[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 137 (Monday, July 18, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42462-42463]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-18016]



[[Page 42461]]

Vol. 76

Monday,

No. 137

July 18, 2011

Part IV





Department of Housing and Urban Development





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Consolidated Delegation of Authority to the General Counsel and 
Consolidated Redelegation of Authority to the Office of General 
Counsel; Notices

  Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 137 / Monday, July 18, 2011 / 
Notices  

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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5543-D-01]


Consolidated Delegation of Authority to the General Counsel

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HUD.

ACTION: Notice of Delegation of Authority.

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SUMMARY: On December 1, 2009, HUD published in the Federal Register a 
consolidated notice of delegation of authority from the Secretary to 
the General Counsel. Today's Federal Register notice updates the 
December 1, 2009, consolidated delegation of authority and supersedes 
all previous delegations of authority from the Secretary to the General 
Counsel.

DATES: Effective Date: July 9, 2011.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John P. Opitz, Associate General 
Counsel for Finance and Administrative Law, Office of General Counsel, 
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, SW., Room 
8150, Washington, DC 20410-0500, telephone number 202-708-1999. (This 
is not a toll-free number.) Individuals with speech or hearing 
impairments may access this number through TTY by calling 1-800-877-
8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 1, 2009, at 74 FR 62801, HUD 
published a consolidated notice of delegation of authority from the 
Secretary to the General Counsel. Today's Federal Register notice 
updates the December 1, 2009, consolidated delegation of authority and 
supersedes all previous delegations of authority from the Secretary to 
the General Counsel. Published elsewhere in today's Federal Register is 
a redelegation of authority from the General Counsel to subordinate 
employees within the Office of General Counsel.
    Section A of this notice contains general delegations from the 
Secretary to the General Counsel.
    Section B of this notice contains a delegation from the Secretary 
to the General Counsel regarding enforcement authority. In this 
section, the Secretary delegates authority to the General Counsel to 
issue suspensions, debarments, and limited denials of participation, 
under 2 CFR Part 2424 (adopting the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) guidance in subparts A through I of 2 CFR Part 180, as 
supplemented by 2 CFR part 2424). In a separate notice published in 
today's Federal Register, the General Counsel redelegates this 
authority to the Principal Deputy General Counsel, the Deputy General 
Counsel for Enforcement and Fair Housing, the Director of the 
Departmental Enforcement Center, the Deputy Director of the 
Departmental Enforcement Center, and the Directors of the satellite 
Departmental Enforcement Centers.
    Section C of this notice contains a delegation from the Secretary 
to the General Counsel when acting as the Designated Agency Ethics 
Official. The Secretary previously named the General Counsel as HUD's 
Designated Agency Ethics Official (DAEO) and authorized the DAEO to 
waive any provisions in 5 CFR Part 7501 (Supplemental Standards of 
Conduct for Employees of the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development). See 5 CFR 7501.102, 7501.103. The Secretary has also 
named the Deputy General Counsel for Operations as the Alternate 
Designated Agency Ethics Official to act in the absence of the DAEO. 
See 5 CFR 7501.102. In this notice, the Secretary delegates the 
authority to the DAEO to authorize the Alternate DAEO to perform the 
waiver function of the DAEO in 5 CFR Part 7501 concurrently with the 
DAEO.
    In addition to the authority published in today's consolidated 
delegation of authority, the Secretary has delegated other authorities 
to the General Counsel by regulation. These delegations include:
    1. Naming the General Counsel as HUD's Designated Agency Ethics 
Official; 5 CFR 7501.102.
    2. Authorizing the General Counsel, and in some instances, the 
appropriate Associate General Counsel or Regional Counsel, to respond 
to subpoenas and/or other demands from the courts or other authorities; 
24 CFR Part 15.
    3. Designating the General Counsel as the source selection 
authority for the procurement of outside legal services through either 
the lowest price technically acceptable or a tradeoff process; 48 CFR 
2415.303(a)(3).
    4. Designating the General Counsel as a responsible official to 
ensure the implementation of the policies of the National Environmental 
Policy Act (NEPA) and other environmental requirements of the 
Department, including the performance of the responsibilities of a 
Program Environmental Clearance Officer pursuant to 24 CFR 50.10(a), 
50.16.
    5. Authorizing the General Counsel, as set forth in 24 CFR Parts 
103 and 180, to exercise authority pertaining to civil rights statutes, 
including the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.; Title VI of the 
Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 200d et seq.; Section 
504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 791 et 
seq.; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 6101 et 
seq.; and Section 109 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 
1974, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.
    6. Authorizing the General Counsel to initiate a civil money 
penalty action pursuant to Sections 102 and 103 of the Department of 
Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (42 U.S.C. 3537a(c), 
3545); 24 CFR Part 4 in accordance with the provisions of 24 CFR Part 
30.
    7. Authorizing the General Counsel to appoint and fix the 
compensation of a foreclosure commissioner or commissioners and 
alternate commissioners, in accordance with the Multifamily Mortgage 
Foreclosure Act of 1981 (12 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.); 24 CFR 27.10.
    HUD's program Assistant Secretaries have also delegated authority 
to the General Counsel. The Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal 
Housing Commissioner has delegated authority to the General Counsel to 
issue a notice of violation under the terms of a regulatory agreement; 
to issue a notice of default under the terms of housing assistance 
payments contracts (HAPs), Rental Assistance Payment Contracts, Project 
Rental Assistance Contracts, or Use Agreements; to impose civil money 
penalties; and to take all actions permitted under 24 CFR 30.36, 30.45, 
and 30.68.
    Section 30.36 of HUD's regulations (24 CFR 30.36) authorizes the 
Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal Housing Commissioner, or 
designee, to initiate civil money penalty action against any principal, 
officer, or employee of a mortgagee or lender, or other participant or 
any provider of assistance to a borrower in connection with any such 
mortgage or loan, including: sellers, borrowers, closing agents, title 
companies, real estate agents, mortgage brokers, appraisers, loan 
correspondents, dealers, consultants, contractors, subcontractors, and 
inspectors. Section 30.45 of HUD's regulations (24 CFR 30.45) 
authorizes the Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal Housing 
Commissioner, or designee, to initiate civil money penalty action 
against any mortgagor of a multifamily property with a mortgage 
insured, co-insured, or held by the Secretary, pursuant to Title II of 
the National Housing Act or to Section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959.
    Section 30.68 of HUD's regulations (24 CFR 30.68) authorizes the 
Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal Housing Commissioner, or 
designee, to initiate

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civil money penalty action against any owner, general partner of a 
partnership, or agent employed to manage the property that has an 
identity of interest with the owner or general partner receiving 
project-based assistance under Section 8 of the United States Housing 
Act of 1937 for a knowing and material breach of housing assistance 
payment (HAP) contracts.

Section A. Authority

    The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development hereby delegates the 
following authorities to the General Counsel:
    1. To interpret the authority of the Secretary and to determine 
whether the issuance of any rule, regulation, statement of policy, or 
standard promulgated by HUD is consistent with that authority.
    2. To direct all litigation affecting HUD and to sign, acknowledge, 
and verify on behalf of and in the name of the Secretary all 
declarations, bills, petitions, pleas, complaints, answers, and other 
pleadings in any court proceeding brought in the name of or against the 
Secretary or in which the Secretary is a named party.
    3. To direct the referral of cases and other matters to the 
Attorney General for appropriate legal action and to transmit 
information and material pertaining to the violation of law or HUD 
rules and regulations. Excepted from this authority, however, are those 
referrals and transmittals that the Inspector General is authorized to 
make by law or by delegation of authority.
    4. To accept, on behalf of the Secretary, service of all summons, 
subpoenas, and other judicial, administrative, or legislative processes 
directed to the Secretary or to an employee of HUD in an official 
capacity, and to execute affidavits asserting HUD's deliberative 
process privilege.
    5. Where not inconsistent with regulations pertaining to 
proceedings before administrative law judges, to approve the issuance 
of subpoenas or interrogatories pertaining to investigations for which 
responsibility is vested in the Secretary.
    6. To consider, ascertain, adjust, determine, compromise, allow, 
deny, or otherwise dispose of claims under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 
28 U.S.C. 1346(b), 2671 et seq. and the Military Personnel and Civilian 
Employees' Claims Act of 1974, 31 U.S.C. 3721 et seq.
    7. To act upon the appeals and issue final determinations on 
appeals of denial of access or record correction under the Privacy Act 
of 1974, except appeals regarding records maintained by the Office of 
Inspector General (Pub. L. 93-579), 5 U.S.C. 552(c).
    8. To make written requests, for purposes of civil or criminal law 
enforcement activities, to other agencies for the transfer of records 
or copies of records maintained by such agencies under subsection 
(b)(7) of the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5 U.S.C. 552a(b)(7)).
    9. To act upon appeals under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 
U.S.C. 552, except appeals from decisions of the Office of Inspector 
General.
    10. To appoint a foreclosure commissioner or commissioners, or a 
substitute foreclosure commissioner, to replace a previously designated 
foreclosure commissioner under:
    (a) Section 805 of the Single Family Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 
1994, 12 U.S.C. 3754; the power to fix compensation for the foreclosure 
commissioner under Section 812 of the Single Family Mortgage 
Foreclosure Act of 1994, 12 U.S.C. 3761; and to promulgate regulations 
necessary to carry out the provisions of the Single Family Mortgage 
Foreclosure Act of 1994; and
    (b) Section 365 of the Multifamily Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 
1981, 12 U.S.C. 3701, et seq.; the power to fix compensation for the 
foreclosure commissioner under Section 369(c) of the Multifamily 
Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 1981, 12 U.S.C. 3701, et seq.; and to 
promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of the 
Multifamily Mortgage Foreclosure Act of 1981.
    11. To make determinations and certifications required under 
Section 1114 of the Right to Financial Privacy Act, 12 U.S.C. 3401, et 
seq.
    12. To designate authorized officials to exercise the powers or 
perform the duties of the General Counsel, through an order of 
succession (subject to the provisions of the Federal Vacancies Reform 
Act of 1998, 5 U.S.C. 3345-3349d), during any period when, by reason of 
absence, disability, or vacancy in office, the General Counsel for HUD 
is not available.
    13. Where not inconsistent with other regulations pertaining to 
proceedings before administrative law judges, to serve as an Attesting 
Officer and to cause the seal of HUD to be affixed to such documents as 
may require its application and to certify that a copy of any book, 
paper, microfilm, or other document is a true copy of that in the files 
of HUD.
    14. To act as the designated official under Section 5(a) of 
Executive Order 12630, Governmental Actions and Interference With 
Constitutionally Protected Property Rights, issued March 15, 1987, (53 
FR 8859, March 18, 1988) consistent with Executive Order 13406, 
Protecting the Property Rights of the American People, issued June 23, 
2006 (71 FR 36973, June 28, 2006).
    15. To make determinations of federalism implications, preemption, 
or the need for consultations with state and local officials as 
required by Executive Order 13131, Federalism, issued August 4, 1999 
(64 FR 43255, August 10, 1999).

Section B. Enforcement Authority

    The Secretary hereby delegates the following authority to the 
General Counsel:
    1. To issue suspensions, debarments, and limited denials of 
participation, under 2 CFR part 180.

Section C. Authority Delegated to the Designated Agency Ethics Official

    The Secretary hereby delegates the following authority to the 
General Counsel when acting as HUD's Designated Agency Ethics Official:
    1. To authorize the Alternate Designated Agency Ethics Official to 
perform the waiver function of the Designated Agency Ethics Official, 
as provided by 5 CFR Part 7501, concurrently with the Designated Agency 
Ethics Official.

Section D. Authority To Redelegate

    The General Counsel is authorized to redelegate to employees of HUD 
any of the authority delegated under Sections A, B, and C above.

Section E. Authority Superseded

    This delegation supersedes all previous delegations of authority 
from the Secretary to the General Counsel.

    Authority:  Section 7(d) Department of Housing and Urban 
Development Act (42 U.S.C. 3535(d)).

    Dated: July 9, 2011.
Shaun Donovan,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-18016 Filed 7-15-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P