FY 1996 Funding Availability for HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agencies

SUMMARY: This notice announces the availability of Fiscal Year (FY)

1996 funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

(HUD) for HUD-approved housing counseling agencies to provide housing

counseling to homebuyers, homeowners, and renters. HUD announces the

availability of up to $10.5 million dollars for housing counseling

services through this Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA). All

housing counseling agencies approved by HUD as of the publication date

of this NOFA may apply for FY 1996 funding. This includes: (1) multi-

State, regional, or national intermediary organizations, and (2) local

housing counseling agencies that do not elect to affiliate with a HUD-

approved intermediary organization.

This NOFA contains additional information on the purpose and

background of the NOFA and funding levels available to local counseling

agencies and intermediary organizations respectively; eligible

activities and funding criteria; and application requirements and

procedures.

DATES: Completed applications must be submitted no later than 4:00 p.m.

local time on August 7, 1996. As further described below, any completed

application must be physically received by this deadline date and hour

at the appropriate local HUD office (for local applicants) or at the

Office of Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th

Street, SW, Room 9282, Washington D.C. 20410 (for national, regional or

multi-State applicants). In the interest of fairness to all applicants,

late applications will be treated as ineligible for consideration.

Applicants should take this requirement into account and make early

submission of their applications to avoid loss of eligibility brought

about by any unanticipated delays or other delivery-related problems.

It is not sufficient for an application to be postmarked within the

deadline. Applications sent by facsimile (FAX) will not be accepted.

HUD will not waive this submission deadline for any reason.

ADDRESSES: For local housing counseling agency applicants: An original

and two copies of the completed application must be submitted to the

local HUD office having jurisdiction over the locality or area in which

the proposed program is located. These copies should be sent to the

attention of the Single Family Division Director, and the envelope

should be clearly marked, ``FY 1996 Counseling Application''. A list of

Single Family Division Directors and local HUD Offices appears at the

end of this NOFA. Failure to submit an application to the correct

office in accordance with the above procedures will result in

disqualification of the application.

For national, regional and multi-State housing counseling agencies:

An original and two copies of the completed application must be

submitted to the person listed below in HUD Headquarters. The envelope

should be clearly marked, ``FY 1996 Counseling Application.''

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joan Morgan, Chief, Product

Development and Special Projects Branch, Office of Housing, Department

of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, SW, Room 9272,

Washington D.C. 20410; telephone (202) 708-0614, extension 2213

(voice), or (202) 708-4594 (TTY number). (These are not toll-free

numbers.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

The information collection requirements contained in this NOFA have

been approved by the Office of Management and Budget, under section

3504(h) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520),

and assigned OMB control number 2502-0261. An agency may not conduct or

sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of

information unless the collection displays a valid control number.

I. Purpose and Substantive Description

A. Authority and Purpose

HUD's housing counseling program is authorized under section 106 of

the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701x). The

purpose of the program is to promote and protect the interests of

housing consumers participating in HUD and other housing programs, as

well as to help protect the interests of HUD and mortgage lenders. The

Housing Counseling program is generally governed by HUD Handbook

7610.1, REV-4, dated August 9, 1995.

Section 106 authorizes HUD to provide counseling and advice to

tenants and homeowners with respect to property maintenance, financial

management, and such other matters as may be appropriate to assist

tenants and homeowners in improving their housing conditions and in

meeting the responsibilities of tenancy and homeownership. In addition,

HUD-approved counseling agencies are permitted and encouraged by HUD to

conduct community outreach activities and provide counseling to

individuals with the objective of increasing awareness of homeownership

opportunities and improving access of low and moderate income

households to sources of mortgage credit. HUD believes that this

activity is key to the revitalization and stabilization of low income

and minority neighborhoods.

Under the housing counseling program, HUD contracts with qualified

public or private nonprofit organizations to provide the services

authorized by the statute. When Congress appropriates funds for this

purpose, HUD announces the availability of such funds, and invites

applications from eligible agencies, through a notice published in the

Federal Register. Currently there are 705 HUD-approved local housing

counseling agencies with 386 Branch Offices and 10 HUD-approved

intermediary organizations. Annually, all HUD-approved agencies are

eligible to apply for housing counseling grants. However, an agency

that is approved by HUD does not automatically receive HUD funding, and

HUD expects that all counseling agencies will continually work to

develop other funding resources. In FY '95, 240 HUD-approved local

housing counseling agencies and 5 HUD-approved national/regional/multi-

state housing counseling agencies received funding from HUD.

B. Allocation Amounts

Twelve million dollars ($12 million) has been appropriated from the

1996 Appropriations Act, P. L. 104-134, 110 Stat. 1321, approved April

26, 1996 for this program. Of this amount, $10.5 million is being made

available under this NOFA for lump-sum, performance-based grants, as

defined at 24 CFR part 84, subpart E. Approximately $4 million is being

set aside to fund national, regional and multi-State organizations that

apply for funding under this NOFA. No national, regional, or multi-

State agency may receive more than $1

[[Page 35907]]

million. Approximately $6.5 million has been made available for grants

to local HUD approved housing counseling agencies, and it has been

allocated to each of the 10 HUD geographical areas (formerly Regions)

by a formula that gives equal weight to the percentage of HUD insured

single family mortgage defaults within each geographical area as of

September 30, 1995, compared to the nationwide total and the percentage

of first-time homebuyers that were approved for FHA-insured mortgages

by geographical area during FY 1995 compared to the nationwide total

for that period. This formula reflects the increased emphasis that HUD

is placing on the expansion of homeownership opportunities for first-

time homebuyers. For FY 1996, no individual local housing counseling

agency may be awarded more than $100,000.

Allocations for use in local agency programs, by HUD geographical

area, are estimated as follows:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Default data First-time Homebuyer Data

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Geographical areas Nat'l. 1st

No. of Nat'l defaults Allocation No. of 1st timers Allocation Total

defaults (Percent) amount timers (Percent) amount allocation

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New England............................. 2,836 1.95 63,465 11,887 3.26 105,959 169,424

NY/NJ................................... 11,853 8.16 265,252 23,034 6.32 205,322 470,573

Mid-Atlantic............................ 16,502 11.36 369,289 41,427 11.36 369,274 738,563

SE/Caribbean............................ 36,049 24.82 806,721 72,746 19.95 648,447 1,455,168

Midwest................................. 23,087 15.90 516,651 63,812 17.50 568,811 1,085,462

Southwest............................... 19,834 13.66 443,854 40,238 11.04 358,676 802,530

Great Plains............................ 4,102 2.82 91,796 14,671 4.02 130,775 222,572

Rocky Mts............................... 3,607 2.48 80,719 21,014 5.76 187,316 268,035

Pac/Hawaii.............................. 24,685 17.00 552,412 62,277 16.25 555,128 1,107,540

NW/Alaska............................... 2,674 1.84 59,840 13,495 3.70 120,292 180,132

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Totals.............................. 145,229 100 3,250,000 364,601 100 3,250,000 6,500,000

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

An allocation of $1.5 million in program funding has been set aside

for Housing Counseling support which may include: Continuation of the

Housing Counseling Clearinghouse, 800 service to provide information to

the public regarding local HUD-approved housing counseling agencies,

and/or other HUD counseling initiatives.

If funds remain after HUD has funded all approvable grant

applications in a HUD geographical area, or if any funds become

available due to deobligation, that amount shall be reallocated and

used in keeping with the statute and in a manner that will improve the

delivery of housing counseling service nationwide.

C. Eligible Applicants

1. General. There are two types of HUD-approved organizations that

are eligible to submit applications pursuant to this NOFA: (1)

national, regional, or multi-State housing counseling organizations

(also known as ``intermediaries'' or ``umbrella groups''); and (2)

local housing counseling agencies.

National, regional, and multi-State nonprofit, intermediary

organizations must identify all their proposed affiliates in their

application. These intermediaries must assure that their proposed

affiliates are unique to their team and will not undertake a separate

application for funds either as an affiliate of another intermediary or

directly as a HUD-approved local counseling agency. Should any

duplication occur, both the intermediary organization and the local

agency involved will automatically be ineligible for further

consideration to receive FY 1996 housing counseling funds. In addition,

an intermediary-applicant must also assure that it has executed a sub-

agreement with its affiliates that clearly delineates their mutual

responsibilities for program management, incorporating appropriate

timeframes for reporting results to HUD.

Once funded, the national, regional, and multi-State intermediaries

will be given broad discretion in implementing their housing counseling

programs. On behalf of HUD, the intermediaries will act as managers in

the housing counseling process and, as such, may determine funding

levels and counseling activity for each of their affiliates, except

that no single affiliate may receive more than $100,000. HUD will hold

the intermediary organization accountable for the performance of its

affiliates.

Local counseling agencies may apply either directly to HUD for

funding, or as a part of an affiliated intermediary network. Since

continuation of funding for housing counseling activities as a separate

and discrete program for FY 1997 and thereafter is not guaranteed, HUD

encourages local agencies to consider affiliating with a larger entity

as one avenue of possible future funding and support for local

programs. Local housing counseling agencies that are not currently HUD-

approved may receive FY 1996 funding only as an affiliate of a HUD-

approved national, regional, or multi-State intermediary's application

for FY 1996 funds. In this instance, the intermediary organization must

certify that the quality of services provided will meet, or exceed,

standards for local HUD-approved agencies.

2. Civil Rights Prerequisites. Applicants that fall into any one of

the following categories will be ineligible for funding under this

NOFA:

a. The Department of Justice has brought a civil rights suit

against the applicant and the suit is pending;

b. There has been an adjudication of a civil rights violation in a

civil action brought against the applicant by a private individual,

unless the applicant is operating in compliance with a court order, or

implementing a HUD-approved compliance agreement designed to correct

the areas of noncompliance;

c. There are outstanding findings of noncompliance with civil

rights statutes, Executive Orders or regulations as a result of formal

administrative proceedings, or the Secretary has issued a charge

against the applicant under the Fair Housing Act, unless the applicant

is operating under a conciliation or compliance agreement designed to

correct the areas of noncompliance; or

d. HUD has deferred application processing by HUD under one of the

following authorities:

i. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the implementing

guidelines of the Attorney General (28 CFR 50.3) and the HUD

regulations (24 CFR 1.8);

[[Page 35908]]

ii. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the HUD

section 504 regulations (24 CFR 8.57);

iii. Executive Order 11063, as amended by Executive Order 12892 and

HUD regulations (24 CFR Part 107);

iv. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and

applicable regulations (28 CFR Part 36); or

v. The Age Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101-6107) and

implementing regulations (24 CFR Part 146).

3. Requirements Applicable to Religious Organizations. Where the

applicant is, or proposes to contract with, a primarily religious

organization, or a wholly secular organization established by a

primarily religious organization, to provide, manage, or operate a

housing counseling program, the organization must undertake its

responsibilities under the counseling program in accordance with the

following principles:

a. It will not discriminate against any employee or applicant for

employment under the program on the basis of religion and will not

limit employment or give preference in employment to persons on the

basis of religion;

b. It will not discriminate against any person applying for

counseling under the program on the basis of religion and will not

limit such assistance or give preference to persons on the basis of

religion; and

c. It will provide no religious instruction or religious

counseling, conduct no religious services or worship, engage in no

religious proselytizing, and exert no other religious influence in the

provision of assistance under the housing counseling program.

D. Eligible Activities

Eligible activities will vary depending upon whether the applicant

is a HUD-approved local counseling agency or a HUD-approved national,

regional, or multi-State housing counseling intermediary.

1. Local Housing Counseling Agencies. Local housing counseling

agencies funded under this NOFA may use HUD funds to deliver

comprehensive housing counseling or to specialize in the delivery of

particular housing counseling services according to the housing needs

they identified for their target area in the plan that was previously

approved by HUD. HUD recognizes that local housing counseling agencies

may offer a wide range of services, including:

a. Renter assistance, including information about rent subsidy

programs, rights and responsibilities of tenants, lease and rental

agreements, etc.;

b. Outreach initiatives, including providing general information

about housing opportunities within the community and providing

appropriate information to persons with disabilities;

c. Pre-purchase homeownership counseling, covering such issues as

purchase procedures, mortgage financing, downpayment/closing cost fund

accumulation, accessibility requirements of the property--if

appropriate, credit improvement, debt consolidation, etc.;

d. Post-purchase counseling, including such issues as property

maintenance, personal money management, home equity conversion

mortgages, etc.; or

e. Mortgage delinquency and default resolution, including

restructuring debt, arrangement of reinstatement plans, loan

forbearance, loss mitigation, etc.

HUD-funded local counseling agencies may elect to offer their

services to a wide range of clients or may elect to serve a more

limited audience. Potential clients include: renters; potential

homebuyers; homeowners eligible for and applying for HUD-related, VA,

FmHA (or its successor agency), State, local, or conventionally

financed housing or housing assistance; or persons who occupy such

housing and seek the assistance of a HUD-approved housing counseling

agency to resolve a housing need (including the need of a person with a

disability for accessible housing) or problem. Local housing counseling

agencies may elect to offer this assistance in conjunction with any HUD

housing program but must be familiar with FHA's single family and

multifamily housing programs.

2. National, Regional, or Multi-State Counseling Intermediaries.

The primary activity of national, regional, or multi-State nonprofit

housing counseling intermediaries will be to manage the use of HUD

housing counseling funds, including the distribution of counseling

funding to affiliated local housing counseling organizations. Local

affiliates of the selected national, regional, or multi-State

counseling intermediaries are eligible to undertake any or all of the

housing counseling activities outlined above for the HUD-approved local

housing counseling agencies. The local affiliates receiving funding

through intermediaries do not need to be HUD-approved in order to

receive these funds from the intermediary. However, the national,

regional, or multi-State intermediary organization must be HUD-approved

as of the NOFA publication date.

E. Selection Process

1. Housing Counseling Agencies. All applications meeting the

requirements of this NOFA will be selected for funding within their

competitive category, if sufficient funds are available: (1) in the set

aside for National, Regional, or multi-State organizations, or (2)

within the HUD geographic allocation area for local housing counseling

agency applicants.

a. Criteria/Ranking Factors. All applications will be rated and

ranked by staff in the appropriate local HUD Office and by the

Secretary's Representative in the appropriate State office. The

Secretary's Representative and the local HUD Office staff will use the

same criteria and ranking factors, as follows:

i. Capability of the applicant as determined by HUD, including

competent delivery of counseling services and timely drawdown of any

HUD funds awarded in the prior Fiscal Year--up to 50 points (up to 45

points assigned by HUD's Housing staff; up to 5 points assigned by the

Secretary's Representative);

ii. Adequacy of the activities proposed by the applicant in

response to housing needs identified in the applicant's housing

counseling plan as previously approved by HUD--up to 25 points (up to

20 points assigned by HUD's Housing staff; up to 5 points assigned by

the Secretary's Representative);

iii. Evidence of private funding sources contributing to the

applicant's operating budget over the past calendar year--up to 15

points assigned by HUD's Housing staff; and

iv. Evidence of current funding support from units of government

located within the target area which the applicant intends to serve--up

to 10 points.

b. Selection Procedure. National, regional, and multi-State

applications will be rated and ranked in Headquarters and selected for

funding, in rank order, until all funds for such agencies are depleted.

Local agency applications will be reviewed by the Field Office and

assigned points under the selection criteria. Then the Field Office

will submit its recommendations for funding to HUD Headquarters for

final review, to ensure appropriate geographical distribution of

program funds and consistent application of the criteria described

above. HUD Headquarters will then rank the local agency applications

within the geographical areas and select for funding, in rank order,

all acceptable applications to the point at which all funds are

depleted.

[[Page 35909]]

i. Breaking a Tie. If two or more applications receive the same

number of points and sufficient funds are not available to fund all

such applications, first the application or applications requesting the

smallest grants will be selected, if a sufficient amount remains to

fund them. If two or more tied applications request the same amount and

sufficient funds are not available to fund all such applications, the

following system will be used to break the ties:

A. If the tied applications are for programs to be carried out in

different jurisdictions, applications with the highest number of points

for the rating criterion a.ii. (adequacy of activities) stated above

will be selected, if sufficient funds remain.

B. If the tied applications are to be carried out in the same

jurisdiction, applications with the highest number of points for the

rating criterion a.i. (capability) stated above will be selected, if

sufficient funds remain.

ii. Reallocations. Funds remaining after applying the procedures

described in paragraph E.1.b. will be reallocated to fund the highest

ranking remaining applications without regard to their location.

iii. Procedural Errors. Procedural errors by HUD discovered after

initial ratings, but before notification to Congress of selected

applicants, will be corrected and rankings will be revised.

iv. Reductions. HUD will approve an application for an amount lower

than the amount requested or adjust line items in the proposed budget

within the amount requested (or both) if it determines that:

A. The amount requested for one or more eligible activities is

unreasonable, unnecessary, or unjustified;

B. An activity proposed for funding does not qualify as an eligible

activity;

C. The applicant is not able to carry out all the activities

requested; or

D. Insufficient amounts remain in that funding round to fund the

full amount requested in the application.

v. Limitation of Geographic Scope. HUD may reduce the geographic

scope of the proposed program if it determines that:

A. Two or more fundable applications substantially overlap; or

B. The proposed geographic scope is overly large given the capacity

of the organization.

2. National, Regional, and Multi-State Counseling Organizations. If

more applications are submitted to HUD Headquarters from national,

regional, and multi-State organizations that meet all the requirements

of this NOFA than can be funded with the amount allocated for this

purpose, they will be rated by staff in HUD Headquarters using the

above ranking criteria stated in paragraph 1.a., and the top-rated

applicants will be selected. Paragraphs 1. c.iii., c.iv., and c.v.,

above also apply to the selection of national, regional, and multi-

State counseling organizations.

3. Notification of Approval or Disapproval. After completion of the

selection process, but no later than six months after the deadline date

for submission of the applications, as stated in this NOFA, HUD will

notify, in writing, the applicants that have been selected and the

applicants that have not been selected.

F. Funding Levels

Funding levels will be based on the amount authorized by the

Congress, geographical distribution as described above, the performance

record of each counseling agency as determined by HUD's analysis of

prior year counseling workload and results of the most recent biennial

performance review, competent delivery of counseling services and

timely drawdown of funds awarded, and the agency's needs, as specified

in the application according to its housing counseling plan previously

approved by HUD. In addition, applicants that can demonstrate

successful efforts to obtain non-HUD funding in their applications will

receive extra consideration in HUD's rating and ranking process. HUD

funding provided must be less than the total actual cost of the

agency's housing counseling program.

1. Local Housing Counseling Agencies. HUD will fund local agencies

according to the budget submitted with the application, in an amount

not to exceed $100,000. Amounts requested by local housing counseling

agencies should reflect anticipated operating needs for housing

counseling activities, based upon counseling experience during the last

year and existing agency capacity. To the maximum extent possible,

local counseling agencies also must seek other private and public

sources of funding to supplement HUD funding. HUD never intends for its

counseling grant funds to cover all costs incurred by an agency

participating in the program.

Local housing counseling agencies may use the HUD grant to

undertake any of the eligible counseling activities described in this

NOFA and included in their HUD-approved plan. FY 1996 housing

counseling grant funds also may be used for ``capacity building'' as

defined in this NOFA. Up to $4,000 of the grant amount may be used to:

purchase computer equipment that meets, or exceeds, HUD specifications;

enhance existing telephone service, such as purchasing

telecommunications equipment for the hearing-impaired (TTY) to serve

persons with hearing impairments (as an alternative to using the TTY

relay service); and install FAX machines. The Department will require

that all grantees funded in 1996 which do not currently have adequate

computer systems (and were not funded by HUD under the FY 1995 NOFA)

use all or a portion of their $4,000 capacity building portion of the

grant to purchase computer hardware according to HUD specifications.

Computer training for one staff person also may be paid from the $4,000

set-aside, as may training on how to use a TTY. Title to equipment

acquired by a recipient with program funds shall vest in the recipient,

subject to the provisions of 24 CFR part 84, subpart E. Agencies funded

under the FY 1995 NOFA already received an allocation of capacity

building funds and may not request additional capacity building funds

in 1996.

2. National, Regional, or Multi-State Counseling Intermediaries.

The intermediary organization will distribute the majority of funds

awarded to their proposed local housing counseling affiliates.

Intermediaries should budget an amount which reflects their best

estimate of cost to oversee and fund these counseling efforts, as well

as the funding needs of their affiliates. Note that HUD housing

counseling funding is not intended to fully fund either the

intermediary's housing counseling program or the housing counseling

programs of the local affiliates. To the maximum extent possible,

intermediaries and their local affiliates are expected to seek other

private and public sources of funding for housing counseling to

supplement HUD funding.

An intermediary may use up to $5,000 of its total grant amount for

capacity building expenses such as: purchasing computer equipment;

enhancing telephone service, such as purchasing telecommunications

equipment for the hearing-impaired (TTY) to serve persons with hearing

impairments (as an alternative to using TTY relay service); installing

FAX machines; and preparing or publishing counseling materials. If the

intermediary does not have an adequate computer system and was not

funded under the FY 1995 NOFA, the Department will require that the

$5,000 capacity building portion of the grant be used to purchase

necessary equipment meeting HUD specifications. Title to equipment

acquired by a recipient with program funds shall vest in the recipient,

subject to the provisions of 24 CFR part 84, subpart E. Intermediaries

[[Page 35910]]

funded under the FY 1995 NOFA may not request additional capacity

building funds in FY 1996.

HUD will give the selected nonprofit intermediaries wide discretion

to implement the housing counseling program with their affiliates. The

intermediary may decide how to allocate funding among its affiliates

and may determine funding levels at or below $100,000 for individual

affiliates with the understanding that a written record will be kept of

how this determination is made. This record shall be made available to

the agencies affiliated with the intermediary.

III. Checklist of Application Submission Requirements

A. General

Contents of an application will differ somewhat for local housing

counseling agencies and for national, regional, or multi-State

intermediaries; however, all applicants are expected to submit:

1. Standard Form 424, Application for Federal Assistance

2. Standard Form 424B, Assurances--Non-construction Programs

3. Drug-Free Workplace Requirements Certification

4. Applicant/Recipient Disclosure/Update Report, Form HUD-2880

5. Certification and Disclosure of Lobbying Activities, Standard

Form LLL, for National Intermediaries only, if applicable

6. Certification Regarding Civil Rights

7. Form HUD-9902, Housing Counseling Agency FISCAL YEAR Activity

Report for fiscal year October 1, 1994 through September 30, 1995.

Where an applicant did not participate in HUD's Housing Counseling

Program during FY 1995, this report should be completed to reflect the

agency's counseling workload during that period in any case. This form

must be fully completed and submitted by every applicant for FY 1996

HUD funding. HUD will reject any application that does not include this

form

8. Computer Equipment Inventory (if applicable)

9. Budget Worksheet. A realistic, proposed budget for use of HUD

funds if awarded. This should be broken down into two categories:

direct counseling costs and capacity building costs. Note that the

budget submitted by a local agency may not exceed a total of $100,000,

including capacity building costs which may not exceed $4,000.

National, regional and multi-State organizations may submit a proposed

budget up to $1 million, including capacity building costs which may

not exceed $5,000

10. Exhibits for National, regional, multi-State or local housing

counseling agencies (as described below in B1-B3 and in the application

kit)

11. Evidence of Housing Counseling Funding Sources (required by all

applicants)

12. Current Housing Counseling Plan

13. A description of counseling activities to be performed

14. A description of organization capability

15. Direct-labor and Hourly-labor rate and Counseling Time Per

Client

16. Congressional District Information

B. National, Regional, and Multi-State Intermediaries

National, regional, and multi-State intermediaries must submit an

application which covers both their network organization and their

affiliated agencies. This application must include:

1. Description of affiliated agencies. For each, list the following

information:

a. Organization name

b. Address

c. Director and contact person (if different)

d. Phone/FAX numbers (including TTY, if appropriate)

e. Federal tax identification number

f. ZIP code service areas

g. Number of staff providing counseling

h. Type of services offered (defined by renter assistance, outreach

initiatives, pre-purchase counseling, post-purchase counseling, and

mortgage default and delinquency counseling)

i. Number of years of housing counseling experience

2. Relationship with affiliates. Briefly describe the

intermediary's relationship with affiliates (i.e. membership

organization, field or branch offices, subsidiary organizations, etc.).

3. Oversight system. Describe the process that will be used for

determining affiliate funding levels, distributing funds, and

monitoring affiliate performance.

IV. Corrections to Deficient Applications

After the submission deadline, applicants may cure only non-

substantial, technical deficiencies that surface during HUD screening

of their application. Applicants will have a ``cure period'' to correct

such deficiencies that are not integral to HUD's review of the

application. Applicants have 14 calendar days from the date HUD

notifies them of any problem to submit the appropriate information to

HUD. Notification of a technical deficiency may be in writing or by

telephone. If the HUD notification is by telephone, a written

confirmation will be transmitted by HUD to the applicant. Where HUD

determines that an application as initially submitted is fundamentally

incomplete, or would require substantial revisions, it will not

consider the application further. Note: HUD will not inform applicants

regarding application deficiencies other than as described in this

section.

V. Other Matters

Environmental Impact

A Finding of No Significant Impact with respect to the environment

was made in accordance with HUD regulations at 24 CFR part 50 that

implement section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of

1969, 42 U.S.C. 4332, in connection with the Notice of Funding

Availability published in connection with the Housing Counseling

program on March 21, 1994 (59 FR 13366). That Finding is applicable to

this NOFA and is available for public inspection during business hours

in the Office of the Rules Docket Clerk, Office of General Counsel,

room 10276, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 Seventh

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20410.

Federalism Impact

The General Counsel, as the Designated Official under section 6(a)

of Executive Order 12612, Federalism, has determined that this NOFA

does not have ``federalism implications'' because it does not have

substantial direct effects on the States (including their political

subdivisions), or on the distribution of power and responsibilities

among the various levels of government. This NOFA only affects

nonprofit or public organizations who seek funding for their housing

counseling activities.

Impact on the Family

The General Counsel, as the Designated Official under Executive

Order 12606, the Family, has determined that this NOFA has potential

significant impact on family formation, maintenance, and general well-

being only to the extent that the entities who qualify for

participation in HUD's housing counseling program under this notice

will provide families with the counseling and advice they need to avoid

rent delinquencies or mortgage defaults, and to develop competence and

responsibility in meeting their housing needs. Since the potential

impact on the family is considered beneficial, no further review under

the Order is necessary.

[[Page 35911]]

Documentation and Public Access Requirements: HUD Reform Act

HUD will ensure that documentation and other information regarding

each application submitted pursuant to this NOFA are sufficient to

indicate the basis upon which assistance was provided or denied. This

material, including any letters of support, will be made available for

public inspection for a five-year period beginning not less than 30

days after the award of the assistance. Material will be made available

in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and

HUD's implementing regulations at 24 CFR part 15. In addition, HUD will

include the recipients of assistance pursuant to this NOFA in its

Federal Register notice of all recipients of HUD assistance awarded on

a competitive basis. (See 24 CFR 12.14(a) and 12.16(b), and the notice

published in the Federal Register on January 16, 1996, for further

information on these requirements.)

Prohibition Against Advance Information on Funding Decisions: HUD

Reform Act

HUD's regulation implementing section 103 of the Department of

Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (42 U.S.C. 3537a), 24

CFR part 4, applies to the funding competition announced today. The

requirements of the rule continue to apply until the announcement of

the selection of successful applicants.

HUD employees involved in the review of applications and in the

making of funding 4.decisions are restrained by part 4 from providing

advance information to any person (other than an authorized employee of

HUD) concerning funding decisions, or from otherwise giving any

applicant an unfair competitive advantage. Persons who apply for

assistance in this competition should confine their inquiries to the

subject areas permitted under 24 CFR part 4.

Applicants or employees who have ethics related questions should

contact the HUD Office of Ethics (202) 708-3815. (This is not a toll-

free number.) Hearing or speech-impaired persons may access that number

by calling toll-free the Federal Information Relay Service at (800)

877-8339. For HUD employees who have specific program questions, such

as whether particular subject matter can be discussed with persons

outside HUD, the employee should contact the appropriate Field Office

Counsel, or Headquarters counsel for the program to which the question

pertains.

Prohibition Against Lobbying Activities

The use of funds awarded under this NOFA is subject to the

disclosure requirements and prohibitions of 24 CFR part 87. That

regulation prohibits recipients of federal contracts, grants, or loans

from using appropriated funds for lobbying the Executive or Legislative

branches of the federal government in connection with a specific

contract, grant, or loan. The prohibition also covers the awarding of

contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or loans unless the

recipient has made an acceptable certification regarding lobbying.

Under 24 CFR part 87, applicants, recipients, and subrecipients of

assistance exceeding $100,000 must certify that no federal funds have

been or will be spent on lobbying activities in connection with the

assistance.

Catalog

The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program number is

14.169.

Dated: July 1, 1996.

Nicolas P. Retsinas,

Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal Housing Commissioner.

Appendix A--HUD Offices

Note: The title of all those listed is: Director, Single Family

Division, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Telephone numbers are not toll-free.

HUD--New England Area

Connecticut state office

Mr. John Ertle

First Floor

330 Main Street

Hartford, CT 06106-1860

(203) 240-4569

Massachusetts State Office

Mr. Edward T. Bernard

Room 375

Thomas P. O'Neill, Jr. Federal Building

10 Causeway Street

Boston, MA 02222-1092

(617) 565-5101

New Hampshire State Office

Mr. Loren Cole

Norris Cotton Federal Building

275 Chestnut Street

Manchester, NH 03101-2487

(603) 666-7755

Rhode Island State Office

Mr. Michael Dziok

Sixth Floor

10 Weybosset Street

Providence, RI 02903-2808

(401) 528-5351

HUD--New York, New Jersey Area

New Jersey State Office

Ms. Theresa Arce

Thirteenth Floor

One Newark Center

Newark, NJ 07102-5260

(201) 622-7900 X3500

New York State Office

Mr. Juan Baustista

26 Federal Plaza

New York, NY 10278-0068

(212) 264-0777 X3746

Albany Area Office

Mr. Robert S. Scofield, Jr.

52 Corporate Circle

Albany, NY 12203-5121

(518) 464-4200 EXT. 4205

Buffalo Area Office

Mr. Glenn Ruggles

Lafayette Court

465 Main Street

Buffalo, NY 14203-1780

(716) 846-5732

Camden Area Office

Mr. Philip Caulfield

Second Floor

Hudson Building

800 Hudson Square

Camden, NJ 08102-1156

(609) 757-5083

HUD--Midatlantic area

District of Columbia office

Ms. Carole Catineau

820 First Street, NE

Washington, D.C. 20002-4502

(202) 275-9200 X3055

Maryland state office

Ms. Candace Simms

Fifth Floor

City Crescent Building

10 South Howard Street

Baltimore, MD 21201-2505

(410) 962-2520 X3094

Pennsylvania state office

Mr. Mike Perretta

The Wanamaker Building

100 Penn Square East

Philadelphia, PA 19107-3380

(215) 656-0507

Virginia state office

Ms. Rheba G. Gwaltney

The 3600 Centre

3600 West Broad Street

P.O. Box 90331

Richmond, VA 23230-0331

(804) 278-4512

West Virginia state office

Mr. Peter Minter

Suite 708

405 Capitol Street

Charleston, WV 25301-1795

(304) 347-7064

Pittsburgh area office

Mr. Al Curotola

339 Sixth Ave., Sixth Floor

Pittsburgh, PA 15222-2515

(412) 644-6940

HUD--Southeast/Caribbean area

Alabama state office

Ms. Martha Andrus

Suite 300

Beacon Ridge Tower

600 Beacon Parkway, West

Birmingham, AL 35209-3144

[[Page 35912]]

(205) 290-7648

Caribbean office

Ms. Margarita Delgado

New San Juan Office Building

159 Carlos Chardon Avenue

San Juan, PR 00918-1804

(787) 766-5402

Georgia state office

Ms. Janice Cooper

Richard B. Russell Federal Building

75 Spring Street, S.W.

Atlanta, GA 30303-3388

(404) 331-4801

Kentucky state office

Mr. David A. Powell

601 West Broadway

P.O. Box 1044

Louisville, KY 40201-1044

(502) 582-6167

Mississippi state office

Mr. Jerry F. Perkins

Suite 910

Doctor A.H. McCoy Federal Building

100 West Capitol Street

Jackson, MS 39269-1016

(601) 965-4930

North Carolina state office

Mr. Robert Dennis

Koger Building

2306 West Meadowview Road

Greensboro, NC 27407-3707

(910) 547-4053

South Carolina state office

Mr. David L. Ball

Strom Thurmond Federal Building

1835 Assembly Street

Columbia, SC 29201-2480

(803) 765-5593

Coral Gables area office

Ms. Sara D. Warren

Gables 1 Tower

1320 South Dixie Highway

Coral Gables, FL 33146-2911

(305) 662-4526

Jacksonville area office

Ms. Ann Whaley

Suite 2200

Southern Bell Tower

301 West Bay Street

Jacksonville, FL 32202-5121

(904) 232-2811

Knoxville area office

Mr. William Pavelchik

Third Floor

John J. Duncan Federal Building

710 Locust Street

Knoxville, TN 37902-2526

(423) 545-4377

Memphis area office

Ms. Fellece S. Sawyer, Acting

Suite 1200

One Memphis Place

200 Jefferson Avenue

Memphis, TN 38103-2335

(901) 544-3367

Tennessee state office

Mr. Ed M. Phillips

Suite 200

251 Cumberland Bend Drive

Nashville, TN 37228-1803

(615) 736-7154

Orlando area office

Mr. Robert K. Osterman

Suite 270

Langley Building

3751 Maguire Boulevard

Orlando, FL 32803-3032

(407) 648-6441

Tampa area office

Ms. Nikki A. Spitzer

Suite 700

Timberlake Federal Building Annex

501 East Polk Street

Tampa, FL 33602-3945

(813) 228-2504

HUD--Midwest area

Illinois state office

Ms. Debra F. Robinson

Ralph H. Metcalfe Federal Building

77 West Jackson Boulevard

Chicago, IL 60604-3507

(312) 353-5066

Indiana state office

Ms. Brenda Laroche

151 North Delaware Street

Indianapolis, IN 46204-2526

(317) 226-7034

Michigan state office

Mr. John Frelich

Patrick V. McNamara Federal Building

477 Michigan Avenue

Detroit, MI 48226-2592

(313) 226-6885

Minnesota state office

Mr. John E. Buenger

220 Second Street, South

Minneapolis, MN 55401-2195

(612) 370-3053

Ohio state office

Mr. Verlon Shannon

200 North High Street

Columbus, OH 43215-2499

(614) 469-5536

Wisconsin state office

Mr. Larry Milewski

Suite 1380

Henry S. Reuss Federal Plaza

310 West Wisconsin Avenue

Milwaukee, WI 53203-2289

(414) 297-3156

Cincinnati area office

Ms. Louistine Tuck

525 Vine St Suite 700

Cincinnati, OH 45202-3253

(513) 684-2833

Cleveland area office

Mr. Kendel King

Fifth Floor

Renaissance Building

1350 Euclid Avenue

Cleveland, OH 44115-1815

(216) 522-2784

Flint area office

Mr. Gary Levine

Room 200

605 North Saginaw Street

Flint, MI 48502-1953

(810) 766-5107

Grand Rapids area office

Ms. Shirley Bryant

50 Louis St, N.W.

Grand Rapids, MI 49503-2648

(616) 456-2146

HUD--Southwest area

Arkansas state office

Ms. Susan E. Finister

Suite 900

TCBY Tower

425 West Capitol Avenue

Little Rock, AR 72201-3488

(501) 324-5961

Louisiana state office

Mr. Byron D. Duplantier

9th Floor

Hale Boggs Federal Building

501 Magazine St.

New Orleans, LA 70130-3099

(504) 589-6570

New Mexico state office

Ms. Carol G. Johnson

625 Truman Street, NE

Albuquerque, NM 87110-6443

(505) 262-6269

Texas state office

Mr. Louis Ybarra

1600 Throckmorton Street

P.O. Box 2905

Fort Worth, TX 76113-2905

(817) 885-6255

Houston area office

Mr. Henry Hadnot

Suite 200

Norfolk Tower

2211 Norfolk

Houston, TX 77098-4096

(713) 313-2274 EXT. 7019

Lubbock area office

Mr. Miguel Rincon

Federal Office Building

1205 Texas Avenue

Lubbock, TX 79401-4093

(806) 743-7262

Oklahoma state office

Mr. Ken Beck

500 West Main St., Suite 400

Oklahoma City, OK 73102-2233

(405) 553-7444

San Antonio area office

Mr. Antonio C. Cabral

Washington Square

800 Dolorosa Street

San Antonio, TX 78207-4563

(210) 229-6898

Shreveport area office

Ms. Martha Sakre

Suite 1510

401 Edwards Street

Shreveport, LA 71101-3107

(318) 676-3440

Tulsa area office

Ms. Jeanne King

50 East 15th Street

Suite 110

Tulsa, OK 74119-4032

(918) 581-7442

[[Page 35913]]

HUD--Great Plains

Iowa state office

Mr. Patrick Liao

Room 239

Federal Building

210 Walnut Street

Des Moines, IA 50309-2155

(515) 284-4804

Kansas/Missouri state office

Mr. Deryl Sellmeyer

Room 200

Gateway Tower II

400 State Avenue

Kansas City, KS 66101-2406

(913) 551-6820

Nebraska state office

Ms. Nancy Sheets

Executive Tower Centre

10909 Mill Valley Road

Omaha, NE 68154-3955

(402) 492-3135

Saint Louis area field office

Mr. Dennis Martin

Third Floor

Robert A. Young Federal Building

1222 Spruce Street

St. Louis, MO 63103-2836

(314) 539-6388

HUD--Rocky Mountains area

Colorado state office

Ms. Sheryl S. Miller

First Interstate Tower North

633 17th Street

Denver, CO 80202-3607

(303) 672-5343

Montana state office

Mr. Gerard Boone

Room 340

Federal Office Building, Drawer 10095

301 S. Park

Helena, MT 59626-0095

(406) 441-1300

Utah state office

Mr. Richard P. Bell

Suite 550

257 Tower

257 East, 200 South

Salt Lake City, UT 84111-2048

(801) 524-5241

HUD--Pacific/Hawaii area

Arizona state office

Ms. Bernice Campbell

Suite 1600

Two Arizona Center

400 North 5th Street

Phoenix, AZ 85004-2361

(602) 379-6704

California state office

Mr. James McClanahan

Philip Burton Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse

450 Golden Gate Avenue

P.O. Box 36003

San Francisco, CA 94102-3448

(415) 436-6517

Hawaii state office

Ms. Jill B. Hurt

7 Waterfront Plaza (Suite 500)

500 Ala Moana Boulevard

Honolulu, HI 96813-4918

(808) 522-8190

Nevada state office

Mr. William Fattic

Suite 700

Atrium Building

333 No. Rancho Drive

Las Vegas, NV 89106-3714

(702) 388-6500

Fresno area office

Ms. Yvielle Edwards-Lee

Suite 138

1630 E. Shaw Avenue

Fresno, CA 93710-8193

(209) 487-5032

Los Angeles area office

Mr. Malcolm Findley

1615 West Olympic Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90015-3801

(213) 251-7217

Reno area office

Mr. William Fattic

Suite 114

1575 Delucchi Lane

Reno, NV 89502-6581

(702) 784-5388

Sacramento area office

Mr. Ron M. Johnson

Suite 200

777 12th Avenue

Sacramento, CA 95814-1997

(916) 498-5254

San Diego area office

Mr. Danny E. Mendez

Mission City Corporate Center

2365 Northside Drive (Suite 300)

San Diego, CA 92108-2712

(619) 557-2608

Santa Ana area office

Mr. David A. Westerfield

Suite 500

3 Hutton Centre

Santa Ana, CA 92707-5764

(714) 957-7352

Tucson area office

Ms. Sharon K. Atwell

Suite 700

Security Pacific Bank Plaza

33 North Stone Avenue

Tucson, AZ 85701-1467

(520) 670-6000

HUD--Northwest/Alaska area

Alaska state office

Mr. Paul O. Johnson

Suite 401

University Plaza Building

949 East 36th Avenue

Anchorage, AK 99508-4399

(907) 271-4610

Idaho state office

Mr. Gary L. Gillespie

Suite 220

Plaza IV

800 Park Boulevard

Boise, ID 83712-7743

(208) 334-1991

Oregon state office

Ms. Pamela D. West

400 S.W. Sixth Ave., Suite 700

Portland, OR 97204

(503) 326-2684

Washington state office

Mr. David L. Rodgers

Suite 200

Seattle Federal Office Building

909 First Avenue

Seattle, WA 98104-1000

(206) 220-5200 X3252

[FR Doc. 96-17258 Filed 7-5-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4210-27-P