Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 81.djvu/730

 696

PUBLIC LAW 90-222-DEC. 23, 1967

[81 STAT.

shall adopt for itself and other agencies using funds or exercising authority for which it is responsible, rules designed to establish specific standards governing salaries, salary increases, travel and per diem allowances, and other employee benefits; to assure that only persons capable of discharging their duties with competence and integrity are employed and that employees are promoted or advanced under impartial procedures calculated to improve agency performance and effectiveness; to guard against personal or financial conflicts of interests; and to define employee duties of advocacy on behalf of the poor in an appropriate manner which will in any case preclude employees from participating, in connection with the performance of their duties, in any form of picketing, protest, or other direct action which is in violation of law. lafw^ andregu. "(b) The Dlrector shall prescribe rules or regulations to supplement subsection (a), which shall be binding on all agencies carrying on community action program activities with financial assistance under this title. He may, where appropriate, establish special or simplified requirements for smaller agencies or agencies operating in rural areas. These special requirements shall not, however, affect the applicability of rules governing conflicts of interest, use of position or authority for partisan or nonpartisan political purposes or participation in direct action, regardless of customary practices or rules among agencies in the community. The Director shall consult with the heads of other Federal agencies responsible for programs providing assistance to activities which may be included in community action programs for the purpose of securing maximum consistency between rules or regulations prescribed or followed by those agencies and those prescribed under this section. "HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AND SERVICES ORGANIZATIONS

"SEC. 214. Each community action agency shall encourage the establishment of housing development and services organizations designed to focus on the housing needs of low-income families and individuals. Such organizations shall provide the technical, administrative, and financial assistance which is required to help low-income families and individuals more effectively to utilize existing programs, and which is required to enable nonprofit, cooperative, and public sponsors more effectively to take advantage of existing Federal, State, and local mortgage insurance and housing assistance programs. Where appropriate, such organizations may be nonprofit housing development corporations. Such corporations may themselves become sponsors of housing under existing programs of specialized housing agencies, but under no circumstances shall such corporations insure mortgages or duplicate the long-term capital financing functions of programs now administered by the specialized housing agencies. Housing development and service organizations shall coordinate their efforts with other community action agency efforts so that any programs undertaken under authority of this section shall be closely related to other community action programs, " P A R T B — F I N A N C I A L ASSISTANCE TO COMMUNITY ACTION PROGRAMS AND R E L A T E D ACT IV I T I E S "GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR F I N A N C I A L

ASSISTANCE

"SEC. 221. (a) The Director may provide financial assistance to community action agencies for the planning, conduct, administration and evaluation of community action programs and components. Those components may involve, without limitation, other activities and sup-

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