[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 54 (Thursday, April 26, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3982-S3983]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBALLY CONTROLLED POSTSECONDARY VOCATIONAL AND TECHNICAL INSTITUTIONS
Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I would like to engage the Chair of the
HELP Committee in a colloquy regarding eligibility for Section 117 of
the Carl Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act.
Section 117 authorizes funding for Tribally Controlled Postsecondary
Vocational and Technical Institutions. The funds have been awarded
annually to the two existing tribally controlled postsecondary
vocational institutions that are devoted to providing vocational and
technical education, United Tribes Technical College and Crownpoint
Institute of Technology. Historically, these two institutions have not
received assistance under the Tribally Controlled College and
University Assistance Act, so the Perkins funds are key to their
existence.
On March 28, 2001, the Department of Education issued a Request for
Proposals, RFP for funding under Section 117 that would open up funding
for this program to the tribal colleges. The Department is operating
under the mistaken view that the 1998 Perkins Amendments changed the
previous Perkins law with regard to eligibility for these funds. In
fact, it was not the intent of Congress to in any way alter eligibility
for Section 117 funding when it enacted the 1998 Perkins Amendments.
The members of the North Dakota and New Mexico delegations disagree
with the Department and have written to Secretary Paige stating our
view that the 1998 Perkins amendments did not change the eligibility
for what is now the Section 117 program. Do the Chairman and Ranking
Member of the HELP Committee agree with our view?
Mr. JEFFORDS. Yes, I agree with the view of the North Dakota and New
Mexico delegations. The 1998 amendments to the Perkins Act made no
substantive changes to the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Vocational
Institutions section of the law concerning eligibility. The section
that authorizes the grants retained the purpose of providing assistance
solely to institutions whose focus is vocational and technical
education.
Mr. DOMENICI. The Crownpoint Institute of Technology and United
Tribes Technical College depend on Perkins funding for their core
operational funds, and the Department should not make radical changes
in eligibility simply by issuing a new grant announcement. The 1992
regulations for the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Vocational
Institutions Program state, at 34 CFR 440.5, that tribal colleges are
not eligible for these funds. The regulations have not been changed.
Would the Ranking Member of the HELP Committee comment on this?
Mr. KENNEDY. The senior Senator from New Mexico is correct. The 1992
regulations have not been changed, nor has there been a need to change
them because the 1998 Perkins Amendments made no changes concerning
which institutions are eligible for the Tribally Controlled
Postsecondary Vocational Institutions funding.
Mr. DORGAN. I would like to inquire of the junior Senator from New
Mexico and a member of the HELP Committee, what difference, if any, was
made in the eligibility for the Tribally Controlled Postsecondary
Vocational Institutions funding in 1998?
Mr. BINGAMAN. No change was made. We included a parenthetical
reference to the definition of ``institution of higher education,''
this has no practical effect as both the 1990 and 1998 Perkins laws
require that a grant recipient be an institution of higher education.
The Department should continue providing grants for Section 117 under
the current regulations unless and until new regulations are issued
pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act. Crownpoint Institute of
Technology and United Tribes Technical College were intended to be the
only beneficiaries of this section.
Mr. DORGAN. Thank you. I would like to include for the Record a copy
of the letter from the North Dakota and New Mexico delegations to
Secretary Paige on this matter. I would also like included in the
Record a letter from Dr. Jim Shanley, President of the American Indian
Higher Education Consortium, objecting to the Department's RFP that
would open up the Section 117 program to the tribal colleges. Dr.
Shanley notes that such an
[[Page S3983]]
action would likely result in the closing of the doors of the tribally
controlled postsecondary vocational institutions.
The letters follow:
Washington, DC,
March 27, 2001.
Hon. Rod Paige,
Secretary of Education, U.S. Department of Education,
Washington, DC.
Dear Secretary Paige: We write to express serious concerns
about the process used by the Department of Education in
issuing the March 23, 2001, Federal Register grant
announcement for Section 117 of the Carl Perkins Vocational
and Technical Education Act. Section 117 is specific to
tribally controlled postsecondary vocational institutions, of
which there are two: United Tribes Technical College (UTTC)
and Crowpoint Institute of Technology (CIT).
We understand that the March 23 notice has been withdrawn
for technical reasons but that the Department intends to
reissue the notice shortly. The March 23 notice makes drastic
changes in Section 117 eligibility and uses of funds that are
inconsistent with the existing program regulations in 34 CFR
Part 410. The eligible applicant pool would be expanded to
include tribally-controlled community colleges for the first
time and the uses of the funds would be restricted.
If put into place, these changes could result in closure of
the two institutions that have depended on this funding for
their core operations. The Perkins funds support the ongoing
operations of UTTC and CIT, just as funding under the
Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities Act supports
the ongoing operations of tribal colleges. We ask that you
not reissue the notice regarding Section 117 but rather
engage in a formal rulemaking process. Pending that, the FY
2001 Perkins funds should be issued under the current
regulations.
We view the March 23 notice as an end-run around the
regulatory process; it is, in effect, a set of new
regulations without the benefit of any formal process or
consultation with the affected parties. The 1998 amendments
to the Perkins Act were signed into law on October 31, 1998--
almost two-and-a-half years ago--and no regulations have been
issued. Now the Department asserts that the 1998 amendments
``substantially revised'' the tribally controlled
postsecondary institutions program and wants to waive the
regulatory process on the grounds that there is no time to
issue regulations if the awards under Section 117 are to be
made in a timely manner. This is disingenuous and certainly
not in keeping with the federal government's policy of
working with tribes on a government-to-government basis,
including consultation with tribes and tribal organizations
on policy matters that will affect them.
Again, we urge you to direct that the March 23 grant
announcement not be reissued but rather use the existing
regulations for Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Vocational
Institutions for this grant period. If the Department feels
that new regulations are warranted for the 1998 Perkins Act
Amendments, such regulations should be issued through the
Administrative Procedures Act in consultation with the
affected tribal parties.
We appreciate your attention to this important matter.
Sincerely,
Kent Conrad,
Pete Domenici,
Byron L. Dorgan,
Jeff Bingaman,
U.S. Senate.
Earl Pomeroy,
Tom Udall,
U.S. House of Representatives.
____
American Indian
Higher Education Consortium,
Alexandria, VA, March 27, 2001.
Mr. Robert Muller,
Deputy Assistant Secretary (Acting), Office of Vocational and
Adult Education, Department of Education, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Muller: On behalf of the 32 Tribal Colleges and
Universities, I am writing to request your assistance with a
serious matter involving our two tribally-controlled
postsecondary vocational institutions, United Tribes
Technical College (UTTC) and Crownpoint Institute of
Technology (CIT). It has come to my attention that your
office is about to publish a solicitation opening up
eligibility requirements for Title I, Sec. 117; therefore,
significantly changing the intent of the program. It is of
great concern that no consultation has been done with our
institutions on this matter. To make this change would
seriously jeopardize the funding for UTTC and CIT's core
operations and force their closure.
Because of the immense ramifications of this action, we
strongly urge you to hold the solicitation to be published
March 28, 2002. We also request that appropriate consultation
occur with AIHEC, UTTC, and CIT as soon as possible so that
this matter can be resolved constructively and expeditiously.
It is important to note the value of these two institutions
and their historic role in providing vocational education
opportunities to American Indian students. UTTC and CIT were
founded because of limited access to opportunities in
vocational education in serving their respective tribal
communities. However, because these two institutions are
vocational in nature and did not meet the eligibility
requirements of the Tribally Controlled College Assistance
Act for core operational support, Sec. 117 was created by
AIHEC's advocacy efforts on their behalf.
Thank you for your immediate attention and consideration.
We look forward to your response. I can be reached at xxxx
xxxxxxxx/cell or xxxxxxxxxxxx until March 29th.
Respectively,
Dr. James Shanley,
President.
____________________