[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 14 (Tuesday, January 24, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8198-8200]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-01556]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-5997-N-01]


30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Public Comment 
Request: Notice on Equal Access Regardless of Sexual Orientation, 
Gender Identity, or Marital Status for HUD's Community Planning and 
Development Programs

AGENCY: Office of Community Planning and Development, 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 30 days of public comment.

DATES: Comments Due Date: February 23, 2017.

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: HUD Desk Officer, Office of 
Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 
20503; fax: 202-395-5806, Email: OIRA [email protected]
    Anna P. Guido, Reports Management Officer, QDAM, Department of 
Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW., Room 4176, 
Washington, DC 20410-5000; telephone 202-402-5535 (this is not a toll-
free number) or email at [email protected] for a copy of

[[Page 8199]]

the proposed forms or other available 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.
    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 notice.
    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). Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing or 
have speech impairments may access this number via TTY by calling the 
toll-free 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: Anna P. Guido, Reports Management 
Officer, QMAC, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20410; email Anna P. Guido at 
[email protected] or telephone 202-402-5535. This is not a toll-free 
number. Person 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. Guido.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice informs the public that HUD is 
seeking approval from OMB for the information collection described in 
Section A.
    The Federal Register notice that solicited public comment on the 
information collection for a period of 60 days was published on 
September 21, 2016 at 81 FR 64930.

I. Background

    As noted in the Summary, elsewhere in today's Federal Register, HUD 
is publishing its final rule entitled ``Equal Access in Accordance with 
an Individual's Gender Identity in Community Planning and Development 
Programs.'' Through this final rule, HUD ensures equal access to 
individuals in accordance with their gender identity in programs and 
shelter funded under programs administered by HUD's Office of Community 
Planning and Development (CPD). This rule builds upon HUD's February 
2012 final rule entitled ``Equal Access to Housing in HUD Programs 
Regardless of Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity'' (2012 Equal 
Access Rule), which aimed to ensure that HUD's housing programs would 
be open to all eligible individuals and families regardless of sexual 
orientation, gender identity, or marital status. The 2012 Equal Access 
Rule, however, did not address how transgender and gender non-
conforming individuals should be accommodated in temporary, emergency 
shelters and other buildings and facilities used for shelter that have 
physical limitations or configurations that require and that are 
permitted to have shared sleeping quarters or shared bathing 
facilities.\1\ This final rule published in today's Federal Register 
follows HUD's November 20, 2015 proposed rule, which addressed this 
issue after soliciting public comment. The final rule requires that 
recipients and subrecipients of CPD funding, as well as owners, 
operators, and managers of shelters, and other buildings and facilities 
and providers of services funded in whole or in part by any CPD program 
to grant equal access to such facilities, and other buildings and 
facilities, benefits, accommodations and services to individuals in 
accordance with the individual's gender identity, and in a manner that 
affords equal access to the individual's family.
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    \1\ Shared sleeping quarters and shared bathing facilities are 
those for simultaneous use by more than one person.
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    The notice set out in the appendix presents an additional measure 
by HUD to ensure that individuals seeking placement or accommodation in 
a shelter or other building or facility and housing funded under a 
program administered by CPD are aware of HUD's equal access policy, as 
established in HUD's 2012 Equal Access Rule, and elaborated upon in the 
final rule published in today's Federal Register. Through this PRA 
notice, HUD proposes to require owners and operators of CPD-funded 
shelters, housing, buildings and other facilities to post this notice 
on bulletin boards and in other public places where individuals staying 
in the shelter, building, housing or facility or seeking placement or 
accommodation in the shelter, building, housing, or facility would see 
this information. HUD strives to reduce burden by providing the content 
of the notice to be posted and estimates it will take about six minutes 
for owners and operators to print and post this notice. All existing 
and new owners would be required to post the notice only once, and 
ensure that it remains visible to those accessing the shelter, housing, 
or facility.

A. Overview of Information Collection

    Title of Information Collection: Notice on Equal Access Regardless 
of Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, or Marital Status for HUD's 
Community Planning and Development Programs.
    OMB Approval Number: 2506-New.
    Type of Request: New collection of information.
    Form Number: None.
    Description of the need for the information and proposed use: As 
noted above, the purposeof the notice set out in the appendix to this 
PRA notice is to ensure that individuals seeking placement or 
accommodation in a shelter, building, housing or facility funded under 
a program administered by CPD are aware of HUD's equal access 
requirements, as established in HUD's 2012 Equal Access Rule, and 
elaborated upon in the final rule published in today's Federal 
Register.
    Members of affected public: Owners and operators of a shelter, 
building, housing or facility funded under programs administered by 
CPD.

[[Page 8200]]

    Estimation of the total numbers of hours needed to prepare the 
information collection including number of respondents, frequency of 
response, and hours of response:
    Please see table below.

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                                                             Response
         Information collection              Number of       frequency       Total **      Burden hours    Total annual     Hourly rate     Burden cost
                                           respondents *     (average)       responses     per response        hours            ***       per instrument
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A                                                      B               C               D               E               F
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HOME Investment Partnerships program....          25,350               1          25,350             .10           2,535          $21.73      $55,085.55
Community Development Block Grant                   2430               1            2430             .10             243           21.73        5,280.39
 program (State and Entitlement)........
Housing Opportunities for Persons with               100               1             100             .10              10           21.73          217.30
 AIDS program...........................
Emergency Solutions Grants program &               6,750               1           6,750             .10             675           21.73       14,667.75
 Continuum of Care......................
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    Total...............................          34,630  ..............          34,630  ..............           3,463  ..............       75,250.99
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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.
    HUD encourages interested parties to submit comment in response to 
these questions.
    C. Authority: Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
44 U.S.C. Chapter 35.

    Dated: January 13, 2017.
Anna P. Guido,
Department Reports Management Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017-01556 Filed 1-23-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4210-67-P