[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 169 (Tuesday, September 1, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52781-52782]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-21514]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5835-N-12]


60-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: FHA Lender 
Approval, Annual Renewal, Periodic Updates and Required Reports by FHA-
Approved Lenders

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Housing/Federal Housing 
Commissioner, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: HUD is seeking approval from the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for the information collection described below. In 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, HUD is requesting comment 
from all interested parties on the proposed collection of information. 
The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment. 
Elsewhere in today's edition of the Federal Register, HUD is publishing 
for public comment, for a period of 30 days, a notice that proposes 
further changes to form HUD-92900-A, which was subject to 60 days of 
public comment on May 15, 2015. The proposed changes to form HUD-92900-
A and to the information collection which is the subject of this 60-day 
notice on FHA Lender Approval, Annual Renewal, Periodic Updates and 
Required Reports are intended to not only bring these documents up-to-
date, but to improve clarity and HUD's enforcement capabilities.

DATES: Comments Due Date: November 2, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this proposal.
    Comments should refer to the proposal by name and/or OMB Control 
Number and should be sent to: Colette Pollard, Reports Management 
Officer, QDAM, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 
7th Street SW., Room 4176, Washington, DC 20410-5000; email 
[email protected] or telephone 202-402-3400 (this is not a toll-
free number) for copies of proposed forms or other information. Persons 
with hearing or speech impairments may access this number through TTY 
by calling the toll-free Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Higgins, Management Analyst, 
Office of Lender Activities and Program Compliance, Office of Single 
Family Housing, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 490 
L'Enfant Plaza East SW., Room P3214, Washington, DC 20024-8000; email 
[email protected] or telephone 202-402-6730 (this is not a toll-
free number). Persons with hearing or speech impairments may access 
this number through TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Relay Service 
at (800) 877-8339.
    Copies of available documents submitted to OMB may be obtained from 
Ms. Pollard. Stakeholders may also view the proposed changes to the 
certifications at: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/housing/sfh/SFH_policy_drafts.

[[Page 52782]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice informs the public that HUD is 
seeking approval from OMB for the information collection described in 
section A.

A. Overview of Information Collection

    Title of Information Collection: FHA Lender Approval, Annual 
Renewal, Periodic Updates and Required Reports by FHA-Approved Lenders.
    OMB Approval Number: 2502-0005.
    Type of Request: Revision.
    Form Number: Online Application for Lender Approval (previously 
HUD-92001-A) and Annual Certification.
    Description of the need for the information and proposed use: The 
Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development is 
authorized to insure lenders and mortgagees against the risk of loss in 
connection with certain mortgages under titles I and II of the National 
Housing Act, 12 U.S.C. 1702 et seq. The Secretary is also authorized to 
prescribe eligibility requirements for approval of these lenders and 
mortgagees to participate in the Department's insured housing programs. 
See 12 U.S.C. 1702 et seq. and 42 U.S.C. 3535(d). Criteria for approval 
to become a title I and/or title II lender mortgagee are specified in 
24 CFR 202, HUD Handbooks 4700.2 & 4060.1, pending HUD Handbook 4000.1 
and various title I letters and Mortgagee Letters. Once approved, FHA 
lenders must provide additional information on an annual basis and 
within specified timeframes of certain events or business changes in 
order to maintain their FHA approval. Lenders submit this information 
electronically using either the Online Application for Lender Approval 
or the Lender Electronic Assessment Portal (LEAP), which is accessed 
via FHA Connection.
    The information is used by FHA to verify that lenders meet all 
approval, renewal and compliance requirements at all times. It is also 
used to assist FHA in managing its financial risks and to protect 
consumers from lender noncompliance with FHA regulations.
    Respondents: Regulatory or compliance.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 3,310.
    Estimated Number of Responses: 13,255.
    Frequency of Response: Annual/Periodic.
    Average Hours per Response: 1 hour.
    Total Estimated Burdens: 13,305 hours.

B. Solicitation of Public Comment

    This notice is soliciting comments from members of the public and 
affected parties concerning the collection of information described in 
section A on the following:
    (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (2) The accuracy 
of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (4) Ways to minimize the burden of 
the collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission 
of responses.
    Revisions to the certification statements included in the Online 
Application for Lender Approval (previously HUD-92001-A) and the Annual 
Certification for FHA-approved lenders and mortgagees are detailed in 
documents available to the public as described above. These documents 
include revisions implemented on January 1, 2015 as well as new 
proposed revisions. This notice is soliciting comments on all revisions 
detailed in these documents.
    The most significant proposed revision is the addition, where 
applicable, of a new certification statement in order to address 
comments received by HUD in response to the 60-Day Notice of Proposed 
Information Collection: Application for FHA Insured Mortgages (FR-5835-
N-06) published on May 15, 2015, which described revisions to form HUD-
92900-A. The certification statement proposed for addition to the 
Annual Certification for FHA-approved lenders and mortgagees would read 
as follows:
    5. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and after conducting 
a reasonable investigation, during the Certification Period I, my firm 
(i.e., the Mortgagee) and its principals (i.e., the Mortgagee's 
Corporate Officers): (a) Were not Debarred, Suspended, Proposed for 
Debarment, declared ineligible, or voluntarily excluded from covered 
transactions by any Federal department or agency; (b) have not, within 
a three-year period preceding this certification, been convicted of or 
had a civil judgment rendered against them for (i) commission of fraud 
or a criminal offense in connection with obtaining, attempting to 
obtain, or performing a public (Federal, State or local) transaction or 
contract under a public transaction; (ii) violation of Federal or State 
antitrust statutes or commission of embezzlement, theft, forgery, 
bribery, falsification or destruction of records, making false 
statements, or receiving stolen property; (c) were not indicted for or 
otherwise criminally or civilly charged by a governmental entity 
(Federal, State or local) with commission of any of the offenses 
enumerated in 5(b) of this certification; and (d) have not, within a 
three-year period preceding this certification, had one or more public 
transactions (Federal, State or local) terminated for cause or default, 
except for those occurrences, if any, the Mortgagee reported to HUD 
during the Certification Period and for which the Mortgagee received 
explicit clearance from HUD to continue with the certification process.
    A similar certification statement would be added to the Online 
Application for Lender Approval with minor technical differences due to 
the format of the Online Application.
    The new certification statement would require FHA-approved lenders 
and lender applicants for FHA approval to certify compliance with FHA 
requirements regarding the events or occurrences currently covered 
under form HUD-92900-A, item G, which HUD has proposed to remove, in 
part, from that form. HUD has determined that this statement should 
apply at the lender level rather than the loan level so that any 
related noncompliance is subject to the procedures of the Mortgagee 
Review Board as set forth in sections 202(c) and 536 of the National 
Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1708(c) and 1735f-14), and parts 25 and 30 of 
title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations (24 CFR parts 25 and 30).
    Other revisions detailed in documents available to the public are 
technical in nature, including renumbering of statements, minor 
language changes for consistency between certification versions, and 
the removal of ambiguous terms that are captured in requirements or 
other well-defined terms found in HUD Handbook 4000.1, effective 
September 14, 2015.
    HUD encourages interested parties to submit comment in response to 
these questions.

     Authority:  Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, 44 U.S.C. chapter 35.

    Dated: August 26, 2015.
Robert E. Mulderig,
Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Single Family Housing.
[FR Doc. 2015-21514 Filed 8-31-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4210-67-P