[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 85 (Friday, May 2, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23445-23446]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-10886]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Special Education and Rehabilitative Services

AGENCY: Office of Special Education Programs, Office of Special 
Education and Rehabilitative Services, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of extension of project period and waiver.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary waives the requirements in the Education 
Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR), at 34 CFR 75.250 
and 75.261(a), respectively, that generally prohibit project periods 
exceeding 5 years and project extensions involving the obligation of 
additional Federal funds to enable the Technical Assistance ALLIANCE 
for Parent Centers to receive funding from April 1, 2003 until 
September 30, 2003.

DATES: This notice is effective April 1, 2003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Donna Fluke, Department of Education, 
400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3527, Switzer Building, Washington, DC 
20202-2641. Telephone: (202) 205-9161.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an 
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request to the contact persons listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On January 30, 2003, we published a notice 
in the Federal Register (68 FR 4768-4769) proposing an extension of 
project period and waiver in order to--
    (1) Give the current grantee early notice of the possibility that 
additional months of funding may be available through continuation 
awards; and
    (2) Request comments on the proposed extension and waiver.
    There are no differences between the notice of proposed extension 
and waiver and this notice of final extension and waiver.

Public Comment

    In the notice of proposed extension and waiver, we invited 
comments. One party submitted comments in agreement with the proposal 
to extend the grant period of the current grantee. We did not receive 
any comments opposing the proposed extension and waiver. Generally, we 
do not address technical and other minor changes, as well as suggested 
changes the law does not authorize us to make. Moreover, we do not 
address comments that do not express views on the substance of the 
proposed notice.

Waiver of Delayed Effective Date

    The Administrative Procedure Act requires that a substantive rule 
shall be published at least 30 days before its effective date, except 
as otherwise provided for good cause (20 U.S.C. 553(d)(3)). During the 
30-day public

[[Page 23446]]

comment period on this notice, no substantive comments or objections 
were received on the proposed extension and waiver, and no substantive 
changes have been made. For this reason, and in order to make a timely 
continuation grant to the entity affected, the Secretary has determined 
that a delayed effective date is not required.

Background

    On July 29, 2002, we published in the Federal Register (67 FR 
49014-49015) a notice of extension of project period and waiver. In 
this notice we announced that the Secretary intends to redesign the 
technical assistance component of the Training and Information for 
Parents of Children with Disabilities program and provide funding in 
fiscal year 2003. The notice of extension of project period and waiver 
was issued to enable the current technical assistance provider, the 
Technical Assistance ALLIANCE for Parent Centers Project to receive 
funding from October 1, 2002 until March 31, 2003. The grant for the 
ALLIANCE expired, after a 5-year project period, on September 30, 2002.
    Technical assistance is provided on an ongoing basis to parent 
centers, and it would be contrary to the public interest to have any 
service lapses for the parent centers being served by the current 
grantee.

Reasons

    We have determined that an additional period of time is needed for 
redesigning the technical assistance component. To avoid any lapse in 
service for the intended beneficiaries before the redesigned technical 
assistance component can be fully implemented, the Secretary will fund 
this project until September 30, 2003. The Secretary waives the 
requirements in 34 CFR 75.250 and 75.261(c)(2), which prohibit project 
periods exceeding 5 years and period extensions that involve the 
obligation of additional Federal funds. This waiver gives the affected 
grantee notice of the availability of an additional six months of 
funding.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Secretary certifies that the extension of project period and 
waiver will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. The only small entity that would be affected 
is the PACER Center, Inc., which operates the Technical Assistance 
ALLIANCE for Parent Centers project.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    This extension and waiver does not contain any information 
collection requirements.

Intergovernmental Review

    This program is subject to the requirements of Executive Order 
12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. One of the objectives of 
the Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental partnership and a 
strengthened federalism. The Executive order relies on processes 
developed by State and local governments for coordination and review of 
proposed Federal financial assistance. This document provides early 
notification of our specific plans and actions for this program.

Electronic Access to This Document

    You may view this document, as well as all other Department of 
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe 
Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at following site: 
www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister.
    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. 
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in 
the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.

    Note: The official version of this document is the document 
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the 
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal 
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html


(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.328, Training and 
Information for Parents of Children with Disabilities)

    Dated: April 29, 2003.
Robert H. Pasternack,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 03-10886 Filed 5-1-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P