17772 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 63 / Thursday, April 2, 2015 / Notices 

1Links to the Prior Notices, the text of the 

Appropriations Act, and additional guidance 

prepared by the Department for CDBG–DR grants, 

are available on the HUD Exchange Web site: 

https://www.hudexchange.info/cdbg-dr/cdbg-drlaws-regulations-and-federal-register-notices/. 

NOTIFICATION AND RECORD ACCESS

PROCEDURES: 

For information, assistance, or 

inquiries about the existence of records, 

contact Donna Robinson-Staton, Chief 

Privacy Officer, U.S. Department of 

Housing and Urban Development, 451 

Seventh Street SW., Room 4156, 

Washington, DC 20410 (Attention: 

Capitol View Building, 4th Floor), 

telephone number: (202) 402–8073. 

Verification of your identity must 

include original signature and be 

notarized. Written request must include 

the full name, Social Security Number, 

date of birth, current address, and 

telephone number of the individual 

making the request. 

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES: 

The Department’s rules for contesting 

contents of records and appealing initial 

denials appear in 24 CFR part 16. 

Additional assistance may be obtained 

by contacting: Donna Robinson-Staton, 

Chief Privacy Officer, U.S. Department 

of Housing and Urban Development, 

451 Seventh Street SW., Room 4156, 

Washington, DC 20410 (Attention: 

Capitol View Building, 4th Floor), 

telephone number: (202) 402–8073 or 

the HUD Departmental Privacy Appeals 

Officers, Office of General Counsel, 

Department of Housing and Urban 

Development, 451 Seventh Street SW., 

Washington DC 20410. 

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES: 

Data for this evaluation will be 

gathered through a variety of methods 

including informational interviews, 

direct observation, surveys, and analysis 

of administrative records. PHAs will 

provide program participants records, as 

well as information obtained through an 

interview of voucher holders that 

includes: (1) Output of random 

assignment process data, and (2) 

Responses provided to baseline 

information form. Administrative data 

will come from the participating PHAs’ 

data systems and HUD’s Inventory 

Management System, also known as the 

Public and Indian Housing Information 

Center (PIC). This information will be 

entered into MDRC’s on-line system. 

SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS

OF THE ACT: 

None. 

[FR Doc. 2015–07613 Filed 4–1–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE CODE 4210–67–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND 

URBAN DEVELOPMENT 

[Docket No. FR–5696–N–15] 

Additional Clarifying Guidance, 

Waivers, and Alternative Requirements 

for Grantees in Receipt of Community 

Development Block Grant Disaster 

Recovery Funds Under the Disaster 

Relief Appropriations Act, 2013 

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant 

Secretary for Community Planning and 

Development, HUD. ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This Notice provides a waiver 

and alternative requirement for the State 

of New Jersey’s tenant-based rental 

assistance program funded through its 

Community Development Block Grant 

disaster recovery (CDBG–DR) grant 

pursuant to the Disaster Relief 

Appropriations Act, 2013 (Pub. L. 113– 

2) (the Appropriations Act). In addition, 

this Notice provides an alternative 

requirement for Major (Covered) 

Infrastructure Projects funded by 

grantees receiving an allocation for 

disasters occurring in 2013 under the 

Appropriations Act. This Notice also 

modifies a requirement for Disaster 

Recovery Grant Reporting System 

(DRGR) reporting requirements for all 

grantees receiving an allocation of 

CDBG–DR grants pursuant to the 

Appropriations Act. 

DATES: Effective Date: April 7, 2015. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Stanley Gimont, Director, Office of 

Block Grant Assistance, Department of 

Housing and Urban Development, 451 

7th Street SW., Room 7286, Washington, 

DC 20410, telephone number 202–708– 

3587. Persons with hearing or speech 

impairments may access this number 

via TTY by calling the Federal Relay 

Service at 800–877–8339. Facsimile 

inquiries may be sent to Mr. Gimont at 

202–401–2044. (Except for the ‘‘800’’ 

number, these telephone numbers are 

not toll-free.) Email inquiries may be 

sent to disaster_recovery@hud.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Table of Contents 

I. Background 

II. Applicable Rules, Statutes, Waivers, and 

Alternative Requirements 

III. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

IV. Finding of No Significant Impact 

I. Background 

The Appropriations Act made 

available $16 billion in Community 

Development Block Grant disaster 

recovery (CDBG–DR) funds for 

necessary expenses related to disaster 

relief, long-term recovery, restoration of 

infrastructure and housing, and 

economic revitalization in the most 

impacted and distressed areas resulting 

from a major disaster declared pursuant 

to the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974 

(42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) (Stafford Act), 

due to Hurricane Sandy and other 

eligible events in calendar years 2011, 

2012, and 2013. On March 1, 2013, the 

President issued a sequestration order 

pursuant to Section 251A of the 

Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit 

Control Act, as amended (2 U.S.C. 

901a), and reduced the amount of 

funding for CDBG–DR grants under the 

Appropriations Act to $15.18 billion. To 

date, a total of $15.18 billion has been 

allocated or set aside: $13 billion in 

response to Hurricane Sandy, $514 

million in response to disasters 

occurring in 2011 or 2012, $655 million 

in response to 2013 disasters, and $1 

billion set aside for the National 

Disaster Resilience Competition. 

This Notice specifies a waiver and 

modifies requirements for grantees in 

receipt of allocations under the 

Appropriations Act, which are 

described within the Federal Register 

Notices published by the Department on 

March 5, 2013 (78 FR 14329), April 19, 

2013 (78 FR 23578), May 29, 2013 (78 

FR 32262), August 2, 2013 (78 FR 

46999), November 18, 2013 (78 FR 

69104), December 16, 2013 (78 FR 

76154), March 27, 2014 (79 FR 17173), 

June 3, 2014 (79 FR 31964), July 11, 

2014 (79 FR 40133), October 7, 2014 (79 

FR 60490), October 16, 2014 (79 FR 

62182), and January 8, 2015 (80 FR 

1039), referred to collectively in this 

Notice as the ‘‘Prior Notices.’’ The 

requirements of the Prior Notices 

continue to apply, except as modified 

by this Notice.1

II. Applicable Rules, Statutes, Waivers, 

and Alternative Requirements 

The Appropriations Act authorizes 

the Secretary to waive, or specify 

alternative requirements for, any 

provision of any statute or regulation 

that the Secretary administers in 

connection with HUD’s obligation or 

use by the recipient of these funds 

(except for requirements related to fair 

housing, nondiscrimination, labor 

standards, and the environment). 

Waivers and alternative requirements 

are based upon a determination by the 

Secretary that good cause exists and that 

the waiver or alternative requirement is 

not inconsistent with the overall 

purposes of Title I of the Housing and 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 63 / Thursday, April 2, 2015 / Notices 17773 

Community Development Act of 1974 

(42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) (HCD Act). 

Regulatory waiver authority is also 

provided by 24 CFR 5.110, 91.600, and 

570.5. 

For the waiver and alternative 

requirement described in this Notice, 

the Secretary has determined that good 

cause exists and the waiver is not 

inconsistent with the overall purpose of 

the HCD Act. Grantees may request 

waivers and alternative requirements 

from the Department as needed to 

address specific needs related to their 

recovery activities. Under the 

requirements of the Appropriations Act, 

waivers must be published in the 

Federal Register no later than five days 

before the effective date of such waiver. 

1. Tenant-based rental assistance 

(State of New Jersey only). The State of 

New Jersey previously requested a 

waiver of 42 U.S.C. 5305(a) in order to 

provide tenant-based rental assistance to 

households impacted by disasters 

eligible under the Appropriations Act, 

and the Department granted this waiver 

in the Federal Register Notice 

published on July 11, 2014 (79 FR 

40134). This Notice replaces the waiver 

in the Notice published on July 11, 

2014, in section II.3 and increases the 

amount of funding for this activity by 

providing an additional $15 million of 

CDBG–DR funds for tenant- based rental 

assistance, increasing the amount 

covered by the waiver from $17 million 

to $32 million. 

This waiver makes eligible up to $32 

million of CDBG–DR funds to be used 

for rental assistance, utility payments 

and, if necessary, rental costs (i.e., 

security deposits and utility deposits). 

This assistance may be provided on 

behalf of beneficiaries for a period of up 

to two years. The State justified a longer 

term of assistance in order to meet the 

housing needs of vulnerable 

populations displaced by Hurricane 

Sandy until construction of affordable 

rental units is completed and those 

units become available. 

On May 30, 2014, the State entered 

into a Voluntary Compliance Agreement 

(VCA) with the Department in response 

to a complaint filed by civil rights and 

fair housing organizations regarding the 

State’s administration of its CDBG–DR 

funded recovery programs. The VCA 

commits the State to providing an 

additional $15 million of CDBG–DR 

funds for tenant- based rental assistance, 

increasing the amount covered by the 

initial waiver from $17 million to $32 

million. 

Thousands of households in New 

Jersey remain displaced and continue to 

need housing at a time when the State’s 

housing stock has not fully recovered 

from the disaster. The decrease in the 

housing supply placed upward pressure 

on housing costs, making housing less 

affordable for households already 

strained by hurricane-related expenses. 

By increasing the amount of funding 

available for tenant-based rental 

assistance, the State will be able to 

assist more households and to minimize 

the incidence of homelessness by 

providing re-housing and rental 

assistance. Additionally, the State will 

link the assisted beneficiaries with 

services that can help them become 

stable and self-sufficient. Throughout 

the rental assistance period, assisted 

households will receive referrals to 

available long-term units, as well as 

housing counseling. 

After reviewing the State’s request, 

and in accordance with the VCA, HUD 

is waiving 42 U.S.C 5305(a) to make 

eligible an additional $15 million of 

CDBG–DR funds for rental assistance 

and utility payments paid for up to two 

years on behalf of homeless and at-risk 

low- and moderate-income households 

displaced by Hurricane Sandy when 

such assistance or payments are part of 

a homeless prevention or rapid rehousing program or activity. The State’s 

tenant-based rental assistance must be 

funded through its Supportive Services 

program, limited to payments on behalf 

of beneficiaries of that program as 

described in the State’s approved Action 

Plan, and must not be tied to HUD’s 

Section 8 program assistance. This 

waiver permits the State to review and 

approve applications for tenant-based 

rental assistance on behalf of 

beneficiaries from January 1, 2014 to 

January 1, 2016, and to provide rental 

assistance on behalf of approved 

applicants for up to 24 months, but in 

no case may assistance be provided on 

behalf of a beneficiary after January 1, 

2018. The additional funds provided for 

the State’s tenant-based rental assistance 

program through this waiver are subject 

to all requirements in the Notice 

published on July 11, 2014 (79 FR 

40133) as well as the requirements of 

the VCA and any subsequent 

amendments to the VCA. 

2. Identification/Description of 

Covered Projects (2013 Disaster 

Grantees only). In the Federal Register 

Notice published on October 16, 2014 

(79 FR 62182), the Department modified 

requirements for Covered Projects 

implemented by Hurricane Sandy 

grantees by stating that grantees need 

only provide an estimate of the total 

project cost and CDBG–DR 

contributions, instead of providing the 

exact amount of funding. The 

Department is extending this flexibility 

to Covered Projects held to the 

requirements of the Notice published on 

June 3, 2014 (79 FR 31964). For any 

Covered Project held to the 

requirements of that Notice, Section 

V.3.g.1 (‘‘Action Plan for Disaster 

Recovery waiver and alternative 

requirement—Infrastructure Programs 

and Projects, Additional Requirements 

for Major Infrastructure Projects, 

Identification/Description’’), is modified 

to require: A description of the Covered 

Project, including: total project cost 

estimate (illustrating both the CDBG–DR 

award as well as other federal resources 

for the project, such as funding 

provided by the Department of 

Transportation or FEMA), CDBG 

eligibility (i.e., a citation to the HCD 

Act, applicable Federal Register notice, 

or a CDBG regulation), how it will meet 

a national objective, and the project’s 

connection to Hurricane Sandy or other 

disasters cited in this Notice. The 

Department recognizes that grantees 

often finance large scale infrastructure 

projects by leveraging several sources of 

funds that may shift over time. 

Therefore, the Department may elect to 

approve projects based on estimates of 

total project cost and other funding 

sources as well as the CDBG–DR 

contribution amount. 

Grantees are expected to provide the 

best estimates available and the 

expected timeline for determining the 

exact costs. Grantees must submit an 

Action Plan Amendment to reflect any 

material adjustments to the cost 

estimate. Where an adjustment of the 

CDBG–DR contribution to a Covered 

Project triggers the substantial 

amendment criteria described in the 

March 5, 2013 Notice (78 FR 14329) at 

Section VI.A.3.a. by exceeding the $1 

million threshold, grantees must submit 

a Substantial Action Plan Amendment 

subject to the requirements of that 

Notice, which requires no less than 7 

calendar days to solicit public comment. 

All Covered Projects are subject to the 

30-day comment period and public 

hearing required by the July 3, 2014, 

Notice (79 FR 31964). However, HUD 

will consider resubmissions of Covered 

Projects that have fulfilled the public 

review requirements and were 

submitted to HUD prior to the effective 

date of this Notice if they are revised 

only in accordance with the amended 

description requirements. Such 

resubmissions are subject to nonsubstantial Action Plan Amendment 

requirements. 

3. Reporting of Responsible 

Organizations in DRGR (all P.L. 113–2 

grantees). In order to draw CDBG–DR 

funds, grantees must enter an Action 

Plan into DRGR that includes all 

activities to be funded. DRGR requires 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
17774 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 63 / Thursday, April 2, 2015 / Notices 

that at least one Primary Responsible 

Organization be entered for each 

activity, and grantees may choose to add 

ancillary Responsible Organizations to 

an activity. A Dun and Bradstreet Data 

Universal Numbering System (DUNS) 

number must be entered for each 

Responsible Organization. The March 5, 

2013 Notice (78 FR 14329) required 

grantees to enter a DUNS number into 

the system for any entity carrying out a 

CDBG–DR funded activity, including 

the grantee, recipient(s) and 

subrecipient(s), contractor(s) and 

developers carrying out a CDBG–DR 

activity. The language describing DRGR 

reporting requirements was later revised 

in the July 11, 2014 Notice (79 FR 

40134) to exclude requirements for 

identifying contracts above $25,000. 

This Notice, however, did not modify 

requirements for entering Responsible 

Organizations or DUNS numbers. To 

reduce the reporting burden on grantees, 

paragraph II.1.a. at 79 FR 40134 is 

amended to require that grantees only 

enter a DUNS number for the 

Responsible Organization or 

Organizations associated with an 

activity—with the understanding that 

only a single primary Responsible 

Organization is required to be identified 

within grantee DRGR Action Plans—and 

now reads as follows: 

‘‘The Action Plan must also be 

entered into the DRGR system so that 

the grantee is able to draw its CDBG–DR 

funds. The grantee may enter activities 

into DRGR before or after submission of 

the Action Plan to HUD. To enter an 

activity into the DRGR system, the 

grantee must know the activity type, 

national objective, and the organization 

or organizations that will be responsible 

for the activity. In addition, a Data 

Universal Numbering System (DUNS) 

number must be entered into the system 

for each entity designated as a 

Responsible Organization for the 

activity.’’ 

Grantees are reminded that this 

modification applies only to 

requirements for DRGR DUNS number 

reporting and does not change any other 

Federal DUNS number reporting 

requirements. 

III. Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance 

The Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance number for the disaster 

recovery grants under this Notice is as 

follows: 14.269. 

IV. Finding of No Significant Impact 

A Finding of No Significant Impact 

(FONSI) with respect to the 

environment has been made in 

accordance with HUD regulations at 24 

CFR part 50, which implement section 

102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 

Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

4332(2)(C)). The FONSI is available for 

public inspection between 8 a.m. and 5 

p.m. weekdays in the Regulations 

Division, Office of General Counsel, 

Department of Housing and Urban 

Development, 451 7th Street SW., Room 

10276, Washington, DC 20410–0500. 

Due to security measures at the HUD 

Headquarters building, an advance 

appointment to review the docket file 

must be scheduled by calling the 

Regulations Division at 202–708–3055 

(this is not a toll-free number). Hearing 

or speech-impaired individuals may 

access this number through TTY by 

calling the toll-free Federal Relay 

Service at 800–877–8339. 

Dated: March 27, 2015. 

Ann Marie Oliva, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Needs, 

Community Planning and Development. 

[FR Doc. 2015–07622 Filed 4–1–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE CODE 4210–67–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

Fish and Wildlife Service 

[FWS–HQ–MB–2015–N064]; 

[FXMB123109WEBB0–145–FF09M25100] 

Information Collection Request Sent to 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) for Approval; North American 

Woodcock Singing Ground Survey 

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, 

Interior. 

ACTION: Notice; request for comments. 

SUMMARY: We (U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service) have sent an Information 

Collection Request (ICR) to OMB for 

review and approval. We summarize the 

ICR below and describe the nature of the 

collection and the estimated burden and 

cost. This information collection is 

scheduled to expire on April 30, 2015. 

We may not conduct or sponsor and a 

person is not required to respond to a 

collection of information unless it 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number. However, under OMB 

regulations, we may continue to 

conduct or sponsor this information 

collection while it is pending at OMB. 

DATES: You must submit comments on 

or before May 4, 2015. 

ADDRESSES: Send your comments and 

suggestions on this information 

collection to the Desk Officer for the 

Department of the Interior at OMB– 

OIRA at (202) 395–5806 (fax) or OIRA_

Submission@omb.eop.gov (email). 

Please provide a copy of your comments 

to the Service Information Collection 

Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and 

Wildlife Service, MS BPHC, 5275 

Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041– 

3803 (mail), or hope_grey@fws.gov 

(email). Please include ‘‘1018–0019’’ in 

the subject line of your comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To 

request additional information about 

this ICR, contact Hope Grey at hope_

grey@fws.gov (email) or 703–358–2482 

(telephone). You may review the ICR 

online at http://www.reginfo.gov. Follow 

the instructions to review Department of 

the Interior collections under review by 

OMB. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Information Collection Request 

OMB Control Number: 1018–0019. 

Title: North American Woodcock 

Singing Ground Survey. 

Service Form Number(s): 3–156. 

Type of Request: Extension of 

currently approved collection. 

Description of Respondents: State, 

Provincial, local, and tribal employees. 

Frequency of Collection: Annually. 

Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

759. 

Estimated Annual Number of 

Responses: 759. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours: 1,354 hours. We estimate that 

662 persons will enter data 

electronically, with an average reporting 

burden of 1.8 hours per respondent. For 

all other respondents, we estimate the 

reporting burden to be 1.67 hours per 

respondent. 

Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden 

Cost: None. 

Abstract: The Migratory Bird Treaty 

Act (16 U.S.C. 703–712) and the Fish 

and Wildlife Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C. 

742a–754j–2) designate the Department 

of the Interior as the primary agency 

responsible for: 

• Management of migratory bird 

populations frequenting the United 

States, and 

• Setting hunting regulations that 

allow for the well-being of migratory 

bird populations. 

These responsibilities dictate that we 

gather accurate data on various 

characteristics of migratory bird 

populations. 

The North American Woodcock 

Singing Ground Survey is an essential 

part of the migratory bird management 

program. State, Federal, Provincial, 

local, and tribal conservation agencies 

conduct the survey annually to provide 

the data necessary to determine the 

population status of the woodcock. In 

addition, the information is vital in 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES