[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 41 (Thursday, February 29, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7779-7780]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-4609]



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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Submission of Data by State Educational Agencies

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of dates for submission of State revenue and expenditure 
reports for fiscal year 1995 and of revisions to those reports.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Education announces a date for the submission 
by State educational agencies (SEAs) of preliminary expenditure and 
revenue data and average daily attendance statistics for fiscal year 
(FY) 1995 and establishes a deadline for any revisions to that 
information. The Secretary sets these dates to ensure that data are 
available to serve as the basis for timely distribution of Federal 
funds. The U.S. Bureau of the Census is the data collection agent for 
the Department's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The 
data will be published by NCES and will be used by the Secretary in the 
calculation of allocations for FY 1997 appropriated funds.

DATE: The suggested date for submission of preliminary data is March 
15, 1996. 

[[Page 7780]]
The mandatory deadline for submission of final data, including 
revisions to preliminary data, is September 3, 1996.

ADDRESSES: SEAs are urged to mail or hand deliver ED Form 2447 (The 
National Public Education Financial Survey--Fiscal Year 1995) by the 
first date specified in this notice. SEAs must mail or hand deliver 
final data and any revisions to preliminary data on or before the 
mandatory deadline date to--Bureau of the Census, Attn: Governments 
Division, Washington, DC 20233-0001.
    An SEA may hand deliver any revisions to--Bureau of the Census, 
Governments Division, Room 508, 8905 Presidential Parkway, Washington 
Plaza II, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, 20772, by 4 p.m. (Washington, DC 
time) on or before the mandatory deadline date.
    If an SEA's submission is received by the Bureau of the Census 
after the mandatory deadline date, in order for the submission to be 
accepted, the SEA must show one of the following as proof that the 
submission was mailed on or before the mandatory deadline date:
    (1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark.
    (2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the 
U.S. Postal Service.
    (3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial 
carrier.
    (4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary.
    If the SEA mails ED Form 2447 through the U.S. Postal Service, the 
Secretary does not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
    (1) A private metered postmark.
    (2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.

    Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated 
postmark. Before relying on this method, an SEA should check with 
its local post office.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Lawrence R. MacDonald, Chief, 
Governments Division, at the Maryland address specified above or by 
telephone: (301) 457-1563. 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: Under the authority of section 404(a) of the 
National Education Statistics Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 9003(a)), which 
authorizes NCES to gather data on the financing of education, NCES 
collects data annually from SEAs through ED Form 2447. The report from 
SEAs includes attendance, revenue, and expenditure data from which NCES 
determines the average State per pupil expenditure (SPPE) for 
elementary and secondary education.
    In addition to using SPPE data as useful information on the 
financing of elementary and secondary education, the Secretary uses 
these data directly in calculating allocations for certain formula 
grant programs, including Title I of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Improving America's Schools 
Act of 1994 (Title I), Impact Aid, and Indian Education. Other programs 
such as The Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program under 
Title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, the 
Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development Program, and the Safe and 
Drug-Free Schools and Communities Program make use of SPPE data 
indirectly because their formulas are based, in whole or in part, on 
State Title I allocations.
    In February 1996, the Bureau of the Census, acting as the data 
collection agent for NCES, will mail to SEAs ED Form 2447 with 
instructions and will request that SEAs submit initial data to the 
Bureau of the Census by March 15, 1996. If an SEA does not submit 
initial FY 1995 data on ED Form 2447 on or about March 15, 1996, it 
should inform Census, in writing, of the delay and the date by which it 
will submit FY 1995 data. Submissions by SEAs to the Bureau of the 
Census are checked for accuracy and returned to each SEA for 
verification. NCES recognizes that data submitted prior to September 3, 
1996, may be preliminary. In any case, all data, including any 
revisions to preliminary submissions, must be submitted to the Bureau 
of the Census by an SEA not later than September 3, 1996.
    To ensure timely distribution of Federal education funds based on 
the best, most accurate data available, NCES establishes, for 
allocation purposes, September 3, 1996 as the final date by which ED 
Form 2447 must be submitted. However, if an SEA submits revised data 
after the final deadline that results in a lower SPPE figure, its 
allocations may be adjusted downward or the Department may request the 
SEA to return funds. SEAs should be aware that all of these data are 
subject to audit and that, if any inaccuracies are discovered in the 
audit process, the Department may seek recovery of overpayments for the 
applicable programs.

    Authority: 20 U.S.C. 9003(a).

    Dated: February 23, 1996.
Sharon P. Robinson,
Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement.
[FR Doc. 96-4609 Filed 2-28-96; 8:45 am]
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