[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 136 (Monday, July 16, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32952-32953]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-15073]


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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact 
Statement of the Department of Veterans Affairs Housing Loan Program

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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SUMMARY: Under the authority of the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA) and its implementing regulations, VA intends to prepare a 
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to evaluate the 
potential direct, indirect, and cumulative environmental consequences 
of continued operation and administration of VA's Housing Loan Program 
(HLP). VA's reference to the HLP includes federal assistance, 
administered by the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), in the form 
of loans made, insured, or guaranteed by VA. It also includes housing 
benefits that can be used in conjunction with the HLP (e.g., the 
Specially Adapted Housing program). Under the HLP, VBA is also 
responsible for the management, marketing, and disposition of real 
estate owned (REO) properties that VA acquires following the 
foreclosure of certain VA-guaranteed loans and loans held in VA's 
portfolio. This notice opens the public scoping phase and invites 
interested parties to identify potential issues, concerns, and 
reasonable alternatives that should be considered in the PEIS. 
Following the scoping meeting referenced below, a Draft PEIS will be 
prepared and circulated for public comment.

DATES: All written comments should be submitted by August 15, 2018.
    VA invites federal, state, tribal, and local entities; non-profit 
organizations; businesses; interested parties; and the general public 
to comment on the proposed scope and content of the PEIS. VA will 
consider all scoping comments in developing the PEIS. VA will conduct a 
public scoping meeting on Thursday, August 2, 2018, from 6:00 to 8:00 
p.m. at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center, 5701 
Marinelli Road, Rockville, Maryland 20852. The scoping meeting will 
afford the public an opportunity to learn more about the project and 
provide input on the environmental analysis process. During the 
meeting, VA will provide an overview of the project, as well as details 
regarding the PEIS scope, purpose, and need. VA will also outline the 
overall NEPA process. Additionally, VA will post a scoping presentation 
on a publicly available website during the 30-day scoping period. Such 
presentation will be available at http://www.benefits.va.gov/homeloans/environmental_impact.asp.
    Proposed Actions and Alternatives: VA's Proposed Action is to 
continue administering the HLP and incorporating programmatic changes 
as necessitated by amendments to program authorities, Veteran need, 
market conditions, and factors not foreseen at the time of this 
publication.
    VA's No Action Alternative refers to a scenario wherein VA operates 
the HLP in a manner consistent with policies

[[Page 32953]]

and procedures as of fiscal year 2017 (October 1, 2016 through 
September 30, 2017). The No Action Alternative is being presented as a 
snapshot in time to provide a baseline from which to compare the 
Proposed Action. Nevertheless, the No Action Alternative is likely 
unrealistic, as it assumes that HLP policies and requirements are 
frozen, and thereby does not account for subsequent programmatic 
improvements, legislation, Executive Branch directives, or other 
requirements.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be submitted through http://www.regulations.gov; by mail or hand delivery to the Director, Office 
of Regulation Policy and Management (00REG), Department of Veterans 
Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue NW, Room 1063B, Washington DC 20420; or by 
fax to 202-273-9026. Comments should indicate that they are submitted 
in response to ``Notice of Intent to Prepare a Programmatic 
Environmental Impact Statement of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Housing Loan Program''. Copies of comments received will be available 
for public inspection in the Office of Regulation Policy and Management 
(00REG), Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont Ave. NW, Room 
1063B, Washington, DC 20420, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 
p.m., Monday through Friday (except Federal holidays). Please call 
(202) 461-4902 (this is not a toll-free number) for an appointment. 
During the comment period, comments may also be viewed online through 
the Federal Docket Management System at www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elysium Drumm, VA Housing Loan 
Program, at 202-632-8790 or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The most significant element of the HLP is 
the provision of housing benefits that assist eligible Veterans in 
financing the purchase, construction, repair, or improvement of a home 
for their personal occupancy. See 38 U.S.C. 3701 et seq. VBA 
administers these and other housing benefits, such as assistance to 
Veterans who want to adapt their homes, to assist Veterans in 
readjusting to civilian life. The HLP provides what can be, for some 
Veterans, their sole opportunity to obtain crucial housing loans and 
adaptations.
    Through this PEIS, VA is using the NEPA process to evaluate the 
potential physical, environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic effects 
of the HLP; to invite public participation; and to assist with and 
inform future agency planning and decision making related to the HLP. 
The PEIS will also evaluate the HLP, which assists hundreds of 
thousands of Veterans each year across the United States and its 
territories, to ensure that VA appropriately considers the human 
environmental elements and effects specified in 40 CFR 1508.8 (i.e., 
ecological, aesthetic, historic, cultural, economic, social, or health, 
whether direct, indirect, or cumulative) in carrying out the various 
elements and aspects of the program. This PEIS is unique in that it 
addresses an existing program, and VA has no specific or immediate need 
to change its operational structure or procedures to address 
environmental impacts. Furthermore, the making of loan guaranties, 
direct loans, and grants do not typically, in and of themselves, result 
in direct environmental impacts. Environmental impacts, if they occur, 
would be the result of private citizen actions (e.g., construction of a 
house funded by VA-guaranteed loan financing) related to a specific 
property. In this case, the primary environmental impacts of concern 
for VA would be the potential indirect impacts from homeowner actions 
and the potentially significant cumulative impacts of small incremental 
actions on local and regional resources.
    As part of the scoping process, VA encourages federal, state, 
tribal, and local entities; non-profit organizations; businesses; 
interested parties; and the general public to provide input on any 
areas of environmental concern relevant to the HLP, and suggestions 
regarding potential environmental impacts that should be evaluated. VA 
will consult with such parties during VA's preparation of the PEIS.

Signing Authority

    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or designee, approved this 
document and authorized the undersigned to sign and submit the document 
to the Office of the Federal Register for publication electronically as 
an official document of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Jacquelyn 
Hayes-Byrd, Deputy Chief of Staff, Department of Veterans Affairs, 
approved this document on July 10, 2018, for publication.

    Dated: July 10, 2018.
Jeffrey M. Martin,
Impact Analyst, Office of Regulation Policy & Management, Office of the 
Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2018-15073 Filed 7-13-18; 8:45 am]
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