[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 110 (Tuesday, June 9, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32526-32527]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-13996]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Housing Service


Notice of Intent to Accept Applications To Be an Intermediary 
Under the Certified Loan Application Packaging Process Within the 
Section 502 Direct Single Family Housing Program

AGENCY: Rural Housing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Rural Housing Service (RHS or Agency) published a final 
rule on April 29, 2015, in the Federal Register that amended its 
regulations for the section 502 direct single family housing loan 
program to create a certified loan application packaging process. The 
section 502 direct single family housing loan program is authorized in 
Title V of the Housing Act of 1949.
    Under the certified loan application packaging process, a certified 
loan application packager and its qualified employer will submit 
applications to the Agency via an intermediary (unless the applicable 
Rural Development State Director approves the certified packager to opt 
not to go through an intermediary). The intermediary will perform 
quality assurance reviews on the packaged loan applications as well as 
provide supplemental training, technical assistance, and support to 
certified packagers and qualified employers to promote quality 
standards and accountability.
    Through this notice, the Agency will accept applications to be an 
intermediary under the certified loan application packaging process 
outlined in 7 CFR 3550.75 and other applicable regulations. Approval 
will be subject to fully meeting the conditions outlined within this 
notice and regulations, a recommendation by a review panel consisting 
of Agency staff at the state and national levels, and approval by the 
RHS Administrator.
    Intermediaries operating under the loan application packaging pilot 
program, which expires on September 30, 2015, are not guaranteed an 
intermediary role beyond their participation in the pilot program and 
must apply under this application process should they wish to serve as 
an intermediary under the regulation.

DATES: Eligible parties interested in serving as an intermediary under 
the regulatory certified loan application packaging process must submit 
the requested items to the RHS Single Family Housing Direct Loan 
Division by July 9, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Submissions may be sent electronically to 
[email protected] or by mail to Brooke Baumann, Branch 
Chief, Single Family Housing Direct Loan Division, USDA Rural 
Development, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Room 2211, Washington, DC 
20250-0783.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brooke Baumann, Branch Chief, Single 
Family Housing Direct Loan Division, USDA Rural Development, Stop 0783, 
1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250-0783, Telephone: 
202-690-4250. Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: To apply to be an Agency-approved 
intermediary under the certified loan application packaging process, an 
interested party must furnish sufficient documentation to demonstrate 
to the Agency's satisfaction that they meet each of the conditions 
specified below.
    (1)(a) Be a Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization as evidenced 
by the organization's Internal Revenue Service (IRS) nonprofit 
determination letter for 501 (c) (3) status.
    (1)(b) Be in good standing in the State(s) of its operation as 
evidenced by a Certificate of Good Standing or equivalent documentation 
from the applicable Secretary of State(s) or recent State filings.
    (1)(c) Have the capacity to serve multiple qualified employers and 
their Agency-certified loan application packagers throughout an entire 
State or entire States and have the capacity to perform quality 
assurance reviews on a large volume of packaged loan applications 
within three to five business days of receipt.
    (1)(d) Identify what State or States the interested party proposes 
to serve and provide details on their capacity to serve the identified 
State(s). Applicants with the capacity to serve multiple States will be 
given extra scoring points from the review panel.
    (2) Be engaged in affordable housing in accordance with their 
regulations, articles of incorporation, or bylaws.
    (3) Be financially viable and demonstrate positive operating 
performance as evidenced by an independent audit paid for by the 
applicant seeking to be an intermediary.
    (4) Have at least five years of verifiable experience with the 
Agency's direct single family housing programs (specifically the 
section 502 direct single family housing loan program, the section 504 
single family housing repair programs, and/or the section 523 mutual 
self-help housing technical assistance program). Verifiable experiences 
would include, but are not exclusive to, routinely leveraging resources 
for individual transactions (e.g. providing affordable housing products 
to Agency borrowers), packaging loan applications, serving as an 
intermediary under the loan application packaging pilot program, and/or 
being a self-help grantee or technical and management assistance 
contractor. To the greatest extent possible, the submission should 
detail collaborations and dollars leveraged.
    (5) Demonstrate that its quality assurance staff has experience 
with packaging, originating, or underwriting affordable housing loans. 
Provide a resume for each quality assurance staff member. The breadth 
and depth of their combined skills and qualifications will be 
considered during the Agency's application review process.
    (6) Provide a quality control plan that is customized to the 
applicant's organization. The quality control plan must show there are 
controls in place to process application packages that will likely 
result in an eligibility determination by the Agency. At a minimum, but 
not limited to, the plan should include: procedures for obtaining and 
evaluating loan application documents (e.g. credit checks and income 
verification); measures the applicant will take to prevent the 
submission of incomplete or ineligible application packages to the 
Agency; the standard operating procedures for employees who will be 
involved with or affected by the quality control process; and, 
procedures for ensuring accurate information is submitted to the 
Agency.
    (7) Ensure that their quality assurance staff completes an Agency-
approved loan application packaging course and successfully pass any 
corresponding test within a reasonable amount of time if selected. 
Until other methods can be considered and vetted, the sole delivery 
method for the loan application packaging course will be the three-day 
classroom training co-presented by a designated Agency staff member and 
sponsored by the NeighborWorks

[[Page 32527]]

Training Institute, the Housing Assistance Council, or the Rural 
Community Assistance Corporation. Given the limited availability of 
this classroom training, the quality assurance staff will have no more 
than one year from the date of the intermediary's selection to complete 
this requirement. Intermediaries selected in this application process 
must submit documentation of the successful completion of the Agency-
approved loan application packaging course within 30 days of course 
completion.
    (8) Provide a letter jointly signed by the organization's Executive 
Director and Board President affirming the organization will not be the 
developer, builder, seller of, or have any other such financial 
interest in the properties for which the application packages are 
submitted by the organization as an intermediary pursuant to this 
notice.
    (9) Provide a training and support plan that focuses on the 
measures the applicant will take to provide supplemental training, 
technical assistance, and support to certified loan application 
packagers and qualified employers to promote quality standards and 
accountability. (Note that the Agency may require implementation of 
Agency-developed and/or approved training and support plan once 
accepted as an intermediary pursuant to this notice.)
    A State Housing Finance Agency interested in being an Agency-
approved intermediary must apply under this notice. A State Housing 
Finance Agency, however, does not need to demonstrate meeting items 1 
through 5 above, given the States' HFAs purpose, vision, and structure.
    If selected as an intermediary under the certified loan application 
packaging process, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the 
intermediary and the Agency must be signed. The MOU will detail the 
roles and responsibilities of all parties; will require the 
intermediary's quality assurance staff to obtain Level 2 
eAuthentication identifications and submit loan application packages to 
the Agency via its eForms Web site (once this process is fully tested); 
and will require the intermediary to periodically demonstrate that it 
still meets the requirements under the regulation. This notice should 
not be construed as containing all those roles and responsibilities.
    Decisions by the Agency on intermediary applications are not 
appealable to the National Appeals Division.

Non-Discrimination Statement

    USDA prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on 
the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where 
applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, 
religion, sexual orientation, political beliefs, genetic information, 
reprisal, or because all or part of an individual's income is derived 
from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to 
all programs. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means 
for communication of program information (Braille, large print, 
audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 
(voice and TDD).
    If you wish to file a Civil Rights program complaint of 
discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint 
Form, found online at: http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html or at any USDA Office, or call (866) 632-
9992 to request the form. Send your completed complaint form or letter 
by mail to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of 
Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250; by 
fax at (202) 690-7442; or, by email at: [email protected]. 
Individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech disabilities 
and who wish to file a program complaint should please contact USDA 
through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339 or (800) 845-6136 
(in Spanish). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. The 
full ``Non-Discrimination Statement'' is found at: http://www.usda.gov.wps/portal/usda/usdahome?navtype=Non_Discrimination.

    Dated: May 28, 2015.
David Lipsetz,
Acting Administrator, Rural Housing Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-13996 Filed 6-8-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-XV-P