Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 221 / Wednesday, November 15, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 68891

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND

URBAN DEVELOPMENT

24 CFR Part 883

[Docket No. FR–4532–C–02]

RIN 2502–AH46

Increased Distributions to Owners of

Certain HUD-Assisted Multifamily

Rental Projects; Correction

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant

Secretary for Housing—Federal Housing

Commissioner, HUD.

ACTION: Final rule; technical correction.

SUMMARY: This document makes a

technical amendment to the final rule

that was published October 13, 2000 (65

FR 61072), which adds an exception to

current limits on distributions to owners

for HUD-assisted multifamily rental

projects.

EFFECTIVE DATE: November 13, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Willie Spearmon, Director, Office of

Housing Assistance and Grants

Administration, Department of Housing

and Urban Development, 451 7th St.

SW., Washington DC 20410, 202–708–

2866. (This not a toll-free number.) For

hearing- and speech-impaired persons,

these numbers may be accessed via TTY

by calling the Federal Information Relay

Service at 1–800–877–8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On

October 13, 2000 (65 FR 61072), HUD

published a final rule adding an

exception to current limits on

distributions to owners for HUDassisted multifamily rental projects.

Two errors in part 883 of the final rule

need correction.

Accordingly, FR Doc. 00–26247,

Increased Distributions to Owners of

Certain HUD-Assisted Multifamily

Rental Projects, published in the

Federal Register on October 13, 2000

(65 FR 61072), is corrected as follows:

1. On page 61075, first column, in

instruction 11, correct part ‘‘881’’ to

read ‘‘883’’.

2. On page 61075, first column,

correct the heading for ‘‘§ 883.205’’ to

read ‘‘§ 883.306.’’

Camille E. Acevedo,

Associate General Counsel for Legislation and

Regulations.

[FR Doc. 00–29098 Filed 11–14–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4210–27–P

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

28 CFR Part 16

[A.G. Order No. 2333–2000]

RIN 1105–AA76

Access to Documents by Former

Employees of the Department

AGENCY: Department of Justice.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: This final rule establishes

procedures under which former

employees of the Department of Justice

may request access to documents that

they originated, reviewed, or signed

while employees of the Department, for

the purpose of responding to an official

inquiry by a federal, state, or local

government entity or professional

licensing authority. The rule designates

component heads and the Assistant

Attorney General for Administration as

the deciding officials.

DATES: This rule is effective November

15, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Stuart Frisch, General Counsel, or

Evelyn Tang, Attorney-Advisor, Office

of the General Counsel, Justice

Management Division, U.S. Department

of Justice, 1331 Pennsylvania Avenue

NW., Suite 520N, (202) 514–3452.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

Whom Does This Rule Affect?

This rule applies to former employees

of the Department who, after they leave

the Department, have a need for access

to Department documents that they

originated, reviewed, or signed while

employed by the Department, for the

purpose of responding to an official

inquiry by a federal, state, or local

government entity or professional

licensing authority.

What Does This Rule Do?

A legitimate concern has been raised

by current and former Department

employees, that after they leave the

Department, they may still be called

upon to respond to official inquiries

into their handling of matters at the

Department. This is especially likely in

the case of high-level employees.

Without access to relevant documents to

refresh their memories, it may be

difficult to respond to such inquiries. To

address this concern, this regulation

establishes a procedure for former

employees to request access to

documents that they originated,

reviewed, or signed while at the

Department. As a general rule, former

employees will be provided access to

the documents if they are responding to

an official inquiry by a federal, state, or

local government entity or professional

licensing authority—for example,

responding to a Congressional

committee request, an investigation by

an Inspector General, an investigation

by a state or local law enforcement

agency, or a disciplinary action by a bar

association. The Department may deny

or limit access where providing the

requested access would be unduly

burdensome. This rule does not create a

right enforceable at law by a party

against the United States.

What Type of Documents Does the Rule

Cover?

The rule covers only documents that

a former employee originated, reviewed,

or signed while employed by the

Department. Documents include

memoranda, drafts, reports, notes,

written communications, and

documents stored electronically that are

in the possession of the Department.

B. Administrative Procedure Act

This rule is a rule of agency

organization, procedure, and practice; it

is therefore exempt from the notice

requirement of 5 U.S.C. 553(b) and is

made effective upon issuance.

C. Regulatory Flexibility Act

The Attorney General, in accordance

with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5

U.S.C. 605(b), has reviewed this

regulation and by approving it certifies

that it will not have a significant

economic impact on a substantial

number of small entities. This rule

merely establishes procedures under

which former employees of the

Department of Justice may, for the

purpose of responding to an official

inquiry, request access to documents

they originated, reviewed, or signed

while employed by the Department.

D. Executive Order 12866

This regulation has been drafted and

reviewed in accordance with Executive

Order 12866. The Department has

determined that this rule is not a

‘‘significant regulatory action’’ under

section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866,

Regulatory Planning and Review, and

accordingly this rule has not been

reviewed by the Office of Management

and Budget.

E. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of

1995

This rule will not, in the aggregate,

result in this expenditure by state, local,

and tribal governments, or by the

private sector, of $100,000,000 or more