HUD Releases Notice on Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Cost

On May 15, HUD published a notice and request for comment titled “Reducing Regulatory Burden; Enforcing the Regulatory Reform Agenda Under Executive Order 13777.” Comments can be made at Regulations.gov until June 14, 2017.

Executive Order 13771, issued January 30, requires that for every new regulation issued, at least two prior regulations be identified for elimination. The Order attempts to alleviate the costs associated with the government imposition of private expenditures, which must comply with Federal Regulations. Furthermore, to ensure cost efficiency, another Executive Order, 13777, signed on February, 24, requires HUD to establish a Task Force to evaluate its regulations’ effectiveness. The Order requires federal agencies, including HUD, to alleviate unnecessary regulatory burdens placed on the American people.

This notice provides an opportunity to submit comments to reduce regulatory burdens. When submitting a comment, reference a citation to the Code of Federal Regulations, and consider answering one of the following questions:

1. Are there any regulations that should be repealed, replaced, or modified?
2. For each regulation identified in question number 1, please identify whether the regulation:
   1. Results in the elimination of jobs, or inhibits job creation;
   2. Is outdated, unnecessary, or ineffective;
   3. Imposes costs that exceed benefits;
   4. Creates a serious inconsistency or otherwise interferes with regulatory reform initiatives and policies;
   5. Is inconsistent with requirements or regulations of section 515 of the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2001 (44 U.S.C. 3516 note), which requires that agencies maximize the quality, objectivity, and integrity of the information (including statistical information) they disseminate; or
   6. Derives from or implements Executive Orders or other Presidential directives that have been subsequently rescinded or substantially modified.
3. What factors should HUD use when considering how to prioritize rules when implementing the regulatory offsets required by Executive Order 13771?
4. Are there and HUD regulatory requirements that have been overtaken by technological developments? Can new technologies be used to modify, streamline, or do away with these requirements?
5. Are there any existing HUD requirements that duplicate or conflict with requirements of another Federal agency? Can the requirement be modified to eliminate the conflict?
6. What are the estimated total compliance cost of the HUD regulations to which you or your organization must comply? This should include cost of complying with information collections, recordkeeping, and other requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3522).

The list of questions is non-exhaustive and meant to help identify regulations.