WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today proposed new regulations to strengthen its authority to force certain lenders to indemnify or reimburse the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) for insurance claims paid on mortgages that are found not to meet the agency's guidelines. In addition, HUD's proposed rule would require all new and existing lenders with the ability to insure mortgages on HUD's behalf ("Lender Insurance" mortgagee) to meet stricter performance standards to gain and maintain their approval status.