[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 100 (Wednesday, May 23, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23927-23928]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-11145]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-5173-N-18]
Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH): Responsibility To
Conduct Analysis of Impediments
AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal
Opportunity, HUD.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: By notice published elsewhere in today's Federal Register, HUD
has withdrawn the current version of the information collection device
used by local government program participants to assess fair housing
issues as part of their planning for use of housing and community
development block grants. The device is referred to as the Local
Government Assessment Tool; the resulting assessment is referred to as
an Assessment of Fair Housing (AFH). As explained in that notice, the
withdrawal of the lack of a working information collection device means
that a program participant that has not yet submitted an AFH using that
device that has been accepted by HUD must continue to carry out its
duty to affirmatively further fair housing by, inter alia, continuing
to assess fair housing issues as part of planning for use of housing
and community development block grants in accordance with pre-existing
requirements. The pre-existing requirements referred to the fair
housing assessment as an ``analysis of impediments to fair housing
choice'' (AI). This notice reminds program participants of the
requirements and standards for completing the AI.
DATES: Applicability Date: May 23, 2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Krista Mills, Deputy Assistant
Secretary, Office of Policy, Legislative Initiatives, and Outreach,
Office Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, Department of Housing and
Urban Development, 451 7th Street SW, Room 5246, Washington, DC 20410;
telephone number 202-402-6577. Individuals with hearing or speech
impediments may access this number via TTY by calling the toll-free
Federal Relay Service during working hours at 1-800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 16, 2015, HUD published in the
Federal Register its Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) final
rule.\1\ The AFFH final rule provides HUD program participants with a
revised planning approach to assist them in meeting their legal
obligation to affirmatively further fair housing. To assist HUD program
participants in meeting this obligation, the AFFH rule provides that
program participants must conduct an Assessment of Fair Housing (AFH)
using an ``Assessment Tool.'' The AFFH regulations are codified in 24
CFR part 5, subpart A (Sec. Sec. 5.150-5.168).
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\1\ 80 FR 42357.
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Through notice published elsewhere in today's Federal Register, HUD
announces its withdrawal of the Local Government Assessment Tool (OMB
Control No: 2529-0054). As explained in that notice, the AFFH
regulations at 24 CFR 5.160(a)(1)(ii) provide that if the specified AFH
submission deadline results in a submission date that is less than 9
months after the Assessment Tool designed for the relevant type of
program participant is available for use, ``the participant(s)'
submission deadline will be extended . . . to a date that will be not
less than 9 months from the date of publication of the Assessment
Tool.'' As a result of the withdrawal of the Local Government
Assessment Tool and the lack of available HUD data for the PHA
Assessment Tool, currently no type of program participant has an
Assessment Tool available for use.\2\ Pursuant to 24 CFR
5.160(a)(1)(ii), the deadline for local government program participants
to submit a first AFH is thus extended to a date not less than 9 months
following the future publication of a revised and approved Local
Government Assessment Tool.
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\2\ See 82 FR 4373.
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In the meantime, as explained in the notice withdrawing the Local
Government Assessment Tool, Consolidated Plan program participants that
have not yet submitted an assessment using a HUD-provided assessment
tool that must be accepted, must nonetheless continue to comply with
existing, ongoing legal obligations to affirmatively further fair
housing. Congress has repeatedly reinforced this mandate, requiring in
the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 and the Cranston-
Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act, for example, that covered HUD
program participants certify, as a condition of receiving Federal
funds, that they will affirmatively further fair housing.\3\ Pursuant
to 24 CFR 5.160(a)(3), until a Consolidated Plan program participant
submits its first accepted AFH, it will continue to provide the AFFH
certification with its Consolidated Plan, in accordance with the
requirements that existed prior to August 17, 2015.\4\ Those
requirements obligate a program participant to certify that it will
affirmatively further fair housing, which means that it will conduct an
analysis of impediments (AI) to fair housing choice within the
jurisdiction, take appropriate actions to overcome the effects of any
impediments identified through that analysis, and maintain records
reflecting the analysis and actions.
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\3\ See, e.g., 42 U.S.C. 5304(b)(2), 5306(d)(7)(B),
12705(b)(15).
\4\ See, e.g., 24 CFR 91.225(a)(1) (2014); 24 CFR 91.325(a)(1)
(2014).
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Program participants are hereby reminded that the legal obligation
to affirmatively further fair housing remains in effect, and that HUD
places a high priority upon the responsibility of program participants
to ensure that their AIs serve as effective fair housing planning
tools. For Consolidated Plan program participants that are starting a
new 3-5-year Consolidated Plan cycle that begins before their due date
for an AFH, the AI should continue to be updated in accordance with the
HUD Fair Housing Planning Guide (1996).\5\ The data HUD has developed
in order to implement the AFFH rule will remain available for program
participants to use in conducting their AIs. HUD encourages program
participants to collaborate to develop a regional AI, as regional
collaborations provide an opportunity for program participants to share
resources and address fair housing issues that cross jurisdictional
boundaries.\6\
Further, program participants are hereby reminded that if HUD
believes the AI or actions taken to affirmatively further fair housing
to be inadequate, HUD may require submission of the full AI and other
documentation. If HUD concludes that the AI is substantially
incomplete, or the actions taken were plainly inappropriate to address
the identified impediments, HUD may
[[Page 23928]]
question the jurisdiction's AFFH certification by providing notice to
the jurisdiction that HUD believes the AFFH certification to be
inaccurate and provide the jurisdiction an opportunity to comment. If,
after the notice and opportunity to comment is given to the
jurisdiction, HUD determines that the AFFH certification is inaccurate,
HUD will reject the certification. Rejection of the certification
renders the Consolidated Plan substantially incomplete and constitutes
grounds for HUD to disapprove the Consolidated Plan as submitted.\7\ A
jurisdiction cannot receive its Community Development Block Grants
(CDBG), HOME, Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG), or Housing for Persons
With AIDs (HOPWA) program grants until the Consolidated Plan is
approved.
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\5\ Available at https://www.hud.gov/sites/documents/FHPG.PDF.
\6\ Please refer to HUD's 2017 interim guidance for additional
information on collaboration, specifically the Q&A captioned: ``How
can States Collaborate with Local Governments or PHAs?''. The
guidance is available at: https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/Interim-Guidance-for-Program-Participants-on-Status-of-Assessment-Tools-and-Submission-Options.pdf. This guidance is
generally applicable to all types of program participants.
\7\ See 24 CFR 91.500.
Dated: May 18, 2018.
Anna Maria Far[iacute]as,
Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity.
[FR Doc. 2018-11145 Filed 5-21-18; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P