9.7—How does the Secretary communicate with state and local officials concerning the Department's programs and activities?
(a)
For those programs and activities covered by a state process under § 9.6, the Secretary, to the extent permitted by law:
(2)
Communicates with state and local elected officials, through the state process, as early in a program planning cycle as in reasonably feasible to explain specific plans and actions.
(b)
The Secretary provides notice to directly affected state, areawide, regional, and local entities in a state of proposed federal financial assistance or direct federal development if:
(2)
The assistance or development involves a program or activity not selected for the state process.