[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 142 (Tuesday, July 26, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-18073]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: July 26, 1994]


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Part IV





Department of Education





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Special Demonstrations; Projects With Industry; Notice
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

RIN 1820-ZA00

 
Special Demonstrations; Projects With Industry

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Priorities.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes priorities under the following programs 
administered by the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services (OSERS): (1) Special Projects and Demonstrations for Providing 
Vocational Rehabilitation Services to Individuals with Disabilities, 
(2) Special Projects and Demonstrations for Providing Transitional 
Rehabilitation Services to Youth with Disabilities, and (3) Projects 
with Industry (PWI). The proposed priorities are intended to expand 
employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities through the 
provision of vocational rehabilitation services. In addition, the 
proposed priorities provide for a competitive preference to be given to 
projects providing program services in an Empowerment Zone or 
Enterprise Community designated under section 1391 of the Internal 
Revenue Code, as amended by title XIII of the Omnibus Budget 
Reconciliation Act of 1993.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 25, 1994.

ADDRESSES: All comments concerning these proposed priorities should be 
addressed to Thomas Finch, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland 
Avenue, S.W., Room 3038 MES, Washington, D.C. 20202-2740.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Thomas Finch. Telephone: (202) 205-
9796. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf 
(TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-
877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through 
Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice contains proposed priorities 
under the following programs:

Special Projects and Demonstrations for Providing Vocational 
Rehabilitation Services to Individuals with Disabilities.
Special Projects and Demonstrations for Providing Transitional 
Rehabilitation Services to Youth with Disabilities.
Projects With Industry.

    The Secretary is soliciting public comments on (1) The proposed 
competitive priority for providing program services in an Empowerment 
Zone or Enterprise Community under all three programs and (2) the 
proposed absolute priority for Transitional Rehabilitation Services for 
Youths and Young Adults with Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED) or 
Serious Mental Illness (SMI).
    The purpose of each program is stated separately under the title of 
that program.
    The Secretary will announce the final priorities in a notice in the 
Federal Register. The final priorities will be determined by responses 
to this notice, available funds, and other considerations of the 
Department. Funding of particular projects depends on the availability 
of funds, the nature of the final priorities, and the quality of the 
applications received. The publication of these proposed priorities 
does not preclude nor limit the Secretary from proposing additional 
priorities, nor does it limit the Secretary to funding only these 
priorities, subject to meeting applicable rulemaking requirements.

    Note: This notice of proposed priorities does not solicit 
applications. A notice inviting applications under these 
competitions will be published in the Federal Register concurrent 
with or following publication of the notice of final priorities.

Priority Relating To Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities

    Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i), the Secretary proposes to give a 
competitive preference to applications that are otherwise eligible for 
funding under the three programs and that meet the following priority. 
The Secretary may implement this priority for fiscal year 1995 and for 
any later fiscal year. The Secretary proposes to award 10 bonus points 
to an application that meets this competitive priority. These bonus 
points would be in addition to any points the application earns under 
the selection criteria for the program:

Proposed Competitive Priority--Providing Program Services in an 
Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Community Background

    The Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community program is a critical 
element of the Administration's community revitalization strategy. The 
program is a first step in rebuilding communities in America's poverty-
stricken inner cities and rural heartlands. It is designed to empower 
people and communities by inspiring Americans to work together to 
create jobs and opportunity.
    Under this program, the Federal Government will designate up to 9 
areas as Empowerment Zones and up to 95 areas as Enterprise Communities 
in accordance with Internal Revenue Code (IRC) section 1391, as amended 
by title XIII of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 (Pub. L. 
103-66). To be eligible for designation, an area must be nominated by 
one or more local governments and the State or States in which it is 
located or by a State-Chartered Economic Development Corporation. A 
nominated area must be one of pervasive poverty, unemployment, and 
general distress, and must have a poverty rate of not less than the 
level specified in section 1392 of the IRC.
    In the Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community program, 
communities are invited to submit strategic plans that comprehensively 
address how the community would link economic development with 
education and training as well as how community development, public 
safety, human services, and environmental initiatives will together 
support sustainable communities. Empowerment Zones and Enterprise 
Communities will be designated by the Department of Agriculture and the 
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) based on the quality 
of their strategic plans. Designated areas will receive Federal grant 
funds and substantial tax benefits and will have access to other 
Federal programs. (For additional information on the Empowerment Zone 
and Enterprise Community program, contact HUD at 1-800-998-9999.)
    The Department of Education is supporting the Empowerment Zone and 
Enterprise Community initiative in a variety of ways. It is encouraging 
Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities to use funds they already 
receive from Department of Education programs (including Chapter 1 of 
Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the Drug-Free 
Schools and Community Act, the Adult Education Act, and the Carl D. 
Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act) to support the 
comprehensive vision of their strategic plans. In addition, the 
Department of Education intends to give preferences to Empowerment 
Zones and Enterprise Communities in a number of discretionary grant 
programs that are well-suited for inclusion in a comprehensive approach 
to economic and community development. In addition to the Projects With 
Industry program and the Special Demonstrations programs under the 
Rehabilitation Act, the Department intends to give preferences to 
Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities in the National Workplace 
Literacy program, the Urban Community Service program, the Parent 
Training program and Early Childhood Education program under the 
Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, and a variety of 
discretionary programs under the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act.

Relationship of the PWI and Special Demonstrations Programs to the 
Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Community Program

    The Special Demonstrations program for providing vocational 
rehabilitation services makes grants to expand or otherwise improve 
vocational and other rehabilitation services to individuals with 
disabilities, especially those with the most severe disabilities. 
Vocational rehabilitation services may include training with a view 
toward career advancement, training (including on-the-job training) in 
occupational skills, and rehabilitation technology services.
    The Special Demonstrations program for providing transitional 
services to youths with disabilities focuses on the delivery of job 
training services. The goal of the services is to facilitate a smooth 
transition of youths from school to work or to higher education.
    Services under both of these Special Demonstrations programs are 
designed to assist individuals with disabilities to live and function 
as contributing members of society by enhancing their opportunities for 
employment. Minorities with disabilities, people living with HIV/AIDS, 
and youths and young adults with serious emotional disturbance or 
serious mental illness are among the populations with a high incidence 
of unemployment and poverty.
    The purpose of the PWI program is to create and expand job and 
career opportunities for individuals with disabilities in the 
competitive labor market by engaging the talent and leadership of 
private industry as partners in the rehabilitation process; to identify 
competitive job and career opportunities and the skills needed to 
perform those jobs; to create practical settings for job readiness and 
training programs; and to provide job placements and career 
advancement. In order to support the purpose of the program, all PWI 
projects are required to have a Business Advisory Council comprised of 
representatives of private industry, business concerns, organized 
labor, and individuals with disabilities and their representatives.
    The PWI and Special Demonstrations programs under the 
Rehabilitation Act are ideally suited to play a key role in the 
Empowerment Zone and Enterprise Community program because studies have 
shown strong correlations between disability and unemployment and 
between disability and poverty. These rehabilitation programs serve a 
common purpose: to provide assistance to individuals with disabilities 
in obtaining gainful employment. Employment is achieved by providing 
job training, job placement, transition services, and related 
vocational rehabilitation services to individuals with disabilities. 
Just as Empowerment Zones and Enterprise Communities link economic 
development and education and training efforts, the Rehabilitation 
Special Demonstrations and PWI programs support projects that 
strengthen communities by preparing individuals with disabilities for 
employment in local businesses.
    Provision of rehabilitation services in an urban or rural high-
poverty area that has developed a strategic plan to link economic 
development to education, training, public safety, and human services 
will also help achieve the purpose of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 
as amended (Act), to empower individuals with disabilities to maximize 
employment, economic self-sufficiency, independence, and inclusion and 
integration into society. Moreover, providing services in a zone or 
community will help support the purpose of section 21 of the Act to 
ensure that the needs of individuals with disabilities from minority 
backgrounds and from other traditionally underserved populations are 
addressed.
    Communities receiving designations as Empowerment Zones or 
Enterprise Communities already have demonstrated a capacity for the 
type of cooperative planning that is critical to successful 
rehabilitation partnerships. Projects funded under these programs will 
provide models for partnerships in other distressed areas and will 
further the National Education Goal that, by the year 2000, every adult 
American will be literate and will possess the knowledge and skills 
necessary to compete in the global economy and exercise the rights and 
responsibilities of citizenship.
    Accordingly, the Secretary has determined that it would serve the 
purposes of the three programs in this notice to award a competitive 
preference to applications that propose projects that serve these zones 
and communities.

Proposed Priority

    Under each of the following programs, competitive preference will 
be given to applications that--(1) Propose the provision of substantial 
services in Empowerment Zones or Enterprise Communities, as described 
under each program listed in this notice; and (2) propose projects that 
contribute to the strategic plan of the Empowerment Zone or Enterprise 
Community and that are made an integral component of the Empowerment 
Zone or Enterprise Community activities. The ten bonus points will be 
assigned to applications determined to be approvable on the basis of 
their evaluation under the applicable program selection criteria.

Special Projects and Demonstrations For Providing Vocational 
Rehabilitation Services To Individuals With Disabilities

Purpose of Program

    This program is designed to provide financial assistance to 
projects for expanding or otherwise improving vocational rehabilitation 
and other rehabilitation services for individuals with disabilities, 
especially individuals with the most severe disabilities.

Proposed Competitive Priority

    Competitive preference of 10 bonus points will be given to 
applications that meet the 2 requirements described previously under 
the proposed competitive priority for providing program services in an 
Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Community.
    Under this program a project is considered to be providing 
substantial services if a minimum of 51 percent of the persons served 
by the project reside within the Empowerment Zone or Enterprise 
Community.

Proposed Invitational Priorities

    Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) the Secretary is particularly interested 
in applications that meet one or more of the following invitational 
priorities. However, an application that meets one or more of these 
invitational priorities does not receive competitive or absolute 
preference over the other applications:

Proposed Invitational Priority 1--Services to Minorities

    The Secretary is particularly interested in applications that 
propose to provide culturally sensitive vocational rehabilitation 
services and that propose to make significant efforts to identify and 
serve individuals with disabilities form minority backgrounds.

Proposed Invitational Priority 2--Services to People Living with HIV/
AIDS

    The Secretary is particularly interested in applications that 
propose to provide vocational rehabilitation services to people living 
with HIV/AIDS.
    Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR Parts 369 and 373.


    Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 777a(a)(1)

Special Projects and Demonstrations For Providing Transitional 
Rehabilitation Services To Youth With Disabilities

Purpose of Program:

    This program is designed to provide job training for youths with 
disabilities to prepare them for entry into the labor force, including 
competitive or supported employment.
Competition I
    The Secretary is conducting a general competition under section 
311(b) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, to provide 
transitional rehabilitation services to youths with disabilities. Under 
that competition the following competitive priority will apply:

Proposed Competitive Priority

    Competitive preference of 10 bonus points will be given to 
applications that meet the 2 requirements described previously under 
the proposed competitive priority for providing program services in an 
Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Community.
    Under this program a project is considered to be providing 
substantial services if a minimum of 51 percent of the persons served 
by the project reside within the Empowerment Zone or Enterprise 
Community.
Competition II
    Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) and section 311(b) of the Rehabilitation 
Act of 1973, as amended, the Secretary proposes to give an absolute 
preference to applications that meet the following priority. The 
Secretary proposes to fund under this competition only applications 
that meet this absolute priority:

Proposed Absolute Priority--Transitional Rehabilitation Services For 
Youths and Young Adults With Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED) or 
Serious Mental Illness (SMI) Background

    Young adults, between the ages of 17 and 26, with serious emotional 
disturbance or serious mental illness are perhaps the most underserved 
individuals with disabilities. It is estimated that 4 to 9 percent of 
the total population of young adults exhibit these disorders, but fewer 
than 1.5 percent are provided services (Kauffman 1989). Youth with SED 
or SMI display inappropriate behaviors or feelings that seriously 
impair their abilities to work, live, and function successfully and 
effectively in society. The outcome of successful integrated community 
employment appears to be facilitated by a well-coordinated, multi-
dimensional service approach that uses community-based vocational 
services, the peer group as a supportive setting, job training combined 
with other training services that address work-related topics, such as 
stress management, substance abuse, and medication issues, and 
individualized long-term supportive services (Cook 1991).

Priority

    The purpose of this priority is to support demonstration projects 
that develop model systems of comprehensive service delivery to youths 
and young adults, ages 17 through 26. Projects must provide job 
training services to youths and young adults with SED or SMI to prepare 
them for entry into the labor force.

Proposed Competitive Priority

    Competitive preference of 10 bonus points will be given to 
applications that, in addition to meeting the absolute priority 
described under this competition, meet the 2 requirements described 
previously under the proposed competitive priority for providing 
program services in an Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Community.
    Under this program a project is considered to be providing 
substantial services if a minimum of 51 percent of the persons served 
by the project reside within the Empowerment Zone or Enterprise 
Community.
    Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR Parts 369 and 376.

    Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 777a(b).

Projects With Industry (PWI)

Purpose of Program

    Projects With Industry projects create and expand job and career 
opportunities for individuals with disabilities in the competitive 
labor market by engaging the talent and leadership of private industry 
as partners in the rehabilitation process. PWI projects identify 
competitive job and career opportunities and the skills needed to 
perform those jobs, create practical settings for job readiness and 
training programs, and provide job placement and career advancement 
services.

Eligibility Requirement

    Under section 621(e)(2) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as 
amended, new grant awards under this program can be made only to 
eligible entities identified in the program regulations in 34 CFR 379.2 
that propose to provide services to individuals with disabilities in 
States, portions of States, Indian tribes, or tribal organizations that 
are currently unserved or underserved by the PWI program. Each 
applicant is required to explain in its application why the geographic 
area in which it proposes to provide services is currently unserved or 
underserved by the PWI program.

Proposed Competitive Priority

    Competitive preference of 10 bonus points will be given to 
applications that meet the 2 requirements described previously under 
the proposed competitive priority for providing program services in an 
Empowerment Zone or Enterprise Community.
    A PWI project may provide services at one or more sites. Under this 
program a PWI project is considered to be providing substantial 
services in a zone or community if a minimum of 51 percent of the total 
number of persons served by the project, irrespective of the number of 
sites, reside in a zone or community and at least 1 of the project 
sites is located within the boundaries of a zone or community. If there 
is only one project site, it must be located within the boundaries of a 
zone or community.
    Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR Parts 369 and 379.

    Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 795g.

Executive Order 12866

    This notice of proposed priorities has been reviewed in accordance 
with Executive Order 12866. Under the terms of the order the Secretary 
has assessed the potential costs and benefits of this regulatory 
action.
    The potential costs associated with the notice of proposed 
priorities are those resulting from statutory requirements and those 
determined by the Secretary as necessary for administering this program 
effectively and efficiently.
    In assessing the potential costs and benefits--both quantitative 
and qualitative--of this notice of proposed priorities, the Secretary 
has determined that the benefits of the proposed priorities justify the 
costs.
    The Secretary has also determined that this regulatory action does 
not unduly interfere with State, local, and tribal governments in the 
exercise of their governmental functions.
    To assist the Department in complying with the specific 
requirements of Executive Order 12866, the Secretary invites comment on 
whether there may be further opportunities to reduce any potential 
costs or increase potential benefits resulting from these proposed 
priorities without impeding the effective and efficient administration 
of the program.

Intergovernmental Review

    These programs are subject to the requirements of Executive Order 
12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. The objective of the 
Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and a 
strengthened federalism by relying on processes developed by State and 
local governments for coordination and review of proposed Federal 
financial assistance.
    In accordance with the order, this document is intended to provide 
early notification of the Department's specific plans and actions for 
these programs.

Invitation To Comment

    Interested persons are invited to submit comments and 
recommendations regarding these proposed priorities.
    All comments submitted in response to this notice will be available 
for public inspection, during and after the comment period, in room 
3038, Mary E. Switzer Building, 330 C Street, SW., Washington, DC, 
between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday of 
each week except Federal holidays.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers: 84.235 Special 
Projects and Demonstrations for Providing Vocational Rehabilitation 
Services to Individuals with Disabilities; 84.235 Special Projects 
and Demonstrations for Providing Transitional Rehabilitation 
Services to Youth with Disabilities; and 84.234 Projects With 
Industry)

    Dated: June 17, 1994.
Judith E. Heumann,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 94-18073 Filed 7-25-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P-M