[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 205 (Thursday, October 23, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60829-60830]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-26702]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No.: 84.264A-3]


Rehabilitation Continuing Education Programs (RCEP)--Institute on 
Rehabilitation Issues (IRI); Notice Inviting Applications for New 
Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2004

    Purpose of Program: The Rehabilitation Continuing Education 
Programs--
    (a) Train newly employed State agency staff at the administrative, 
supervisory, professional, paraprofessional, or clerical levels in 
order to develop needed skills for effective agency performance;
    (b) Provide training opportunities for experienced State agency 
personnel at all levels of State agency practice to upgrade their 
skills and to develop mastery of new program developments dealing with 
significant issues, priorities, and legislative thrusts of the State 
and Federal vocational rehabilitation program; and
    (c) Develop and conduct training programs for staff of--
    (1) Private rehabilitation agencies and facilities that cooperate 
with State vocational rehabilitation units in providing vocational 
rehabilitation and other rehabilitation services;
    (2) Centers for independent living; and
    (3) Client assistance programs.
    For FY 2004, the competition for new awards focuses on projects 
designed to meet the priorities we reference in the PRIORITIES section 
of this application notice.
    Eligible Applicants: States and public or nonprofit agencies and 
organizations, including Indian tribes and institutions of higher 
education.
    Applications Available: October 31, 2003.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: January 8, 2004.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: March 8, 2004.
    Estimated Available Funds: The Administration has requested 
$42,629,000 for the Rehabilitation Training Programs for FY 2004, of 
which an estimated $190,000 would be allocated for this competition. 
The actual level of funding, if any, depends on final congressional 
action. However, we are inviting applications to allow enough time to 
complete the grant process if Congress appropriates funds for this 
program.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $75,000-$125,000.
    Estimated Average Size of Awards: $80,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 3. We expect to fund two awards under 
Priority 1 and one award under Priority 2.

    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice.

    Project Period: Up to 60 months.
    Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application) 
is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that 
reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must limit Part III to 
the equivalent of no more than 45 pages, using the following standards:
    (1) A page is 8.5'' by 11'', on one side only, with 1'' margins at 
the top, bottom, and both sides.
    (2) Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) all 
text in the application narrative, including titles, headings, 
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in 
charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
    (3) Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller than 
10 pitch (characters per inch).
    The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II, 
the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part 
IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the 
resumes, the bibliography, or the letters of support. However, you must 
include all of the application narrative in Part III.
    We will reject your application if--
    [sbull] You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
    [sbull] You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the 
page limit.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
81, 82, 85, and 86. (b) The regulations for this program in 34 CFR 
parts 385 and 389.

    Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 apply to all applicants 
except federally recognized Indian tribes.


    Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to institutions of 
higher education only.

    Selection Criteria: In evaluating an application for a new grant 
under this competition, we use the selection criteria in 34 CFR 385.31 
and 389.30. The selection criteria to be used for this competition will 
be provided in the application package for this competition.

Priorities

    This competition focuses on projects designed to meet the 
priorities in the notice of final priorities for this program, 
published elsewhere in this issue of the Federal Register.
    For FY 2004, these priorities are absolute priorities. Under 34 CFR

[[Page 60830]]

75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that meet one or more of 
the priorities.

Application Procedures

    Note: Some of the procedures in these instructions for 
transmitting applications differ from those in the Education 
Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) (34 CFR 
75.102). Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the 
Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to 
comment on proposed regulations. However, these amendments make 
procedural changes only and do not establish new substantive policy. 
Therefore, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A), the Secretary has determined 
that proposed rulemaking is not required.

Governmentwide Grants.gov Project for Electronic Submission of 
Applications

    We have been accepting applications electronically through the 
Department's e-Application system since FY 2000. In order to expand on 
those efforts and comply with the President's Management Agenda, we are 
participating as a partner in the new governmentwide Grants.gov Apply 
site in FY 2004. The Rehabilitation Continuing Education Programs 
(RCEP)--Institute on Rehabilitation Issues (IRI), CFDA number 84.264A-
3, is one of the programs included in this project. If you are an 
applicant under RCEP--IRI, you may submit your application to us in 
either electronic or paper format.
    The project involves the use of the Grants.gov Apply site 
(Grants.gov). If you use Grants.gov, you will be able to download a 
copy of the application package, complete it offline, and then upload 
and submit the application via the Grants.gov site. You may not e-mail 
an electronic copy of a grant application to us. We request your 
participation in Grants.gov.
    If you participate in Grants.gov, please note the following:
    [sbull] Your participation is voluntary.
    [sbull] When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find 
information about submitting an application electronically through the 
site, as well as the hours of operation. We strongly recommend that you 
do not wait until the application deadline date to begin the 
application process through Grants.gov.
    [sbull] To use Grants.gov, you, as the applicant, must have a D-U-
N-S Number and register in the Central Contractor Registry (CCR). You 
should allow a minimum of five days to complete the CCR registration.
    [sbull] You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit a grant application in electronic format, nor will we penalize 
you if you submit an application in paper format.
    [sbull] You may submit all documents electronically, including all 
information typically included on the Application for Federal Education 
Assistance (ED 424), Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 
524), and all necessary assurances and certifications.
    [sbull] Your application must comply with any page limit 
requirements described in this notice.
    [sbull] After you electronically submit your application, you will 
receive an automatic acknowledgement from Grants.gov that contains a 
Grants.gov tracking number. The Department will retrieve your 
application from Grants.gov and send you a second confirmation, which 
will include a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying number) 
unique to your application.
    [sbull] We may request that you give us original signatures on 
forms at a later date.
    [sbull] If you experience technical difficulties on the application 
deadline date and are unable to meet the 4:30 p.m. (Washington, DC 
time) deadline, print out your application and follow the instructions 
included in the application package for the transmittal of paper 
applications.
    You may access the electronic grant application for RCEP--IRI at: 
http://www.grants.gov.

    Note: Please note that you must search for the downloadable 
application package for this program by the CFDA number. Do not 
include the CFDA number's alpha letter in your search.

    For Applications Contact: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs), 
P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll free): 1-877-433-
7827. FAX: (301) 470-1244. If you use a telecommunications device for 
the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free): 1-877-576-7734.
    You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html.
    Or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address: 
[email protected].
    If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify 
this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.264A-3.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application 
package in an alternative format by contacting the Grants and Contracts 
Services Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 
room 3317, Switzer Building, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone: 
(202) 205-8207. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf 
(TDD), you may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-
800-877-8339. However, the Department is not able to reproduce in an 
alternative format the standard forms included in the application 
package.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christine Marschall, U.S. Department 
of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3325, Switzer Building, 
Washington, DC 20202-2649. Telephone: (202) 205-8926 or via Internet: 
[email protected].
    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 program contact person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

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 the following site: 
http://www.ed.gov/news/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.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.


    Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 772.

    Dated: October 17, 2003.
Robert H. Pasternack,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 03-26702 Filed 10-22-03; 8:45 am]
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