[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 18, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19979-19980]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-9610]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Indian Affairs


Tribal Consultation on Indian Education Topics

AGENCY: Bureau of Indian Affairs, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of tribal consultation meeting.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) 
will conduct a consultation meeting to obtain oral and written comments 
concerning revisions to the application, instructions, and ranking 
criteria for replacement construction of education facilities for the 
2001 priority ranking process.

DATES: The consultation meeting will be held May 1 through May 3, 2001 
in Albuquerque, New Mexico at the address noted below. Written comments 
must be received on or before April 24, 2001 at the address below. The 
meeting will begin each day at 9:00 a.m. and continue until 3:00 p.m. 
(local time) or until all meeting participants have had an opportunity 
to make comments.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Wyndham Hotel (Albuquerque 
Airport), 2910 Yale Boulevard SE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106, tel. 
505-843-7000.
    Send written comments on the consultation topic to the BIA Office 
of Indian Education Programs at 1849 C St. NW, MS-3512 MIB, Washington, 
D.C. 20240 or to 201 Third St. NW, Suite 510, Albuquerque, New Mexico 
87103.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Comments regarding the application 
process, instructions, or ranking criteria may be submitted to Dr. 
Kenneth G. Ross, Special Assistant to the Director, Office of Indian 
Education Programs, 201 Third St. NW, Suite 510, Albuquerque, New 
Mexico 87103, (505) 346-6544, Fax (505)346-6553, or to applicable 
Education Line Officers.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The meeting is a follow-up to the 
replacement school application and priority ranking process conducted 
by the BIA in 1999. The session will provide an opportunity for Indian 
tribes, school boards, parents, Indian organizations, and other 
interested parties to comment on issues raised during the previous 
ranking process and possible changes to be made in the 2001 ranking 
process. The proposed ranking of replacement school applications for 
future construction supports the Administration's commitment to improve 
educational teaching and learning environments for Native American 
children by replacing deteriorated school structures with quality 
educational facilities.
    The Bureau's application evaluation criteria have been developed to 
determine the extent of unfavorable conditions which may exist at an 
educational facility. The criteria are intended to provide information 
regarding: structural problems; deteriorated infrastructure and 
facility conditions; building and building system code violations; 
unmet health, safety, and handicapped requirements; and the unmet 
spatial and educational program needs of Bureau-funded schools. 
Applications for school projects will be evaluated and rated against 
the published criteria. The highest ranking projects will be identified 
for future budget requests as specified in the Bureau's annually 
updated 5-Year Plan for Capital Asset Management.
    25 U.S.C. 2005(c) requires the Bureau to prepare and submit a list 
of proposed projects, ranked in priority order, when any budget request 
for school construction is presented. The Bureau uses the priority list 
to determine the order in which Congressional appropriations are 
requested to fund educational facilities replacement construction 
projects. This ensures that scarce Federal resources will be used to 
correct the most severe deficiencies at Bureau-funded educational 
facilities.
    The Bureau, by individual letter, has notified the Tribes and 
Tribal school boards regarding the scheduled consultation meeting. In 
addition, notice of the meeting has been announced and distributed 
nationwide in the Bureau's facilities management newsletter. The 
meeting supports administrative policy on tribal

[[Page 19980]]

consultation by encouraging maximum direct participation of 
representatives of tribal governments, tribal organizations, and BIA 
funded schools in important processes.
    This notice is published in accordance with the authority delegated 
by the Secretary of the Interior to the Assistant Secretary--Indian 
Affairs by 209 DM 8.1.

Written Comments

    Comments, including names, street addresses, and other contact 
information of respondents, will be available for public review at the 
address listed under ADDRESSES section during regular business hours 
(7:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. EST), Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. Individual respondents may request confidentiality. If you 
wish us to withhold your name, street address, and other contact 
information (such as fax or phone number) from public review or from 
disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, you must state this 
prominently at the beginning of your comment. We will honor your 
request to the extent allowable by law. We will make available for 
public inspection in their entirety all submissions from organizations 
or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as 
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses.

    Dated: April 12, 2001.
James H. McDivitt,
Deputy Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs (Management).
[FR Doc. 01-9610 Filed 4-17-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-02-P