§ 3211 — Powers Of Secretary

(a) In carrying out the duties of the Secretary under this chapter, the Secretary may— (1) adopt, alter, and use a seal, which shall be judicially noticed; (2) subject to the civil service and classification laws, select, employ, appoint, and fix the compensation of such personnel as are necessary to carry out this chapter; (3) hold such hearings, sit and act at such times and places, and take such testimony, as the Secretary determines to be appropriate; (4) request directly, from any Federal agency, board, commission, office, or independent establishment, such information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics as the Secretary determines to be necessary to carry out this chapter (and each Federal agency, board, commission, office, or independent establishment may provide such information, suggestions, estimates, and statistics directly to the Secretary); (5) under regulations promulgated by the Secretary— (A) assign or sell at public or private sale, or otherwise dispose of for cash or credit, in the Secretary’s discretion and on such terms and conditions and for such consideration as the Secretary determines to be reasonable, any evidence of debt, contract, claim, personal property, or security assigned to or held by the Secretary in connection with assistance provided under this chapter; and (B) collect or compromise all obligations assigned to or held by the Secretary in connection with that assistance until such time as the obligations are referred to the Attorney General for suit or collection; (6) deal with, complete, renovate, improve, modernize, insure, rent, or sell for cash or credit, on such terms and conditions and for such consideration as the Secretary determines to be reasonable, any real or personal property conveyed to or otherwise acquired by the Secretary in connection with assistance provided under this chapter; (7) pursue to final collection, by means of compromise or other administrative action, before referral to the Attorney General, all claims against third parties assigned to the Secretary in connection with assistance provided under this chapter; (8) acquire, in any lawful manner, any property (real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible), to the extent appropriate in connection with assistance provided under this chapter; (9) in addition to any powers, functions, privileges, and immunities otherwise vested in the Secretary, take any action, including the procurement of the services of attorneys by contract, determined by the Secretary to be necessary or desirable in making, purchasing, servicing, compromising, modifying, liquidating, or otherwise administratively dealing with assets held in connection with financial assistance provided under this chapter; (A) employ experts and consultants or organizations as authorized by section 3109 of title 5 except that contracts for such employment may be renewed annually; (B) compensate individuals so employed, including compensation for travel time; and (C) allow individuals so employed, while away from their homes or regular places of business, travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, as authorized by section 5703 of title 5 for persons employed intermittently in the Federal Government service; (11) establish performance measures for grants and other assistance provided under this chapter, and use the performance measures to evaluate the economic impact of economic development assistance programs under this chapter, which establishment and use of performance measures shall be provided by the Secretary through— (A) officers or employees of the Department; (B) the employment of persons under contracts entered into for such purposes; or (C) grants to persons, using funds made available to carry out this chapter; (12) conduct environmental reviews and incur necessary expenses to evaluate and monitor the environmental impact of economic development assistance provided and proposed to be provided under this chapter, including expenses associated with the representation and defense of the actions of the Secretary relating to the environmental impact of the assistance, using any funds made available to carry out section 3147 of this title; (13) sue and be sued in any court of record of a State having general jurisdiction or in any United States district court, except that no attachment, injunction, garnishment, or other similar process, mesne or final, shall be issued against the Secretary or the property of the Secretary; and (14) establish such rules, regulations, and procedures as the Secretary considers appropriate for carrying out this chapter. (b) The authority under subsection (a)(7) to pursue claims shall include the authority to obtain deficiency judgments or otherwise pursue claims relating to mortgages assigned to the Secretary. (c) Section 6101 of title 41 shall not apply to any contract of hazard insurance or to any purchase or contract for services or supplies on account of property obtained by the Secretary as a result of assistance provided under this chapter if the premium for the insurance or the amount of the services or supplies does not exceed $1,000. (1) The powers of the Secretary under this section, relating to property acquired by the Secretary in connection with assistance provided under this chapter, shall extend to property interests of the Secretary relating to projects approved under— (A) this chapter; (B) title I of the Public Works Employment Act of 1976 (42 U.S.C. 6701 et seq.); (C) title II of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2251 et seq.); and (D) the Community Emergency Drought Relief Act of 1977 (42 U.S.C. 5184 note; Public Law 95–31). (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the Secretary may release, in whole or in part, any real property interest, or tangible personal property interest, in connection with a grant after the date that is 20 years after the date on which the grant was awarded. (i) of this title, the Secretary shall release, in accordance with this subparagraph, any Federal interest in connection with the grant, if— (I) the request is made not less than 7 years after the final disbursement of the original grant; (II) the recipient has complied with the terms and conditions of the grant to the satisfaction of the Secretary; (III) any proceeds realized from the grant will be used for 1 or more activities that continue to carry out the economic development purposes of this chapter; and (IV) the recipient includes in the written request a description of how the recipient will use the proceeds of the grant in accordance with subclause (III). (I) Except as provided in subclause (II), the Secretary shall complete all closeout actions for the grant by not later than 180 days after receipt and acceptance of the written request under clause (i). (II) The Secretary may extend a deadline under subclause (I) by an additional 180 days if the Secretary determines the extension to be necessary. (iii) Section 3212 of this title shall continue to apply to a project assisted with a grant under section 3149(d) 1 of this title regardless of whether the Secretary releases a Federal interest under clause (i). (e) The power to convey and to execute, in the name of the Secretary, deeds of conveyance, deeds of release, assignments and satisfactions of mortgages, and any other written instrument relating to real or personal property or any interest in such property acquired by the Secretary under this chapter may be exercised by the Secretary, or by any officer or agent appointed by the Secretary for that purpose, without the execution of any express delegation of power or power of attorney.