Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 101 Part 3.djvu/664

 101 STAT. 1962 42 USC 11504.

Discrimination, prohibition.

Health and medical care. Safety.

PUBLIC LAW 100-242—FEB. 5, 1988

SEC. 704. WAIVER OR MODIFICATION OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT RULES IN ENTERPRISE ZONES.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Upon the written request of the governments that designated and approved an area that has been designated as an enterprise zone under section 701, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (or, with respect to any rule issued under title V of the Housing Act of 1949, the Secretary of Agriculture) may, in order to further the job creation, community development, or economic revitalization objectives of the zone, waive or modify all or part of any rule that the Secretary has authority to promulgate, as such rule pertains to the carrying out of projects, activities, or undertakings within the zone. (b) LIMITATION.—No provision of this section may be construed to authorize the Secretary to waive or modify any rule adopted to carry out a statute or Executive order that prohibits, or the purpose of which is to protect persons against, discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, marital status, national origin, age, or handicap. (c) SUBMISSION OF REQUESTS.—A request under subsection (a) shall specify the rule or rules to be waived or modified and the change proposed, and shall briefly describe why the change would promote the achievement of the job creation, community development, or economic revitalization objectives of the enterprise zone. If a request is made to the Secretary of Agriculture, the requesting governments shall send a copy of the request to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development at the time the request is made. (d) CONSIDERATION OF REQUESTS.—In considering a request, the Secretary shall weigh the extent to which the proposed change is likely to further job creation, community development, or economic revitalization within the enterprise zone against the effect the change is likely to have on the underlying purposes of applicable statutes in the geographic area that would be affected by the change. The Secretary shall approve the request whenever the Secretary finds, in the discretion of the Secretary, that the public interest that the proposed change would serve in furthering such job creation, community development or economic revitalization outweighs the public interest that continuation of the rule unchanged would serve in furthering such underlying purposes. The Secretary shall not approve any request to waive or modify a rule if that waiver or modification would— »,.,, (1) directly violate a statutory requirement; or (2) be likely to present a significant risk to the public health, including environmental health or safety. (e) NOTICE OF DISAPPROVAL.—If a request is disapproved, the Secretary shall inform the requesting governments in writing of the reasons therefor and shall, to the maximum extent possible, work with such governments to develop an alternative, consistent with the standards contained in subsection (d). (f) PERIOD FOR DETERMINATION.—The Secretary shall discharge the responsibilities of the Secretary under this section in an expeditious manner, and shall make a determination on requests not later than 90 days after their receipt. (g) APPLICABLE PROCEDURES.—A waiver or modification of a rule under subsection (a) shall not be considered to be a rule, rulemaking, or regulation under chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code. To facilitate reaching a decision on any requested waiver or modi-

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