[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 113 (Wednesday, June 12, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 35178-35179]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-13984]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

24 CFR Part 1000

[Docket No. FR-5650-N-03]


Indian Housing Block Grant Allocation Formula: Notice of Proposed 
Negotiated Rulemaking Committee Membership

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

ACTION: Notice of proposed negotiated rulemaking committee membership.

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SUMMARY: On September 18, 2012, HUD published a document in the Federal 
Register requesting nominations for membership on the negotiated 
rulemaking committee that will develop regulatory changes to the 
funding formula for the Indian Housing Block Grant program authorized 
by the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 
1996 (NAHASDA). In accordance with section 564 of the Negotiated 
Rulemaking Act, this document establishes the committee, announces the 
names and affiliations of the committee's proposed members, requests 
public comment on the committee and its proposed membership, explains 
how additional nominations for committee membership may be submitted, 
and provides other information regarding the negotiated rulemaking 
process.

DATES: Comment Due Date: July 12, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this notice to the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel, 
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW., Room 
10276, Washington, DC 20410-0500. Communications must refer to the 
above docket number and title. There are two methods for submitting 
public comments. All submissions must refer to the above docket number 
and title.
    1. Submission of Comments by Mail. Comments may be submitted by 
mail to the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel, Department 
of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW., Room 10276, 
Washington, DC 20410-0500.
    2. Electronic Submission of Comments. Interested persons may submit 
comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
www.regulations.gov. HUD strongly encourages commenters to submit 
comments electronically. Electronic submission of comments allows the 
commenter maximum time to prepare and submit a comment, ensures timely 
receipt by HUD, and enables HUD to make them immediately available to 
the public. Comments submitted electronically through the 
www.regulations.gov Web site can be viewed by other commenters and 
interested members of the public. Commenters should follow the 
instructions provided on that site to submit comments electronically.

    Note: To receive consideration as public comments, comments must 
be submitted through one of the two methods specified above. Again, 
all submissions must refer to the docket number and title of the 
rule.

    No Facsimile Comments. Facsimile (fax) comments are not acceptable. 
Public Inspection of Public Comments. All properly submitted comments 
and communications submitted to HUD will be available for public 
inspection and copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays at the above 
address. Due to security measures at the HUD Headquarters building, an 
advance appointment to review the public comments must be scheduled by 
calling the Regulations Division at 202-708-3055 (this is not a toll-
free number). Individuals with speech or hearing impairments may access 
this number via TTY by calling the Federal Relay Service at 800-877-
8339. Copies of all comments submitted are available for inspection and 
downloading at www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rodger Boyd, Deputy Assistant 
Secretary for Native American Programs, Room 4126, Office of Public and 
Indian Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20410, telephone number: 202-401-7914 (this 
is not a toll-free number). Hearing- or speech-impaired individuals may 
access this number via TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Relay 
Service at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act 
of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.) (NAHASDA) changed the way that housing 
assistance is provided to Native Americans. NAHASDA eliminated several 
separate assistance programs and replaced them with a single block 
grant program, known as the Indian Housing Block Grant (IHBG) program. 
In addition, title VI of NAHASDA authorizes federal guarantees for 
financing of certain tribal activities (Title VI Loan Guarantee 
program). The

[[Page 35179]]

regulations governing the IHBG and Title VI Loan Guarantee programs are 
located in part 1000 of HUD's regulations in title 24 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations. In accordance with section 106 of NAHASDA, HUD 
developed the regulations with active tribal participation, using the 
procedures of the Negotiated Rulemaking Act of 1996 (5 U.S.C. 561-570).
    Under the IHBG program, HUD makes assistance available to eligible 
Indian tribes for affordable housing activities. The amount of 
assistance made available to each Indian tribe is determined using a 
formula that was developed as part of a prior NAHASDA negotiated 
rulemaking process. A regulatory description of the allocation formula 
under the IHBG program is located in Subpart D of 24 CFR part 1000. In 
general, the amount of funding for a tribe is the sum of the formula's 
need component and the Formula Current Assisted Stock (FCAS) component, 
subject to a minimum funding amount authorized under the regulations. 
Based on the amount of funding appropriated annually for the IHBG 
program, HUD calculates the annual grant for each Indian tribe, and 
provides this information to the Indian tribes. An Indian Housing Plan 
for the Indian tribe is then submitted to HUD. If the Indian Housing 
Plan is found to be in compliance with statutory and regulatory 
requirements, the grant is made.

II. The Negotiated Rulemaking Committee

    This notice announces the proposed membership of the negotiated 
rulemaking committee. In making its proposed selections for membership 
on the negotiated rulemaking committee, HUD's goal was to establish a 
committee whose membership reflects a balanced representation of Indian 
tribes. Selections were based on those nominees who met the eligibility 
criteria for membership contained in the September 18, 2012, Federal 
Register notice (77 FR 57544). HUD is satisfied that the proposed 
membership reflects a geographically diverse cross-section of small, 
medium, and large Indian tribes. In addition to the tribal members of 
the committee, there will be one or more HUD representatives on the 
negotiated rulemaking committee. After careful consideration of the 
public comments received on this proposed list of committee members, 
HUD will announce the final composition of the negotiated rulemaking 
committee in a subsequent Federal Register notice.
    HUD proposes to make the following (23) selections for tribal 
membership on the negotiated rulemaking committee:

Jason Adams, Executive Director, Salish-Kootenai Housing Authority, 
Pablo, Montana.
Annette Bryan, Executive Director, Puyallup Housing Authority, Tacoma, 
Washington.
Heather Cloud, Representative, Ho-Chunk Nation, Tomah, Wisconsin.
Gary Cooper, Executive Director, Cherokee Nation, Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Pete Delgado, Executive Director, Tohono O'odham Housing Authority, 
Sells, Arizona.
Sami Jo Difuntorum, Executive Director, Siletz Tribal Housing 
Department, Siletz, Oregon.
Jason Dollarhide, Second Chief, Peoria Tribe of Indians, Miami, 
Oklahoma.
Earl Evans, Councilor, Haliwa-Saponi Tribe, Hollister, North Carolina.
Karin Lee Foster, Legal Counsel, Yakama Housing Authority, Yakima, 
Washington.
Carol Gore, President/CEO, Cook Inlet Housing Authority, Anchorage, 
Alaska.
Lafe Haugen, Executive Director, Northern Cheyenne Housing Authority, 
Lame Deer, Montana.
Richard Hill, General Manager, Mille Lacs Housing Authority, Onamia, 
Minnesota.
Leon Jacobs, Representative, Lumbee Tribe, Pembroke, North Carolina.
Teri Nutter, Executive Director, Cooper River Basin Regional Housing 
Authority, Glennallen, Alaska.
Sam Okakok, Housing Director, Barrow, Alaska.
Diana Phair, Executive Director, Lummi Nation, Bellingham, Washington.
Michael Reed, CEO, Cocopah Indian Housing and Development, Somerton, 
Arizona.
Jack Sawyers, Special Projects, Paiute Tribe of Utah, Cedar City, Utah.
Marty Shuravloff, Executive Director, Kodiak Island Housing Authority, 
Kodiak, Alaska.
Russell Sossamon, Executive Director, Choctaw Housing Authority, Hugo, 
Oklahoma.
Michael Thom, Vice Chair, Karuk Tribe, Happy Camp, California.
Sharon Vogel, Executive Director, Cheyenne River Housing Authority, 
Eagle Butte, South Dakota.
Aneva Yazzie, CEO, Navajo Housing Authority, Window Rock, Arizona.

III. Request for Comments and Committee Nominations

    Persons may submit comments on HUD's establishment of the formula 
negotiating rulemaking committee and may submit additional nominations 
for committee membership in accordance with the ADDRESSES section 
above. Nominations for membership on the Committee must include:
    1. The name of your nominee and a description of the interests the 
nominee would represent;
    2. Evidence that your nominee is authorized to represent a tribal 
government, which may include the tribally designated housing entity of 
a tribe, with the interests the nominee would represent, so long as the 
tribe provides evidence that it authorizes such representation;
    3. A written commitment that the nominee will actively participate 
in good faith in the development of the rule; and
    4. The reasons that the persons proposed above do not adequately 
represent the interests of the person submitting the nomination.

IV. Committee Meetings

    At this time, HUD has not finalized the schedule and agenda for the 
committee meetings. HUD will provide administrative support to the 
committee. Notice of committee meetings will be published in the 
Federal Register. Meetings of the negotiated rulemaking committee will 
be open to the public without advance registration. Public attendance 
may be limited to the space available. Members of the public will be 
provided with an opportunity to make statements during the meeting, to 
the extent that time permits, and to file written statements with the 
committee for its consideration. In the event that the logistics of the 
committee meetings are changed, HUD will advise the public through 
Federal Register notice.

    Dated: June 5, 2013.
Sandra B. Henriquez,
Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing.
[FR Doc. 2013-13984 Filed 6-11-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P