Emergency Justification Letter

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20410-5000

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

May 17, 2010

Mr. Ross A. Rutledge

OMB Desk Officer

Office of Management and Budget

New Executive Office Building

Washington, DC 20503

Dear Mr. Rutledge:

The Department is seeking emergency review of the Paperwork Reduction Act requirements for a new information collection which supports the issuance of $100 million dollars available through the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program that was part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2010 (Public Law 111-117, approved December 16, 2009). The Notice of Paperwork Submission (copy enclosed), proposed for immediate Federal Register publication, explains the burden of the collection requirements and invites public comments on them.

In compliance with the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.13, this letter requests emergency processing within 7 days from the date of this letter. This request for emergency processing is essential because our Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) will be available to the public as early as May of this year, and this form is required as part of the applicants application. The use of the normal clearance procedures is reasonably likely to cause distribution of the funds, which has a statutory deadline, to be missed or disrupted.

The shortened processing period that we are requesting will help facilitate the prompt issuance of the funds to the public and ensure that we comply with the requirements of the Appropriations Act.

Thank you for your consideration and assistance.

Sincerely,

Shelley R. Poticha

Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities