§ 70.1 Purpose and authority.

(a) This part implements section 955 of the National Affordable Housing Act (NAHA), which provides an exemption from the requirement to pay prevailing wage rates determined under the Davis-Bacon Act or (in the case of laborers and mechanics employed in the operation of public housing projects, and architects, technical engineers, draftsmen and technicians employed in the development of public housing projects) determined or adopted by HUD, for volunteers employed on projects that are subject to prevailing wage rates under Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (including Community Development Block Grants, section 108 loan guarantees, and Urban Development Action Grants), under section 12 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (public housing development and operation and section 8 projects), and under section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959 for elderly and handicapped housing projects prior to the effective date of the amendment of section 202 by section 801 of NAHA. This part also implements other provisions that provide an exemption for volunteers, including section 286 of NAHA (the HOME program), section 202 of the House Act of 1959, as amended by NAHA (supportive housing for the elderly), and any later-enacted exemptions. (b) This part is also applicable to all HUD programs for which there is a statutory provision allowing HUD to waive Davis-Bacon wage rates for volunteers that are not otherwise employed at any time on the work for which the individual volunteers. These programs include section 811 of NAHA (supportive housing for persons with disabilities), FHA mortgage insurance programs under sections 221(d)(3) and (d)(4) (each with respect to cooperative housing projects only), 221(h)(1) (but only where a nonprofit organization undertakes the construction), 235(j)(1) (but only where a nonprofit organization undertakes the construction), 231, 232, 236 and 242 of the National Housing Act, rehabilitation under section 312 of the Housing Act of 1964 and college housing under section 402 of the Housing Act of 1950. (c) This part provides definitions and procedures for determining allowable payments to volunteers, determining who is a bona fide volunteer, and otherwise implementing exemptions from and waivers of prevailing wage requirements where volunteers are employed.