
Directors inconsistent with this delegation of authority is hereby 
revoked.

Section D: Authority To Redelegate

    This authority may not be redelegated.

    Authority: Section 7(q), Department of Housing and Urban 
Development Act (42 U.S.C. 3535(a)); Section 7(d), Department of 
Housing and Urban Development Act (42 U.S.C. 3535(d)); Federal 
Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (5 U.S.C. 3345 et seq.).

    Dated: March 30, 2007.
Alphonso Jackson,
Secretary.
 [FR Doc. E7-6390 Filed 4-4-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P