As used in this part:

Governmental agency means the governor, legislature, and any other component of a federal, state, local, tribal, or Alaskan native village government with authority to act for or on behalf of that government.

State housing finance agency or SHFA means:

(1) A public agency, authority, or publicly sponsored corporation that serves as an instrumentality of any state or political subdivision of any state, and functions as a source of residential mortgage loan financing in that state; or

(2) A legally established agency, authority, corporation, or organization that serves as an instrumentality of any Indian tribe, band, group, nation, community, or Alaskan Native village recognized by the United States or any state, and functions as a source of residential mortgage loan financing for the Indian or Alaskan Native community.

Subject to the provisions of the Bank Act and part 1266 of this chapter, a Bank may make advances to an entity that is not a member of the Bank if the Bank has certified the entity as a housing associate under the provisions of this part.

(a) General. A Bank may certify as a housing associate any applicant that meets the following requirements, as determined using the criteria set forth in § 1264.4:

(1) The applicant is approved under title II of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1707, et seq.);

(2) The applicant is a chartered institution having succession;

(3) The applicant is subject to the inspection and supervision of some governmental agency;

(4) The principal activity of the applicant in the mortgage field consists of lending its own funds; and

(5) The financial condition of the applicant is such that advances may be safely made to it.

(b) State housing finance agencies. In addition to meeting the requirements in paragraph (a) of this section, any applicant seeking access to advances as a SHFA pursuant to § 1266.17(b)(2) of this chapter shall provide evidence satisfactory to the Bank, such as a copy of, or a citation to, the statutes and/or regulations describing the applicant's structure and responsibilities, that the applicant is a state housing finance agency as defined in § 1264.1.

(a) HUD approval requirement. An applicant shall be deemed to meet the requirement in section 10b(a) of the Bank Act (12 U.S.C. 1430b(a)) and § 1264.3(a)(1) that it be approved under title II of the National Housing Act if it submits a current HUD Yearly Verification Report or other documentation issued by HUD stating that the Federal Housing Administration of HUD has approved the applicant as a mortgagee.

(b) Charter requirement. An applicant shall be deemed to meet the requirement in section 10b(a) of the Bank Actand § 1264.3(a)(2) that it be a chartered institution having succession if it provides evidence satisfactory to the Bank, such as a copy of, or a citation to, the statutes and/or regulations under which the applicant was created, that:

(1) The applicant is a government agency; or

(2) The applicant is chartered under state, federal, local, tribal, or Alaskan Native village law as a corporation or other entity that has rights, characteristics, and powers under applicable law similar to those granted a corporation.

(c) Inspection and supervision requirement. (1) An applicant shall be deemed to meet the inspection and supervision requirement in section 10b(a) of the Bank Act (12 U.S.C. 1430b(a)) and § 1264.3(a)(3) if it provides evidence satisfactory to the Bank, such as a copy of, or a citation to, relevant statutes and/or regulations, that, pursuant to statute or regulation, the applicant is subject to the inspection and supervision of a federal, state, local, tribal, or Alaskan native village governmental agency.

(2) An applicant shall be deemed to meet the inspection requirement if there is a statutory or regulatory requirement that the applicant be audited or examined periodically by a governmental agency or by an external auditor.

(3) An applicant shall be deemed to meet the supervision requirement if the governmental agency has statutory or regulatory authority to remove an applicant's officers or directors for cause or otherwise exercise enforcement or administrative control over actions of the applicant.

(d) Mortgage activity requirement. An applicant shall be deemed to meet the mortgage activity requirement in section 10b(a) of the Bank Act (12 U.S.C. 1430b(a)) and § 1264.3(a)(4) if it provides documentary evidence satisfactory to the Bank, such as a financial statement or other financial documents that include the applicant's mortgage loan assets and their funding liabilities, that it lends its own funds as its principal activity in the mortgage field. For purposes of this paragraph, lending funds includes, but is not limited to, the purchase of whole mortgage loans. In the case of a federal, state, local, tribal, or Alaskan Native village government agency, appropriated funds shall be considered an applicant's own funds. An applicant shall be deemed to satisfy this requirement notwithstanding that the majority of its operations are unrelated to mortgage lending if its mortgage activity conforms to this requirement. An applicant that acts principally as a broker for others making mortgage loans, or whose principal activity is to make mortgage loans for the account of others, does not meet this requirement.

(e) Financial condition requirement. An applicant shall be deemed to meet the financial condition requirement in § 1264.3(a)(5) if the Bank determines that advances may be safely made to the applicant. The applicant shall submit to the Bank copies of its most recent regulatory audit or examination report, or external audit report, and any other documentary evidence, such as financial or other information, that the Bank may require to make the determination.

(a) Authority. The Banks are authorized to approve or deny all applications for certification as a housing associate, subject to the requirements of the Bank Act and this part. A Bank may delegate the authority to approve applications for certification as a housing associate only to a committee of the Bank's board of directors, the Bank president, or a senior officer who reports directly to the Bank president other than an officer with responsibility for business development.

(b) Application requirements. An applicant for certification as a housing associate shall submit an application that satisfies the requirements of the Bank Act and this part to the Bank of the district in which the applicant's principal place of business, as determined in accordance with part 925 of this title, is located.

(c) Bank decision process—(1) Action on applications. A Bank shall approve or deny an application for certification as a housing associate within 60 calendar days of the date the Bank deems the application to be complete. A Bank shall deem an application complete, and so notify the applicant in writing, when it has obtained all of the information required by this part and any other information it deems necessary to process the application. If a Bank determines during the review process that additional information is necessary to process the application, the Bank may deem the application incomplete and stop the 60-day time period by providing written notice to the applicant. When the Bank receives the additional information, it shall again deem the application complete, so notify the applicant in writing, and resume the 60-day time period where it stopped.

(2) Decision on applications. The Bank or a duly delegated committee of the Bank's board of directors, the Bank president, or a senior officer who reports directly to the Bank president other than an officer with responsibility for business development shall approve, or the board of directors of a Bank shall deny, each application for certification as a housing associate by a written decision resolution stating the grounds for the decision. Within three business days of a Bank's decision on an application, the Bank shall provide the applicant and the FHFA with a copy of the Bank's decision resolution.

(3) File. The Bank shall maintain a certification file for each applicant for at least three years after the date the Bank decides whether to approve or deny certification or the date the FHFA resolves any appeal, whichever is later. At a minimum, the certification file shall include all documents submitted by the applicant or otherwise obtained or generated by the Bank concerning the applicant, all documents the Bank relied upon in making its determination regarding certification, including copies of statutes and regulations, and the decision resolution.

(a) General. Within 90 calendar days of the date of a Bank's decision to deny an application for certification as a housing associate, the applicant may submit a written appeal to FHFA that includes the Bank's decision resolution and a statement of the basis for the appeal with sufficient facts, information, analysis and explanation to support the applicant's position. Send appeals to the Deputy Director for Federal Home Loan Bank Regulation, Federal Housing Finance Agency, 400 7th Street SW., Seventh Floor, Washington, DC 20219, with a copy to the Bank.

(b) Record for appeal. Upon receiving a copy of an appeal, the Bank whose action has been appealed shall provide to the FHFA a complete copy of the applicant's certification file maintained by the Bank under § 1264.5(c)(3). Until the FHFA resolves the appeal, the Bank shall promptly provide to the FHFA any relevant new materials it receives. The FHFA may request additional information or further supporting arguments from the applicant, the Bank, or any other party that the FHFA deems appropriate.

(c) Deciding appeals. Within 90 calendar days of the date an applicant files an appeal with the FHFA, the FHFA shall consider the record for appeal described in paragraph (b) of this section and resolve the appeal based on the requirements of the Bank Act and this part.