[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 36 (Thursday, February 22, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 6791-6793]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-3931]



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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families

45 CFR Part 1370

RIN 0970-AB21


Family Violence Prevention and Services Programs

AGENCY: Administration for Children and Families (ACF), HHS.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This final rule establishes requirements for sections 303, 
308, 311, and 314 of the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act, 
as amended, and provides States, Indian tribes and other grantees with 
information on grants available under these sections of the statute.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 25, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Administration for Children and Families, Office of 
Community Services, Fifth Floor, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW., 
Washington, DC 20447.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William D. Riley, (202) 401-5529.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Sections 311(h) and 312(a) of the Family 
Violence Prevention and Services Act, as amended, require the Secretary 
to publish regulations implementing sections 303, 308, 311, and 314, of 
the Act. These final regulations address this requirement.

Program Description

    The Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (the Act) 
authorizes formula and discretionary grant programs which fund a range 
of activities designed to both prevent family violence and provide 
services to victims of family violence. Enacted as title III of the 
Child Abuse Amendments of 1984, the Act was amended and reauthorized by 
Public Law 102-295, the Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Adoption, and 
Family Services Act of 1992. The Act was further amended by Public Law 
103-322, the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, 
also known as the ``Crime Bill''.
    Under section 303 of the Act, funds are awarded as formula grants 
to States and Indian tribes and tribal organizations to assist in 
supporting activities to prevent incidents of family violence and to 
provide immediate shelter and related assistance for victims of family 
violence and their dependents. These grants have supplemented many 
already established community-based family violence prevention and 
service activities. They also have allowed States and tribes to expand 
current service programs and establish additional new shelters in rural 
and underserved areas, on reservations, and in Alaskan Native Villages 
and Regional Corporation Areas. In most areas, there is private sector 
as well as State and local funding for these emergency shelters.
    Under section 311 of the Act, added by the 1992 amendments, formula 
grants are available to private non-profit State domestic violence 
coalitions to conduct domestic violence intervention and prevention 
activities and to increase public awareness of domestic violence 
issues. Grant funds support training and technical assistance 
activities as well as public education services.
    The 1992 amendments also added a new section 308 to the Act which 
requires the Secretary to establish and maintain a national resource 
center for family violence prevention and services and up to six 
special issue resource centers. The Crime Bill increased the allowed 
number of special issue resource centers to seven. The purpose of the 
national resource center and the special issue resource centers is to 
offer resource, policy, and technical assistance and training 
assistance to Federal, State, and local government agencies, to 
domestic violence service providers, and to other professionals and 
interested parties on issues pertaining to domestic violence.
    Currently, the national resource center maintains a central 
resource library to collect and disseminate information relating to the 
incidence and prevention of family violence and the provision of 
immediate shelter and related assistance. The special interest resource 
centers provide a specialization, on a nationwide basis, in at least 
one area of domestic violence service, prevention, or law.
    Discretionary grants also are awarded under section 314 of the Act 
to public and private non-profit agencies, including Indian tribes and 
tribal organizations to assist in the development of public information 
and community awareness campaign activities that will serve as 
information models for the prevention of family violence.

Approach to Writing the Final Rule

    A notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) was published in the Federal 
Register on December 10, 1993 (58 FR 64920). Two letters containing 
comments were received in response to the NPRM. Later in the preamble, 
we summarize the comments and respond to them. No changes have been 
made to the regulation in response to comments received.
    In February of 1995, the President announced a Regulatory 
Reinvention Initiative as part of the National Performance Review, 
calling for more immediate, comprehensive regulatory reform. As part of 
this initiative, he directed all agencies to undertake an exhaustive 
review of all regulations--with an eye toward eliminating or modifying 
those that are obsolete or which are otherwise in need of reform. With 
this in mind, we reexamined the language in the NPRM to see whether the 
final regulation could achieve the same objectives in a simpler, more 
consistent, and more flexible manner.
    The NPRM generally did not reiterate the statute or list all 
applicable regulations. Rather, it stated broadly that grantees must 
meet the statutory requirements of the Act as well as all applicable 
regulations, and it referenced the pertinent program funding 
announcements in each of the four sections of the proposed rule. The 
program funding announcements, which are published in the Federal 
Register, describe the relevant statutory and regulatory requirements, 
as well as 

[[Page 6792]]
information about funding availability and the grant application 
process.
    The final rule retains the approach outlined in the NPRM while 
removing several unnecessary paragraphs to improve regulatory 
flexibility and consistency. The NPRM listed financial and program 
reporting requirements for grantees under paragraphs (b) and (c) of 
section 1370.2, paragraphs (b) and (c) of section 1370.3, paragraphs 
(b) and (c) of section 1370.4, and paragraphs (b) and (c) of section 
1370.5. After careful reexamination, we have removed these paragraphs 
from the NPRM. Also, we have added clarifying language in sections 
1370.2, 1370.3, 1370.4, and 1370.5 of the final rule which makes clear 
that all applicable reporting requirements are to be found in the 
program funding announcements.
    For similar reasons, we have removed paragraphs (d) and (e) of 
Sec. 1370.2 of the NPRM to be consistent with the way in which the 
final rule treats other statutory requirements. Paragraphs (d) and (e), 
which concern State and Indian Tribal formula grants, spelled out 
certain statutorily-related provisions concerning confidentiality of 
records and tribal authorization requirements. Because they are 
described in the funding announcement for the State and Indian Tribal 
formula grant program, they do not need to be repeated in the 
regulatory text. We have added clarifying language that applicable 
statutory requirements are described in the program funding 
announcements.
    No other changes have been made to the notice of proposed 
rulemaking.

Discussion of Part 1370--Family Violence Prevention and Services 
Programs

Purpose (Sec. 1370.1)

    This section states that sections 303, 308, 311, and 314 of the 
Family Violence Prevention and Services Act are addressed in 45 CFR 
Part 1370 and states that all programs authorized under the Act are 
funded subject to the availability of funds.

State and Indian Tribal Grants (Sec. 1370.2)

    This section establishes requirements for formula grants to States 
and Indian tribes and tribal organizations under section 303 of the 
Act.

Information and Technical Assistance Center Grants (Sec. 1370.3)

    This section establishes requirements to support a national 
resource center and up to seven special issue resource centers under 
section 308 of the Act.

State Domestic Violence Coalition Grants (Sec. 1370.4)

    This section establishes requirements for formula grants to State 
domestic violence coalitions under section 311 of the Act.

Public Information Campaign Grants (Sec. 1370.5)

    This section establishes requirements to fund discretionary grants 
for public information campaigns under section 314 of the Act.

Discussion of Comments Received

    Two letters containing comments were received in response to the 
notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Federal Register on 
December 10, 1993. One commenter represented a State program and the 
other represented a national association.
    The comments are summarized below and are followed by the 
Department's response.
    Comment: One commenter, representing a State program, concurred 
with the rules and procedures proposed in the NPRM. The commenter also 
stressed the need for State and Indian tribal grantees to have an 
active, collaborative relationship with recipients of grants under 
those sections of the Act covered by the regulation and recommended 
that the Federal government establish guidelines for such 
collaboration.
    Response: We agree with the commenter about the importance of 
collaboration among grantees, other governmental agencies, 
organizations, and individuals involved in family violence prevention 
and service activities. Currently, recipients of the State Domestic 
Violence Coalition grants participate with the State family violence 
grantees in monitoring and compliance activities. In addition, the 
national resource center and the three special issue resource centers 
we have funded have formed collaborative and participatory 
relationships not only with State and tribal grantees but with other 
organizations, scholars, practitioners, and individuals in the areas of 
domestic violence prevention and services. We believe that, rather than 
enacting a single set of Federal guidelines for collaboration, it is 
preferable to retain the option of promoting collaboration through a 
variety of methods which can be periodically reviewed and easily 
refined or augmented where necessary.
    Comment: A commenter from a national association noted that family 
violence programs have the potential to offer needed services, 
information and support to older persons who are the victims of 
violence occurring in the context of family relationships. The 
commenter encouraged the Department of Health and Human Services to 
obtain information from grantees concerning the extent to which older 
people are served through the programs and to seek information about 
good practices regarding services to older victims and prevention 
activities targeted to older persons.
    Response: Recipients of State and Indian tribal formula grants are 
asked to submit annual program activity reports which contain, among 
other things, a description of the characteristics and demographics of 
the persons served by service or activity. The reports also describe 
the major activities supported by the Family Violence Prevention and 
Services Act funds and the specific priorities addressed by the State, 
tribe or tribal organization as well as describing the prevention 
activities supported during the program year. We expect the annual 
reports to provide information on the numbers of elderly served and on 
the types of activities and services which affect this population. In 
addition, the Administration on Aging, in cooperation with the 
Administration for Children and Families, in the Department of Health 
and Human Services is currently funding a study of elder abuse in 
domestic settings. The study is being carried out by the National 
Center on Elder Abuse.

Regulatory Procedures

Executive Order 12866

    Executive Order 12866 requires that regulations be reviewed to 
ensure that they are consistent with the priorities and principles set 
forth in the Executive Order. The Department has determined that this 
rule is consistent with these priorities and principles. No costs are 
associated with this rule.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act (Pub. L. 96-354) requires the 
Federal government to anticipate and reduce the impact of regulations 
and paperwork requirements on small entities. The primary impact of 
these rules is on State governments, non-profit organizations and 
individuals. We certify that these rules will not have a significant 
impact on a substantial number of small entities because they simply 
establish procedures for grant applications and include no standards or 
requirements which would burden small entities. Thus, a regulatory 
flexibility analysis is not required. 

[[Page 6793]]


Paperwork Reduction Act

    The regulation contains no information collection requirements 
which are subject to review and approval by OMB under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 45 CFR Part 1370

    Aged, Child welfare, Grant programs--Social programs, Domestic 
violence, Family violence, Spouse abuse, Elder abuse and neglect.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Programs: 93.671, Family 
Violence Prevention and Services Program)

    Dated: January 31, 1996.
Mary Jo Bane,
Assistant Secretary for Children and Families.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, Title 45, Chapter XIII, 
of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended by adding a new 
subchapter H consisting of part 1370 to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER H--FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND SERVICES

PART 1370--FAMILY VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND SERVICES PROGRAMS

Sec.
1370.1  Purpose.
1370.2  State and Indian tribal grants.
1370.3  Information and technical assistance center grants.
1370.4  State domestic violence coalition grants.
1370.5  Public information campaign grants.

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 10401 et seq.


Sec. 1370.1   Purpose.

    This part addresses sections 303, 308, 311, and 314 of the Family 
Violence Prevention and Services Act (the Act), as amended (42 U.S.C. 
10401 et seq.). The Act authorizes the Secretary to implement programs 
for the purposes of increasing public awareness about and preventing 
family violence; providing immediate shelter and related assistance for 
victims of family violence and their dependents; and providing for 
technical assistance and training relating to family violence programs 
to States, tribes, local public agencies (including law enforcement 
agencies, courts, legal, social service, and health care 
professionals), non-profit private organizations and other persons 
seeking such assistance. All programs authorized under the Act are 
funded subject to the availability of funds.


Sec. 1370.2   State and Indian tribal grants.

    Each grantee awarded funds under section 303 of the Act must meet 
the statutory requirements of the Act and all applicable regulations. 
An announcement which describes the application process, including 
information on statutory requirements, other applicable regulations, 
and any required financial and program reports, is published in the 
Federal Register.


Sec. 1370.3   Information and technical assistance center grants.

    Each grantee awarded funds under section 308 of the Act must meet 
the statutory requirements of the Act and all applicable regulations. 
An announcement which describes the application process, including 
information on statutory requirements, other applicable regulations, 
and any required financial and program reports, is published in the 
Federal Register.


Sec. 1370.4   State domestic violence coalition grants.

    Each grantee awarded funds under section 311 of the Act must meet 
the statutory requirements of the Act and all applicable regulations. 
An announcement which describes the application process, including 
information on statutory requirements, other applicable regulations, 
and any required financial and program reports, is published in the 
Federal Register.


Sec. 1370.5   Public information campaign grants.

    Each grantee awarded funds under section 314 of the Act must meet 
the statutory requirements of the Act and all applicable regulations. 
An announcement which describes the application process, including 
information on statutory requirements, other applicable regulations, 
and any required financial and program reports, is published in the 
Federal Register.

[FR Doc. 96-3931 Filed 2-21-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-P