[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 207 (Wednesday, October 25, 2000)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 63836]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-27438]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families

45 CFR Part 309

RIN 0970-AB73


Tribal Child Support Enforcement Programs

AGENCY: Office of Child Support Enforcement, Administration for 
Children and Families, Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; open consultations.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given for the dates, locations and hotel 
sites for the final two Tribal consultations on the notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM) for direct Federal funding of Tribal child support 
enforcement (CSE) programs which was published in the Federal Register 
on August 21, 2000 (65 FR 50800). In the interest of providing Tribes 
and Tribal organizations and the public adequate time to review and 
comment on the NPRM, we modified the standard 60-day comment period by 
extending it to 120-days. The Federal Office of Child Support 
Enforcement is sponsoring a total of four consultations with federally 
recognized Indian Tribes, the general public, and Tribal organizations 
during the 120-day notice and comment period to receive public comment 
on the proposed rule. The notice for the first two consultations was 
published September 13, 2000 in the Federal Register (65 FR 55261). The 
initial consultation was held October 3-5, 2000 in Minneapolis, 
Minnesota and the second consultation will be held October 24-26, 2000 
in Anchorage, Alaska. This notification provides specific information 
for the final two consultations.

DATES: The final two consultations will be held November 1-3, 2000 in 
Washington, DC and November 28-30, 2000 in Phoenix, Arizona. The 
consultations will begin promptly at 9:00 a.m. and end at 4:30 p.m. on 
the first two days. The final half-day session will begin promptly at 
9:00 a.m. and end at 12 noon.

ADDRESSES: The third consultation, November 1-3, 2000, will be held at 
the Monarch Hotel, 2401 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037. The 
telephone number for reservations is (202) 429-2400. The fourth 
consultation, November 28-39, 2000, will be held at the Crowne Plaza 
Hotel, 100 North 1st Street, Phoenix, Arizona 85004. The telephone 
number for reservations is (602) 333-0000. All interested parties are 
invited to attend these public consultations. Seating may be limited 
and will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Persons 
needing special assistance, such as sign language interpretation or 
other special accommodation, should contact the Deputy Director of the 
Native American Child Support Enforcement Program, Office of Child 
Support Enforcement, at the address listed below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Virginia Apodaca, Deputy Director, 
Native American Child Support Enforcement Program, Office of Child 
Support Enforcement, Fourth Floor East, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW, 
Washington, DC 20447 (telephone (202) 401-9376; fax (202) 401-5559; e-
mail: [email protected]). These are not toll-free numbers. It is 
expected that there will be only four consultations.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of these consultations will be 
to provide an overview of the proposed regulations and the interim 
final rule to attendees. In addition, public comment will be elicited 
on the proposed regulation and interim final rule. Federal officials 
will explain both the proposed rules and interim final rules. Persons 
who attend the consultations may make oral presentations and/or provide 
written comments for the record at the consultations, at their option. 
We encourage persons who make oral presentations at the consultations 
to submit written comments in support of their presentations.

Agenda

    In order to obtain the broadest public participation possible on 
these proposed rules, the Office of Child Enforcement plans to conduct 
four public consultations during the 120-day comment period. These 
consultations are intended to further solicit public comment, Native 
American and Tribal input on the Native American child support 
enforcement direct Federal funding proposed rule. The agenda for these 
consultations consists of two full days where public comments on the 
proposed rule will be elicited. There will also be a one-half day 
review of the interim funding application process for those Tribes and 
Tribal organizations with currently existing comprehensive child 
support enforcement programs wishing to submit applications for interim 
funding of these programs.

Public Participation

    Members of the public wishing to present oral statements at the 
consultations should send their requests to Ms. Virginia Apodaca, 
Deputy Director of the Native American Child Support Enforcement 
Program, as soon as possible or they may register on site at the 
beginning of each consultation. Such requests should be made by 
telephone, fax machine, or mail, as shown above. The Deputy Director of 
the Native American Program will accommodate all such requests on site 
by reserving time for presentations. The order of persons making such 
presentations will be assigned in the order in which the requests are 
received. Members of the public are encouraged to limit oral statements 
to five minutes, but extended written statements may be submitted for 
the record. Members of the public also may submit written statements 
for inclusion in the public record without presenting oral statements. 
Such written statements should be sent to the Native American Child 
Support Enforcement Program Deputy Director, as shown above, by mail or 
fax at least five business days before each meeting. Minutes of all 
public meeting and other documents will be available for public 
inspection and copying at the Department of Health and Human Services 
(DHHS) fourteen days after the conclusion of each consultation. At 
DHHS, these documents will be available at the Deputy Director, Native 
American Child Support Enforcement Program, Office of Child Support 
Enforcement (OCSE), Administration for Children and Families, U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services, Aerospace Building, Fourth 
Floor--East, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW, Washington, DC from 9 a.m. to 
5 p.m. Questions regarding the availability of documents from DHHS 
should be directed to Virginia Apodaca, OCSE (telephone (202) 401-
9376). This is not a toll-free number. Any written comments on the 
minutes should be directed to Ms. Virginia Apodaca, Deputy Director of 
the Native American Child Support Enforcement Program, as shown above.

    Dated: October 18, 2000.
David Gray Ross,
Commissioner, Office of Child Support Enforcement.
[FR Doc. 00-27438 Filed 10-24-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-M