Notices. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
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/register/2005/03/14/05-4775A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
BILLING CODE 3410-XV-P DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Rural Housing Service Notice of Funds Availability for the Section 533 Housing Preservation Grants for Fiscal Year 2005 *Announcement Type:* Initial Notice inviting applications from qualified applicants for Fiscal Year 2005. *Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers (CFDA):* 10.433. SUMMARY: The Rural Housing Service
(RHS)announces that it is soliciting competitive applications under its Housing Preservation Grant
(HPG)program. The HPG program is a grant program which provides qualified public agencies, private nonprofit organizations, and other eligible entities grant funds to assist very low- and low-income homeowners in repairing and rehabilitating their homes in rural areas. In addition, the HPG program assists rental property owners and cooperative housing complexes in repairing and rehabilitating their units if they agree to make such units available to low- and very low-income persons. This action is taken to comply with Agency regulations found in 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N, which require the Agency to announce the opening and closing dates for receipt of pre-applications for HPG funds from eligible applicants. The intended effect of this Notice is to provide eligible organizations notice of these dates. DATES: The closing deadline for receipt of all applications in response to this Notice is 5 p.m., local time for each Rural Development State Office on May 13, 2005. The application closing deadline is firm as to date and hour. RHS will not consider any application that is received after the closing deadline. Applicants intending to mail applications must provide sufficient time to permit delivery on or before the closing deadline date and time. Acceptance by the United States Postal Service or private mailer does not constitute delivery. Facsimile
(FAX)and postage due applications will not be accepted. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Paperwork Reduction Act The reporting requirements contained in this Notice have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget under Control Number 0575-0115. Program Administration I. Funding Opportunities Description The funding instrument for the HPG Program will be a grant agreement. The term of the grant cannot exceed 1 year without Agency consent. Applicants should contact the Rural Development State Office to determine the allocation and the State maximum grant level, if any. II. Award Information For Fiscal Year 2005, $8,810,944 is available for the HPG Program. A set aside of $892,800 has been established for grants located in Empowerment Zones, Enterprise Communities, and REAP Zones and other funds will be distributed under a formula allocation to States pursuant to 7 CFR part 1940, subpart L, “Methodology and Formulas for Allocation of Loan and Grant Program Funds.” Decisions on funding will be based on pre-applications. III. Eligibility Information 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N provides details on what information must be contained in the pre-application package. Contact the Rural Development State office to receive further information on the State allocation of funds and copies of the pre-application package. Eligible entities for these competitively awarded grants include State and local governments, nonprofit corporations, federally recognized Indian tribes, and consortia of eligible entities. As part of the application, all applicants must also provide a Dun and Bradstreet Data Universal Numbering System
(DUNS)number. As required by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), all grant applicants must provide a DUNS number when applying for Federal grants, on or after October 1, 2003. Organizations can receive a DUNS number at no cost by calling the dedicated toll-free DUNS number request line at 1-866-705-5711. Additional information concerning this requirement is provided in a policy directive issued by OMB and published in the **Federal Register** on June 27, 2003 (68 FR 38402-38405). IV. Application and Submission Information Applicants wishing to apply for assistance must make its statement of activities available to the public for comment. The applicant(s) must announce the availability of its statement of activities for review in a newspaper of general circulation in the project area and allow at least 15 days for public comment. The start of this 15-day period must occur no later than 16 days prior to the last day for acceptance of pre-applications by RHS. Applicants must also contact the Rural Development State Office, serving the place in which they desire to submit an application to receive further information and copies of the application package. Rural Development will date and time stamp incoming applications to evidence timely receipt, and, upon request, will provide the applicant with a written acknowledgment of receipt. A listing of Rural Development State Offices, their addresses, telephone numbers, and person to contact follows: Note: Telephone numbers listed are not toll-free. Alabama State Office Suite 601 Sterling Centre 4121 Carmichael Road Montgomery, AL 36106-3683
(334)279-3400 TDD
(334)279-3495 James B. Harris Alaska State Office 800 West Evergreen, Suite 201 Palmer, AK 99645
(907)761-7740 TDD
(907)761-8905 Debbie Andrys Arizona State Office Phoenix Courthouse and Federal Building 230 North First Ave., Suite 206 Phoenix, AZ 85003-1706
(602)280-8765 TDD
(602)280-8706 Johnna Vargas Arkansas State Office 700 W. Capitol Ave., Rm. 3416 Little Rock, AR 72201-3225
(501)301-3258 TDD
(501)301-3063 Clinton King California State Office 430 G Street, #4169 Davis, CA 95616-4169
(530)934-4614 ext. 123 TDD
(530)792-5848 Linda Eveland Colorado State Office 655 Parfet Street, Room E100 Lakewood, CO 80215
(720)544-2923 TDD
(800)659-2656 Mary Summerfield Connecticut Served by Massachusetts State Office Delaware and Maryland State Office 4607 South Dupont Highway PO Box 400 Camden, DE 19934-9998
(302)697-4353 TDD
(302)697-4303 Pat Baker Florida & Virgin Islands State Office 4440 N.W. 25th Place Gainesville, FL 32606-6563
(352)338-3465 TDD
(352)338-3499 Elizabeth M. Whitaker Georgia State Office Stephens Federal Building 355 E. Hancock Avenue Athens, GA 30601-2768
(706)546-2164 TDD
(706)546-2034 Wayne Rogers Hawaii State Office (Services all Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, and Western Pacific) Room 311, Federal Building 154 Waianuenue Avenue Hilo, HI 96720
(808)933-8305 TDD
(808)933-8321 Jack Mahan Idaho State Office Suite A1 9173 West Barnes Dr. Boise, ID 83709
(208)378-5628 TDD
(208)378-5644 LaDonn McElligott Illinois State Office 2118 West Park Court, Suite A Champaign, IL 61821-2986
(217)403-6222 TDD
(217)403-6240 Barry L. Ramsey Indiana State Office 5975 Lakeside Boulevard Indianapolis, IN 46278
(317)290-3100 (ext. 423) TDD
(317)290-3343 John Young Iowa State Office 210 Walnut Street Room 873 Des Moines, IA 50309
(515)284-4493 TDD
(515)284-4858 Sue Wilhite Kansas State Office 1303 SW First American Place, Suite 100 Topeka, KS 66604-4040
(785)271-2721 TDD
(785)271-2767 Virginia M. Hammersmith Kentucky State Office 771 Corporate Drive, Suite 200 Lexington, KY 40503
(859)224-7325 TDD
(859)224-7422 Beth Moore Louisiana State Office 3727 Government Street Alexandria, LA 71302
(318)473-7962 TDD
(318)473-7655 Yvonne R. Emerson Maine State Office 967 Illinois Ave., Suite 4 PO Box 405 Bangor, ME 04402-0405
(207)990-9110 TDD
(207)942-7331 Bob Nadeau Maryland Served by Delaware State Office Massachusetts, Connecticut, & Rhode Island State Office 451 West Street Suite 2 Amherst, MA 01002
(413)253-4315 TDD
(413)253-4590 Paul Geoffroy Michigan State Office 3001 Coolidge Road, Suite 200 East Lansing, MI 48823
(517)324-5192 TDD
(517)337-6795 Ghulam R. Simbal Minnesota State Office 375 Jackson Street Building, Suite 410 St. Paul, MN 55125
(651)602-7804 TDD
(651)602-7830 Thomas Osborne Mississippi State Office Federal Building, Suite 831 100 W. Capitol Street Jackson, MS 39269
(601)965-4325 TDD
(601)965-5850 Darnella Smith-Murray Missouri State Office 601 Business Loop 70 West Parkade Center, Suite 235 Columbia, MO 65203
(573)876-9303 TDD
(573)876-9480 Becky Eftink Montana State Office 900 Technology Blvd, Suite B Bozeman, MT 59771
(406)585-2515 TDD
(406)585-2562 Deborah Chorlton Nebraska State Office Federal Building, Room 152 100 Centennial Mall N Lincoln, NE 68508
(402)437-5035 TDD
(402)437-5093 Sharon Kluck Nevada State Office 1390 South Curry Street Carson City, NV 89703-9910
(775)887-1222 (ext. 25) TDD
(775)885-0633 Angilla Denton New Hampshire State Office Concord Center Suite 218, Box 317 10 Ferry Street Concord, NH 03301-5004
(603)223-6046 TDD
(603)229-0536 Jim Fowler New Jersey State Office 5th Floor North, Suite 500 8000 Midlantic Drive Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054
(856)787-7740 TDD
(856)787-7784 George Hyatt, Jr. New Mexico State Office 6200 Jefferson St., NE, Room 255 Albuquerque, NM 87109
(505)761-4944 TDD
(505)761-4938 Carmen N. Lopez New York State Office The Galleries of Syracuse 441 S. Salina Street, Suite 357 5th Floor Syracuse, NY 13202
(315)477-6404 TDD
(315)477-6447 Tia Baker North Carolina State Office 4405 Bland Road, Suite 260 Raleigh, NC 27609
(919)873-2066 TDD
(919)873-2003 William A. Hobbs North Dakota State Office Federal Building, Room 208 220 East Rosser PO Box 1737 Bismarck, ND 58502
(701)530-2046 TDD
(701)530-2113 Barry Borstad Ohio State Office Federal Building, Room 507 200 North High Street Columbus, OH 43215-2477
(614)255-2418 TDD
(614)255-2554 Melodie Taylor-Ward Oklahoma State Office 100 USDA, Suite 108 Stillwater, OK 74074-2654
(405)742-1070 TDD
(405)742-1007 Ivan Graves Oregon State Office 101 SW Main, Suite 1410 Portland, OR 97204-3222
(503)414-3351 TDD
(503)414-3387 Diana Chappell Pennsylvania State Office One Credit Union Place, Suite 330 Harrisburg, PA 17110-2996
(717)237-2282 TDD
(717)237-2261 Martha E. Hanson Puerto Rico State Office IBM Building, Suite 601 Munoz Rivera Ave. #654 San Juan, PR 00918
(787)766-5095 (ext. 249) TDD
(787)766-5332 Lourdes Colon Rhode Island Served by Massachusetts State Office South Carolina State Office Strom Thurmond Federal Building 1835 Assembly Street, Room 1007 Columbia, SC 29201
(803)253-3432 TDD
(803)765-5697 Larry D. Floyd South Dakota State Office Federal Building, Room 210 200 Fourth Street, SW Huron, SD 57350
(605)352-1132 TDD
(605)352-1147 Roger Hazuka or Pam Reilly Tennessee State Office Suite 300 3322 West End Avenue Nashville, TN 37203-1084
(615)783-1375 TDD
(615)783-1397 Larry Kennedy Texas State Office Federal Building, Suite 102 101 South Main Temple, TX 76501
(254)742-9758 TDD
(254)742-9712 Julie Hayes Utah State Office Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building 125 S. State Street, Room 4311 Salt Lake City, UT 84138
(801)524-4325 TDD
(801)524-3309 Janice Kocher Vermont State Office City Center, 3rd Floor 89 Main Street Montpelier, VT 05602
(802)828-6021 TDD
(802)223-6365 Heidi Setien Virgin Islands Served by Florida State Office Virginia State Office Culpeper Building, Suite 238 1606 Santa Rosa Road Richmond, VA 23229
(804)287-1596 TDD
(804)287-1753 CJ Michels Washington State Office 1835 Black Lake Blvd., Suite B Olympia, WA 98512
(360)704-7730 TDD
(360)704-7742 Robert L. Lund Western Pacific Territories Served by Hawaii State Office West Virginia State Office Federal Building 75 High Street, Room 320 Morgantown, WV 26505-7500
(304)284-4889 TDD
(304)284-4836 Craig St. Clair Wisconsin State Office 4949 Kirschling Court Stevens Point, WI 54481
(715)345-7608 (ext.151) TDD
(715)345-7614 Peter Kohnen Wyoming State Office PO Box 82601 Casper, WY 82602-5006
(307)233-6715 TDD
(307)233-6733 Jack Hyde FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information, applicants may contact Bonnie Edwards-Jackson, Senior Loan Specialist, Multi-Family Housing Processing Division, Rural Housing Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Stop 0781, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-0781, telephone
(202)690-0759 (voice) (this is not a toll free number) or
(800)877-8339 (TDD-Federal Information Relay Service). V. Application Review Information All applications for Section 533 funds must be filed with the appropriate Rural Development State Office and must meet the requirements of this Notice. Pre-applications determined not eligible and/or not meeting the selection criteria will be notified by the Rural Development State Office. All applicants will file an original and two copies of Standard Form
(SF)424, “Application For Federal Assistance,” and supporting information with the appropriate Rural Development State Office. A pre-application package, including SF-424, is available in any Rural Development State Office. All pre-applications shall be accompanied by the following information which Rural Development will use to determine the applicant's eligibility to undertake the HPG program and to evaluate the pre-application under the project selection criteria of § 1944.679 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N.
(a)A statement of activities proposed by the applicant for its HPG program as appropriate to the type of assistance the applicant is proposing, including:
(1)A complete discussion of the type of and conditions for financial assistance for housing preservation, including whether the request for assistance is for a homeowner assistance program, a rental property assistance program, or a cooperative assistance program;
(2)The process for selecting recipients for HPG assistance, determining housing preservation needs of the dwelling, performing the necessary work, and monitoring/inspecting work performed;
(3)A description of the process for identifying potential environmental impacts in accordance with § 1944.672 of 7 part CFR 1944, subpart N, and the provisions for compliance with Stipulation I, A-G of the Programmatic Memorandum of Agreement, also known as PMOA, (RD Instruction 2000-FF, available in any Rural Development State Office) in accordance with § 1944.673(b) of 7 part CFR 1944, subpart N;
(4)The development standard(s) the applicant will use for the housing preservation work; and, if not the Rural Development standards for existing dwellings, the evidence of its acceptance by the jurisdiction where the grant will be implemented;
(5)The time schedule for completing the program;
(6)The staffing required to complete the program;
(7)The estimated number of very low- and low-income minority and nonminority persons the grantee will assist with HPG funds; and, if a rental property or cooperative assistance program, the number of units and the term of restrictive covenants on their use for very low- and low-income;
(8)The geographical area(s) to be served by the HPG program;
(9)The annual estimated budget for the program period based on the financial needs to accomplish the objectives outlined in the proposal. The budget should include proposed direct and indirect administrative costs, such as personnel, fringe benefits, travel, equipment, supplies, contracts, and other cost categories, detailing those costs for which the grantee proposes to use the HPG grant separately from non-HPG resources, if any. The applicant budget should also include a schedule (with amounts) of how the applicant proposes to draw HPG grant funds, *i.e.* , monthly, quarterly, lump sum for program activities, etc.;
(10)A copy of a indirect cost proposal as required in 7 CFR parts 3015 and 3016, when the applicant has another source of federal funding in addition to the Rural Development HPG program;
(11)A brief description of the accounting system to be used;
(12)The method of evaluation to be used by the applicant to determine the effectiveness of its program which encompasses the requirements for quarterly reports to Rural Development in accordance with § 1944.683(b) of 7 part CFR 1944, subpart N and the monitoring plan for rental properties and cooperatives (when applicable) according to § 1944.689 of 7 part CFR 1944, subpart N;
(13)The source and estimated amount of other financial resources to be obtained and used by the applicant for both HPG activities and housing development and/or supporting activities;
(14)The use of program income, if any, and the tracking system used for monitoring same;
(15)The applicant's plan for disposition of any security instruments held by them as a result of its HPG activities in the event of its loss of legal status;
(16)Any other information necessary to explain the proposed HPG program; and
(17)The outreach efforts outlined in § 1944.671(b) of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N.
(b)Complete information about the applicant's experience and capacity to carry out the objectives of the proposed HPG program.
(c)Evidence of the applicant's legal existence, including, in the case of a private nonprofit organization, a copy of, an accurate reference to, the specific provisions of State law under which the applicant is organized; a certified copy of the applicant's Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws or other evidence of corporate existence; certificate of incorporation for other than public bodies; evidence of good standing from the State when the corporation has been in existence 1 year or more; and the names and addresses of the applicant's members, directors and officers. If other organizations are members of the applicant-organization, or the applicant is a consortium, pre-applications should be accompanied by the names, addresses, and principal purpose of the other organizations. If the applicant is a consortium, documentation showing compliance with § 1944.656(4)(ii) of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N will also be included.
(d)For a private nonprofit entity, the most recent audited statement and a current financial statement dated and signed by an authorized officer of the entity showing the amounts and specific nature of assets and liabilities together with information on the repayment schedule and status of any debt(s) owed by the applicant.
(e)A brief narrative statement which includes information about the area to be served and the need for improved housing (including both percentage and the actual number of both low-income and low-income minority households and substandard housing), the need for the type of housing preservation assistance being proposed, the anticipated use of HPG resources for historic properties, the method of evaluation to be used by the applicant in determining the effectiveness of its efforts.
(f)Applicant must submit an original and one copy of Form RD 1940-20 prepared in accordance with Exhibit F-1 of 7 part CFR 1944, subpart N.
(g)Applicant must also submit a description of its process for:
(1)Identifying and rehabilitating properties listed on or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places;
(2)Identifying properties that are located in a floodplain or wetland;
(3)Identifying properties located within the Coastal Barrier Resources System; and
(4)Coordinating with other public and private organizations and programs that provide assistance in the rehabilitation of historic properties (Stipulation I, D, of the PMOA, RD Instruction 2000-FF, available in any Rural Development State Office).
(h)The applicant must also submit evidence of the State Historic Preservation Office's, also known as SHPO, concurrence in the proposal, or in the event of nonconcurrence, a copy of SHPO's comments together with evidence that the applicant has sought the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation's advice as to how the disagreement might be resolved, and a copy of any advice provided by the Council.
(i)The applicant must submit written statements and related correspondence reflecting compliance with § 1944.674(a) and
(c)of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N regarding consultation with local government leaders in the preparation of its program and the consultation with local and state government pursuant to the provisions of Executive Order 12372.
(j)The applicant is to make its statement of activities available to the public for comment prior to submission to Rural Development pursuant to § 1944.674(b) of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N. The application must contain a description of how the comments (if any were received) were addressed.
(k)The applicant must submit an original and one copy of Form RD 400-1, “Equal Opportunity Agreement,” and Form 400-4, “Assurance Agreement Funds,” in accordance with § 1944.676 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N. Applicants should review 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N for a comprehensive list of all application requirements. Selection Criteria The Rural Development State Offices will utilize the following project selection criteria for applicants in accordance with § 1944.679 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N:
(a)Providing a financially feasible program of housing preservation assistance. Financially feasible is defined as proposed assistance which will be affordable to the intended recipient or result in affordable housing for very low- and low-income persons.
(b)Serving eligible rural areas with a concentration of substandard housing for households with very low- and low-income.
(c)Being an eligible applicant as defined in § 1944.658 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N.
(d)Meeting the requirements of consultation and public comment in accordance with § 1944.674 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N.
(e)Submitting a complete pre-application as outlined in § 1944.676 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N. For applicants meeting all of the requirements listed above, the Rural Development State Offices will use weighted criteria as selection for the grant recipients. Each pre-application and its accompanying statement of activities will be evaluated and, based solely on the information contained in the pre-application, the applicant's proposal will be numerically rated on each criteria within the range provided. The highest-ranking applicant(s) will be selected based on allocation of funds available to the state.
(a)Points are awarded based on the percentage of very low-income persons that the applicant proposes to assist, using the following scale: Points
(1)More than 80% 20
(2)61% to 80% 15
(3)41% to 60% 10
(4)20% to 40% 5
(5)Less than 20% 0
(b)The applicant's proposal may be expected to result in the following percentage of HPG fund use (excluding administrative costs) to total cost of unit preservation. This percentage reflects maximum repair or rehabilitation with the least possible HPG funds due to leveraging, innovative financial assistance, owner's contribution or other specified approaches. Points are awarded based on the following percentage of HPG funds (excluding administrative costs) to total funds: Points
(1)50% or less 20
(2)51% to 65% 15
(3)66% to 80% 10
(4)81% to 95% 5
(5)96% to 100% 0
(c)The applicant has demonstrated its administrative capacity in assisting very low- and low-income persons to obtain adequate housing based on the following:
(1)The organization or a member of its staff has 2 or more years experience successfully managing and operating a rehabilitation or weatherization type program, including Rural Development's HPG Program: 10 points.
(2)The organization or a member of its staff has 2 or more years experience successfully managing and operating a program assisting very low- and low-income persons obtain housing assistance: 10 points.
(3)If the organization has administered grant programs, there are no outstanding or unresolved audit or investigative findings which might impair carrying out the proposal: 10 points.
(d)The proposed program will be undertaken entirely in rural areas outside Metropolitan Statistical Areas, also known as MSAs, identified by Rural Development as having populations below 10,000 or in remote parts of other rural areas (i.e., rural areas contained in MSAs with less than 5,000 population) as defined in § 1944.656 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N: 10 points.
(e)The program will use less than 20 percent of HPG funds for administration purposes: Points
(1)More than 20%
(2)20% 0
(3)19% 1
(4)18% 2
(5)17% 3
(6)16% 4
(7)15% or less 5 * Not eligible
(f)The proposed program contains a component for alleviating overcrowding as defined in § 1944.656 of 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N: 5 points. In the event more than one pre-application receives the same amount of points, those pre-applications will then be ranked based on the actual percentage figure used for determining the points. Further, in the event that pre-applications are still tied, then those pre-applications still tied will be ranked based on the percentage figures used for administration purposes (low to high). Further, for applications where assistance to rental properties or cooperatives is proposed, those still tied will be further ranked based on the number of years the units are available for occupancy under the program (a minimum of 5 years is required). For this part, ranking will be based from most to least number of years. Finally, if there is still a tie, then a lottery system will be used. Dated: March 3, 2005. Russell T. Davis, Administrator, Rural Housing Service. [FR Doc. 05-4775 Filed 3-11-05; 8:45 am]
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- 7 CFR 1944
- 7 CFR 1940
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