[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 64 (Friday, April 2, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 17398]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-7508]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Migrant Education Formula Grant Program

AGENCY: Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Notice of interpretation.

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SUMMARY: Section 1303(a) and (b) of the Elementary and Secondary 
Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind 
Act of 2001 (NCLB), provides for the allocation of Migrant Education 
Program (MEP) funds to States, the District of Columbia, and the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico). The Department announces 
that the interpretations of these provisions for Fiscal Year (FY) 2003, 
published in the Federal Register on June 11, 2003 (68 FR 34911), shall 
continue to apply for FY 2004 and those subsequent fiscal years in 
which the amount of funds appropriated for the MEP does not exceed the 
amount appropriated in FY 2002.

DATES: Effective date: April 2, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James English, Office of Migrant 
Education, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Room 
3E315, Washington, DC 20202-6135. Telephone: (202) 260-1394, 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 contact person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The MEP, authorized in Title I, part C, of the ESEA, as amended by 
NCLB, is a State-operated and State-administered formula grant program. 
It provides assistance to State educational agencies (SEAs) to support 
high-quality and comprehensive educational programs that provide 
migratory children appropriate educational and supportive services that 
address their special needs in a coordinated and efficient manner, and 
give migratory children the opportunity to meet the same challenging 
State academic content and student academic achievement standards that 
all children are expected to meet. Funds are allocated to SEAs under a 
formula authorized under section 1303 of the ESEA, as amended by NCLB.
    Through this notice, the Department announces that its 
interpretations of the formula for awarding FY 2003 MEP funds to 
States, including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, as 
published in the Federal Register on June 11, 2003 (68 FR 34911), shall 
apply to the Department's allocation of MEP funds in FY 2004 and those 
succeeding fiscal years in which the amount of funds appropriated for 
the MEP does not exceed the amount appropriated in FY 2002. The 
Department continues to apply these interpretations for the reasons 
identified in the June 11, 2003, notice.

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking

    Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the 
Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to 
comment on proposed regulations. However, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A) the 
Secretary is generally not required to offer the public an opportunity 
to comment on an interpretative rule. These rules advise the public of 
our interpretation of sections 1303(a) and (b) of the ESEA, as amended 
by NCLB. Therefore, under 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(A), the Secretary has 
determined that proposed rulemaking is not required. For the same 
reason, a delayed effective date is not required under 5 U.S.C. 
553(d)(2).

Intergovernmental Review

    This program is subject to 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 is intended to provide 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 documents of this 
Department 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.


(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.011: Title I, 
Education of Migrant Children.)

    Dated: March 29, 2004.
Raymond Simon,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. 04-7508 Filed 4-1-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P