39858 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 125 / Wednesday, June 28, 2000 / Notices

Delegation of Authority

1. Only the Federal officials identified

below are delegated authority to issue

Special Actions to address fish stock

conservation concerns or unmet

subsistence harvest needs. Such action

must be substantiated by clear evidence

in resource monitoring information and/

or corroboration from affected users/

communities, and evaluated in relation

to historical information.

2. Delegated authority to issue Special

Actions is limited to opening or closing

Federal subsistence fishing periods or

areas provided for under regulations

found at 36 CFR 242.26–242.27 and 50

CFR 100.26–100.27, or closing nonsubsistence fishing in Federal waters.

All requests to modify Federal

subsistence management regulations,

such as those relating to harvest limits,

permit requirements, gear restrictions,

or customary and traditional use

determinations, must be directed to the

Federal Subsistence Board.

3. The following Federal officials are

delegated to act for the Federal

Subsistence Board as delineated in

paragraphs 1 and 2 above, for the fishery

regulatory year 2000:

Geographic region Delegated Federal official

Arctic/Kotzebue/Norton Sound, excluding Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.Western Arctic Parklands Superintendent.

Yukon River Drainage and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ............... Fairbanks Fisheries Resource Office Project Leader.

Kuskokwim, Goodnews and Kanektok River Drainages .......................... Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge Manager.

Bristol Bay/Alaska Peninsula/Aleutian Islands/Chignik ............................ King Salmon Fisheries Resource Office Project Leader.

Kodiak Region .......................................................................................... Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge Manager.

Copper River ............................................................................................ Wrangell/St. Elias National Park and Preserve Superintendent.

Remainder Prince William Sound Area and Cook Inlet ........................... Cordova District Ranger.

Southeast Alaska/Yakutat:

Yakutat Area ...................................................................................... Yakutat District Ranger.

Baranof and Chichagof Islands ......................................................... Sitka District Ranger.

Admiralty Island and northern southeast Alaska inside waters ........ Juneau District Ranger.

Prince of Wales and associated islands ........................................... Craig District Ranger.

Kuiu, Kupreanof, and Zarembo Islands and Stikine River ............... Petersburg District Ranger.

Southern southeast Alaska inside waters ......................................... Ketchikan District Ranger.

Drafting Information: William Knauer

drafted this policy document under the

guidance of Thomas H. Boyd, of the

Office of Subsistence Management,

Alaska Regional Office, U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service, Anchorage, Alaska.

Curt Wilson, Alaska State Office, Bureau

of Land Management; Bob Gerhard,

Alaska Regional Office, National Park

Service; Greg Bos, Alaska Regional

Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service;

Ida Hildebrand, Alaska Regional Office,

Bureau of Indian Affairs; and Ken

Thompson, USDA-Forest Service

provided additional guidance.

Dated: June 15, 2000.

Kenneth E. Thompson,

Acting Regional Forester, USDA—Forest

Service.

Dated: June 16, 2000.

Thomas H. Boyd,

Acting Chair, Federal Subsistence Board.

[FR Doc. 00–16038 Filed 6–27–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–11–P; 4310–55–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Natural Resources Conservation

Service

Extension of Comment Period for the

Natural Resources Conservation

Service Conservation Programs

Manual—Part 513: Resource

Conservation and Development

(RC&D) Program

AGENCY: Natural Resources

Conservation Service (NRCS), U. S.

Department of Agriculture.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: This Public Notice announces

an extension of the comment period

deadline for comments on the draft the

Natural Resources Conservation Service

Conservation Programs Manual—Part

513: Resource Conservation and

Development (RC&D) Program.

DATES: Comments will be received until

July 28, 2000. All comments postmarked by July 28, 2000, will be

accepted.

ADDRESSES: Address all requests and

comments to: Terry D’Addio, National

RC&D Program Manager, Natural

Resource Conservation Service, 14th &

Independence Ave, SW, Room 6013

South Building, Washington, DC, 20250.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Terry D’Addio, Natural Resources

Conservation Service; telephone: (202)

720–0557; fax: (202) 690–0639, e-mail

terry.daddio@usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The first

Public Notice was released on April 14,

2000. United States Department of

Agriculture (USDA) is asking for

comments from individuals, private

consultants, Tribal, State, and local

governments or subgroups thereof,

universities, colleges, environmental

groups, community development

groups, and other organizations. These

comments will assist USDA in the

policy development and

implementation of the Resource

Conservation and Development (RC&D)

program. This manual is intended for

use by the Natural Resources

Conservation Service (NRCS) and other

USDA staff, conservation partners, State

and local field staffs, RC&D Council

members, and others that will be

developing RC&D applications or

participating in the RC&D program. The

Conservation Programs Manual: Part

513—RC&D Program is a document

intended for use by NRCS and other

USDA staff, conservation partners, State

and local field staffs, RC&D Council

members, and others that either will be

developing RC&D applications or

participating in the RC&D program. The

purpose of this document is to provide

policy guidance for the RC&D program,

not to establish regulatory requirements.

The RC&D Program was authorized to

encourage and improve the capability of

State and local units of government and

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 125 / Wednesday, June 28, 2000 / Notices 39859

local nonprofit organizations in rural

areas to plan, develop, and implement

programs for resource conservation and

development. Through the

establishment of RC&D Areas, the

program establishes or improves

coordination systems in rural

communities and builds rural

community leadership skills to

effectively utilize Federal, State, and

local programs for the communities’

benefit.

Current program objectives focus on

the ‘‘quality of life’’ improvements

achieved through natural resources

conservation and community

development. Such activities lead to

sustainable communities, prudent land

use, and the sound management and

conservation of natural resources.

Assistance is provided, as authorized

by the Secretary of Agriculture, to

designated RC&D Areas through their

organized RC&D Councils, comprised of

local leaders. RC&D Councils and their

sponsors, in association with State,

local, and Federal governments, and

non-profit organizations, initiate and

lead the planning and implementation

of their locally developed RC&D Area

plans. Councils also obtain assistance

from other local, State, and Federal

agencies; private organizations; and

foundations.

USDA prohibits discrimination in its

programs and activities on the basis of

race, color, national origin, gender,

religion, age, sexual orientation, or

disability. Additionally, discrimination

on the basis of political beliefs and

marital or family status is also

prohibited by statutes enforced by

USDA. (Not all prohibited bases apply

to all programs.) Persons with

disabilities who require alternative

means for communication of program

information (braille, large print, and

audio tape, etc.) should contact the

USDA’s Target Center at (202) 720–2600

(voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination

to USDA, write Director, Office of Civil

Rights, Room 326–W, Whitten Building,

14th and Independence Avenue, SW,

Washington, DC 20250–9410, or call

(202) 720–5964 (voice and TDD). The

USDA is an equal opportunity provider

and employer.

Signed at Washington, DC on June 21,

2000.

Pearlie S. Reed,

Chief, Natural Resources Conservation

Service.

[FR Doc. 00–16382 Filed 6–27–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–16–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Housing Service

Notice of Availability of Funding and

Requests for Proposals for Guaranteed

Loans Under the Section 538

Guaranteed Rural Rental Housing

Program

AGENCY: Rural Housing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This Notice of Fund

Availability (NOFA or Notice)

announces the timeframe and

submission requirements and deadlines

to submit proposals in the form of

‘‘NOFA responses’’ for the section 538

Guaranteed Rural Rental Housing

Program (GRRHP). Eligible lenders, as

defined in paragraph VII(D) of this

NOFA are invited to submit NOFA

proposals for the development of

affordable rental housing to serve rural

America. This document describes the

overall application process, including

the selection and identification of any

priorities for selection of proposed

applications, and the process by which

the Rural Housing Service (RHS or

Agency) will score and rank the

proposals. Information will also be

included concerning the submission

requirements. Lenders may submit their

application concurrently with their

NOFA response.

DATES: The deadline for receipt of

NOFA responses is 4:00 PM, Eastern

Daylight Savings Time on August 15,

2000. Lenders intending to mail a NOFA

response must provide sufficient time to

permit delivery on or before the closing

deadline date and time. Acceptance by

a post office or private mailer does not

constitute delivery. Facsimile (FAX),

Cash on Delivery (COD), and postage

due NOFA responses or applications

will not be accepted. NOFA responses

will not be accepted after the deadlines

previously mentioned, unless that date

and time is extended by another Notice

published in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Responses for participation

in the program must be identified as

‘‘Section 538 Guaranteed Rural Rental

Housing Program’’ on the envelope and

be submitted to: Director, Multi-Family

Housing Processing Division, Rural

Housing Service, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, Room 1263 (STOP 0781),

1400 Independence Ave. SW,

Washington, DC 20250–0781.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Joyce Allen, Deputy Director,

Guaranteed Loans, Multi-Family

Housing Processing Division, U.S.

Department of Agriculture, South

Agriculture Building, Room 1271, STOP

0781, 1400 Independence Ave. SW,

Washington, DC 20250–0781. E-mail:

jallen@rdmail.rural.usda.gov.

Telephone: (202) 690–4499. This

number is not toll-free. Hearing or

speech impaired persons may access

that number by calling the Federal

Information Relay Service toll-free at

(800) 877–8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

GRRHP is operated under the direction

of title 7 CFR part 3565. The Guaranteed

Rural Rental Housing Program

Origination and Servicing Handbook

(HB–1–3565) is available to provide

lenders and the general public with the

‘‘how to’’ administrative guidance

needed to administer the program. HB–

1–3565, which contains a copy of 7 CFR

part 3565 in Appendix 1, may be found

on the Rural Development Regulation

web site internet address of ‘‘http://

rdinit.usda.gov/regs’’ or copies may be

obtained from the Rural Housing

Service Multi-Family Housing

Processing Division at 202–720–1604.

This is not a toll-free number. Hearingor speech-impaired persons may access

that number by calling the Federal

Information Relay Service toll-free at

(800) 877–8339.

Discussion of Notice

I. Purpose and Program Summary

On March 28, 1996, President Clinton

signed the ‘‘Housing Opportunity

Program Extension Act of 1996,’’ Public

Law 104–120, authorizing the section

538 Guaranteed Rural Rental Housing

Program (GRRHP). The program is

designed to increase the supply of

affordable multifamily housing through

partnerships between Rural Housing

Service (RHS) and major lending

sources, as well as state and local

housing finance agencies and bond

issuers. Qualified lenders will be

authorized to originate, underwrite, and

close loans for multifamily housing

projects requiring new construction or

acquisition with rehabilitation of at least

$15,000 per unit, when the acquisition

results in the creation of new affordable

housing units. RHS may guarantee such

loans upon presentation and review of

appropriate certifications, project

information and satisfactory completion

of the appropriate level of

environmental review by RHS. Lenders

will be responsible for the full range of

loan management, servicing, and

property disposition activities

associated with these projects. The

lender will be expected to provide

servicing or contract for servicing of

each loan it underwrites. In turn, RHS

will guarantee the lender’s loan up to 90

percent of total development cost and