[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 218 (Friday, November 12, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 69454-69456]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28552]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-5454-N-01]
Emergency Homeowners' Loan Program: Notice of Allocation of
Funding for Substantially Similar State Programs
AGENCY: Office of Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal Housing
Commissioner, HUD.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Emergency Homeowners' Loan program, originally authorized
by a 1975 statute, was reauthorized and revised by the Dodd-Frank Wall
Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which also made $1 billion
in funding available for this program. This program, as recently
revised, authorizes the Secretary to allow funds to be administered by
a state that has an existing program that provides substantially
similar assistance to homeowners, as determined by the Secretary.
This notice sets out the key features of HUD's emergency assistance
program for homeowners, and solicits applications from states that have
programs offering assistance substantially similar to this program.
DATES: Deadline Date: The submission deadline date is December 13, 2010
(the ``Deadline Date''). Information must be submitted to
[email protected], no later than 11:59 a.m. on the
Deadline Date.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Housing Counseling, Office
of Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20410; telephone number 202-708-0317 (this
is not a toll-free number). Persons with hearing or speech impairments
may access this number through TTY by calling the toll-free Federal
Information Relay Service at 800-877-8339.
Overview Information:
A. Federal Agency Name: Department of Housing and Urban
Development, Office of Emergency Homeowners' Loan Assistance.
B. Funding Opportunity Title: Emergency Homeowners' Loan program:
Funding of Comparable State Programs.
C. Announcement Type: Initial Announcement.
D. Funding Opportunity Number: The Federal Register number for this
notice is FR-5454-N-01.
E. Dates: The Deadline Date is December 13, 2010. Information must
be submitted to [email protected], no later than 11:59
a.m. on the Deadline Date.
F. Additional Overview Information:
1. Available Funds. Funds are available to administer existing
state programs comparable to the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program.
2. Eligible Applicants. States that are included on the attached
Schedule A are eligible to apply for funding under this notice provided
that they are administering existing programs comparable to the
Emergency Homeowners' Loan program.
Full Text of Announcement
I. Funding Opportunity Description
A. Program Description. The Emergency Housing Act of 1975 (12
U.S.C. 2701), signed into law on July 2, 1975, conferred on HUD,
through title I of this statute, entitled the ``Emergency Homeowners'
Relief Act,'' standby authority to insure or make loans to homeowners
to defray mortgage expenses so as to prevent widespread mortgage
foreclosures and distress sales of homes resulting from the temporary
loss of employment and income. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act (Pub. L. 111-203, approved July 21, 2010)
revised and reauthorized this 1975 statute, and provided $1 billion to
HUD to implement the program authorized by the Emergency Homeowners'
Relief Act, referred to by HUD in 2010 as the Emergency Homeowners'
Loan program.
B. Authority. Title I (Emergency Homeowners' Relief Act) of the
Emergency Housing Act of 1975, as amended (12 U.S.C. 2701).
II. Award Information
A. Available Funds. Through this notice, $1 billion is made
available to states in accordance with the state allocations provided
in Schedule A, and HUD solicits applications from the states in
Schedule A having comparable state programs.\1\ The HUD allocation
formula in Schedule A targets funds to states based on their population
and share of unemployed homeowners with a mortgage. The amounts listed
on Schedule A include reasonable administrative costs to administer the
assistance made available through the Emergency Homeowners' Loan
program. HUD's Emergency Homeowners' Loan program is intended to
complement the Department of the Treasury's Hardest Hit Fund by
providing assistance to homeowners--who are at risk of foreclosure and
have experienced a substantial reduction in income due to involuntary
unemployment, underemployment, or a medical condition--in states that
are not included in the Hardest Hit target states. Through its Hardest
Hit Fund, the Department of the Treasury is providing targeted support
to 18 states, and the District of Columbia, struggling with the highest
unemployment rates. Together, these two sources of funds form a
national effort to help unemployed and underemployed homeowners meet
their mortgage obligations.
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\1\ To the extent that a state does not submit information about
an existing program that provides substantially similar assistance
to homeowners or such submission does not meet the requirements
outlined below, the state's allocation described in Schedule A will
be administered in that state by the Department of Housing and Urban
Development in accordance with HUD's Emergency Homeowners' Loan
program.
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B. Type of Assistance instrument. Funds will be awarded through a
cooperative agreement.
[[Page 69455]]
III. Eligibility Information
A. Eligible Applicants. Eligible applicants are states, including
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, state housing finance agencies, or
other nonprofit entities that are state-administered or state-
chartered, and over which a state has effective control, oversight
responsibility, and the authority to audit.
B. Eligible State Programs. A state program that is eligible for
funding under the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program is one that meets
all of the following conditions:
1. State Program. As provided in Section III.A., the program must
be administered directly by the state or must be administered by an
agency of the state, or other stated-chartered or state-administered
entity over which the state has effective control, oversight
responsibility, and the authority to audit.
2. Existing Program. The program must have been in existence and in
operation no later than July 21, 2010. Eligible state programs are
those that already have experience, during this current housing crisis,
in providing emergency mortgage assistance to homeowners at the risk of
foreclosure. States with existing programs must have the capability,
readiness, and ability to immediately implement, and successfully
expend, the assistance made available to it by and through this
solicitation.
3. Mortgage relief for unemployed or under-employed homeowners. The
program must be one that provides mortgage relief for unemployed or
under-employed homeowners, as provided in Section III.B.6.
4. Open to all homeowners meeting criteria in Section III.B.6. The
program is open to all homeowners meeting the criteria in section
III.B.6, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, familial status,
national origin, or disability.
5. Operation of the program in a cost-effective manner and
administrative costs. The program is administered in a cost-effective
manner without excessive salary, overhead, or administrative expense
and allows for the commencement of application acceptance by December
31, 2010, and obligation of all funds prior to October 1, 2011.
6. Program Requirements.
a. Eligible homeowners. For a state to administer a program
comparable to the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program, the state program
must provide assistance to a homeowner who must:
i. Reside in the mortgaged property as principal residence. The
mortgaged property must also be a single family residence (1- to 4-unit
structure or condominium);
ii. Be involuntarily unemployed or underemployed as the result of
adverse economic conditions or have suffered a loss of income due to
medical conditions, as specified under the state program;
iii. Have, as of the date of application for assistance to the
state program, income that is equal to, or less than, 120 percent of
the area median income (AMI), for the area in which the homeowner
resides and whose income includes wage, salary, and self-employed
earnings and income;
iv. Have current, gross income that is at least 15 percent lower
than the homeowner's income previous to the date that the homeowner
became unemployed or underemployed, or suffered a medical condition
that resulted in a reduction in income;
v. Be delinquent on payments on the first mortgage on the mortgaged
property to such an extent that foreclosure is imminent, and the
homeowner and/or lender can provide evidence, satisfactory to the
state, that the foreclosure is imminent (``delinquent'' means that
payments under the mortgage have been delinquent for at least 3
months);
vi. Have a reasonable likelihood of being able to resume repayment
of the first mortgage obligations, and meet other housing expenses and
debt obligations, when the assistance ends and/or borrower regains full
employment, as determined by criteria under the state program.
b. Eligible assistance. For a state to administer a program
comparable to the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program, the state program
must provide assistance that meets the following conditions:
i. Assistance provided to the eligible homeowner must be assistance
directed at making payments on the first mortgage of the mortgaged
property.
ii. The total amount of assistance provided to the homeowner(s) for
one mortgaged property is limited, with a preference for placing a
restriction of 24 months on the duration of assistance and a cap of
$50,000 on the amount of assistance, comparable to the limit
established by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer
Protection Act.
c. Repayment Terms. The state program must provide for repayment of
the emergency mortgage assistance and provide security for such
repayment by recordation of a HUD mortgage as a junior lien on the
property. Any and all funds received by the program shall be in
accordance with the HUD mortgage document.
d. Termination of Monthly Assistance. The state program must
provide for termination of assistance under conditions that include but
are not limited to conditions comparable to the following:
i. The homeowner no longer resides in, sells, transfers or
otherwise conveys, or refinances, in which the borrower draws cash, the
mortgaged property; or
ii. The homeowner defaults on that portion of the homeowner's
current first lien mortgage loan payments for which the homeowner
remains responsible.
IV. Submission of Information
A. There is no required application form. Eligible jurisdictions
should submit information and evidence of the program that is
comparable to the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program, as specified in
this notice. The information submitted must include documentation that
the program is a state-administered or state-chartered program as
provided in Sections III.B. and Section IV.
B. Capacity of Existing Program. As part of its submission:
Each state must describe information regarding the number
and type of homeowners assisted by its program. The number and type of
assisted homeowners identified should cover the period beginning with
the inception of the state's program and ending on July 21, 2010.
Each state must also describe in detail the procedures it
will use to ensure that it will be able to begin taking applications
from homeowners by December 31, 2010, and will obligate its allocation,
provided under this notice, by September 30, 2011. Information
regarding the number of full-time staff assigned to the state's
program, including the type, tenure, and experience of such staff, and
the number of bilingual staff assigned to the program, should be
provided. Experience is relevant if it corresponds directly to programs
of a similar scale and purpose; for example, real estate or housing
finance program experience.
States also must describe the number of additional staff
above and beyond current staffing levels who would need to be hired in
order to carry out the HUD portion of the existing state program.
C. Administrative Costs. HUD seeks to ensure that administrative
costs incurred by applicants are reasonable and that states are able to
implement their homeowner assistance program in a cost-effective
manner. As a result, states with comparable programs must
[[Page 69456]]
demonstrate that they can administer the program without excessive
salary, overhead, or administrative expense. Specifically, the state
should describe the administrative costs incurred in operating its
current homeowner assistance program. States should also project the
administrative costs incurred to implement the program with HUD
assistance made available through the Emergency Homeowners' Loan
program. Administrative costs include costs related to planning and
implementing this program, along with the costs associated with the
preparation and submission of HUD reports, etc.
D. Information must be submitted to [email protected],
no later than 11:59 a.m. on the Deadline Date.
E. If there is a discrepancy between any materials published by HUD
in this notice and other information provided about the program, the
published notice prevails.
V. Nondiscrimination and Civil Rights Requirements
States operating existing programs that provide substantially
similar assistance to homeowners are considered recipients of federal
assistance, and, therefore, must comply with the following federal
requirements:
Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601-19) and implementing
regulations at 24 CFR part 100 and the regulations at 24 CFR part 107.
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d
et seq.) and implementing regulations at 24 CFR part 1.
The Age Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101-6107)
and implementing regulations at 24 CFR part 146.
Recordkeeping. Recipients will be required to keep
beneficiary records and report beneficiary data to HUD based on
protected classes, in accordance with HUD's regulations in 24 CFR part
121 and other applicable HUD civil rights authorities.
VI. Program Administration
A. Cooperative Agreement
After HUD determines that the state's submission is complete and
that the state has an existing program that provides substantially
similar assistance to HUD's Emergency Homeowners' Loan program, HUD
will execute a cooperative agreement with the state, state housing
finance agency, or other nonprofit entity that is state-administered or
state-chartered, and over which the state has effective control,
oversight responsibility, and the authority to audit the entity that
will administer the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program for the state.
The cooperative agreement will include all applicable requirements
specific to the Emergency Homeowners' Loan program, federal grant
requirements, and reporting requirements.
B. Commitment and Expenditure Deadline
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Act provides that no
loan or advance of credit shall be insured and no emergency mortgage
relief payments made after September 30, 2011, except with respect to
mortgagors approved to receive the benefit of a loan or advance
insured, or mortgage relief payments on that date. To expedite the use
of funds, states administering a program that provides substantially
similar assistance will be subject to the following commitment and
expenditure deadlines on the grantee's use of funds.
Obligate not less than 75 percent of grant funded under
this notice by July 31, 2011; and
Demonstrate that it will be able to obligate 100 percent
of its funds by September 30, 2011.
The grantee must track and report to HUD on a regular basis its
progress in committing and expending Emergency Homeowners' Loan program
grant funds.
C. Recapture and Reallocation
If HUD determines in its sole discretion, that a state grantee will
not be able to obligate 100 percent of its funds by September 30, 2011,
HUD may recapture all or any portion of the state's unobligated funds,
and reallocate those funds to states that are able to expend funding
for substantially similar programs or HUD's Emergency Homeowners' Loan
program.
VII. Other Information
Environmental Review. This notice of funding availability does not
direct, provide for assistance or loan and mortgage insurance for, or
otherwise govern or regulate, real property acquisition, disposition,
leasing, rehabilitation, alteration, demolition or new construction, or
establish, revise, or provide for standards for construction or
construction materials, manufactured housing, or occupancy.
Accordingly, under 24 CFR 50.19(c)(1), this notice is categorically
excluded from environmental review under the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969. (42 U.S.C. 4321)
Dated: November 5, 2010.
David H. Stevens,
Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal Housing Commissioner.
Schedule A
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Allocation
State amount
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Texas.................................................. $135,418,959
New York............................................... 111,649,112
Pennsylvania........................................... 105,804,905
Massachusetts.......................................... 61,036,001
Washington............................................. 56,272,599
Minnesota.............................................. 55,848,137
Wisconsin.............................................. 51,540,638
Missouri............................................... 49,001,729
Virginia............................................... 46,627,889
Colorado............................................... 41,286,747
Maryland............................................... 39,962,270
Connecticut............................................ 32,946,864
Kansas................................................. 17,748,782
Arkansas............................................... 17,736,991
Iowa................................................... 17,379,343
Louisiana.............................................. 16,691,558
Utah................................................... 16,577,582
Oklahoma............................................... 15,575,381
Puerto Rico............................................ 14,714,668
Idaho.................................................. 13,284,075
New Hampshire.......................................... 12,655,243
New Mexico............................................. 10,725,515
Maine.................................................. 10,379,657
West Virginia.......................................... 8,339,884
Nebraska............................................... 8,304,512
Hawaii................................................. 6,292,250
Delaware............................................... 6,048,577
Montana................................................ 5,710,580
Vermont................................................ 4,830,215
Alaska................................................. 3,890,898
Wyoming................................................ 2,346,329
South Dakota........................................... 2,051,563
North Dakota........................................... 1,320,547
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Total.............................................. 1,000,000,000
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[FR Doc. 2010-28552 Filed 11-10-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P