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]
BILLING CODE 3410-XV-P