[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 71 (Tuesday, April 14, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Page 18257]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-9768]


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DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS


Rehabilitation Research and Development Service Scientific Merit 
Review Board; Notice of Meeting

    The Department of Veterans Affairs gives notice under Public Law 
92-463 (Federal Advisory Committee Act) as amended, by section 5(c) of 
Public Law 94-409 that a meeting of the Rehabilitation Research and 
Development Service Scientific Merit Review Board will be held at the 
Westin City Hotel, 1400 ``M'' Street, NW, Washington, DC, on July 21 
through July 23, 1998.
    The session on July 21, 1998, is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. 
and end at 9:30 p.m. The sessions on July 22 and 23, 1998, are 
scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. and end at 5 p.m. The purpose of the 
meeting is to review rehabilitation research and development 
applications for scientific and technical merit and to make 
recommendations to the Director, Rehabilitation Research and 
Development Service, regarding their funding.
    The meeting will be open to the public for the July 21 session for 
the discussion of administrative matters, the general status of the 
program, and the administrative details of the review process. On July 
22 and 23, 1998, the meeting is closed during which the Board will be 
reviewing research and development applications.
    This review involves oral comments, discussion of site visits, 
staff and consultant critiques of proposed research protocols, and 
similar analytical documents that necessitate the consideration of the 
personal qualifications, performance and competence of individual 
research investigators. Disclosure of such information would constitute 
a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. Disclosure would 
also reveal research proposals and research underway which could lead 
to the loss of these projects to third parties and thereby frustrate 
future agency research efforts.
    Thus, the closing is in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552b(c)(6), and 
(c)(9)(B) and the determination of the Secretary of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs under Section 10(d) of Public Law 92-463, as amended 
by Section 5(c) of Public Law 94-409.
    Those who plan to attend the open session should write to Ms. 
Victoria Mongiardo, Program Analyst, Rehabilitation Research and 
Development Service (122P), Department of Veterans Affairs, 810 Vermont 
Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20420, (phone) 202-275-0023 at least five 
days before the meeting.

    Dated: April 7, 1998.

    By Direction of the Acting Secretary.
Heyward Bannister,
Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 98-9768 Filed 4-13-98; 8:45 am]
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