Citizen Participation in the Community Development Block Grant Program. A Guidebook

摘要

This guidebook provides explanatory materials about the 1978 citizen participation requirements of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program for HUD personnel, local government staffs, and interested citizens. Beginning with an overview of the role of citizen involvement in community development, the guide describes the geographic scale of areas targeted for citizen participation, and identifies groups that must be included when forming advisory committees or during other processes. The importance of communication between public officials and citizens is emphasized in a discussion of disclosure and access standards for all records, publication of information and notices, public hearings, and community meetings. To fulfill the HUD requirement that citizen participation be continuous throughout all phases of a CDBG program, the roles of citizens' groups in the grant application, the operations of the actual project, and the final evaluation are detailed. Types of technical assistance that can be obtained by community organizations and procedures regarding citizen complaints about the program are also considered. Separate chapters cover citizen participation requirements for the small cities program and Urban Development Action Grants. The text of the HUD regulations on citizen participation in CDBG is appended and contains references to the guidebook that explain particular rules. A list of HUD area offices is provided.