[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 61 (Thursday, March 31, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16486-16489]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-6392]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Overview 
Information; Rehabilitation Continuing Education Programs; Notice 
Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2005

    Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.264D.

DATES: Applications Available: March 31, 2005.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 2, 2005.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 29, 2005.
    Eligible Applicants: States and public or nonprofit agencies and 
organizations, including Indian tribes and institutions of higher 
education.
    Estimated Available Funds: $100,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 1.

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

    Project Period: Up to 60 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: To support training centers that serve either a 
Federal region or another geographical area and provide for a broad, 
integrated sequence of training activities that focus on meeting 
recurrent and common training needs of employed rehabilitation 
personnel throughout a multi-State geographical area.
    Priorities: This notice contains one absolute priority and one 
invitational priority. In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(ii), the 
absolute priority is from the regulations for this program (34 CFR 
389.10).
    Absolute Priority: For FY 2005 this priority is an absolute 
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only applications that 
meet this priority.
    This priority is:
    Projects must--
    (a) Train newly employed State agency staff at the administrative, 
supervisory, professional, subprofessional, or clerical levels in order 
to develop needs skills for effective agency performance;
    (b) Provide training opportunities for experienced State agency 
personnel at

[[Page 16487]]

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/Federal 
vocational rehabilitation program; and
    (c) Develop and conduct training programs for staff of--
    (1) Private rehabilitation agencies and facilities which cooperate 
with State vocational rehabilitation units in providing vocational 
rehabilitation and other rehabilitation services;
    (2) Centers for independent living; and
    (3) Client assistance programs.
    Within this absolute priority, we are particularly interested in 
applications that address the following invitational priority.
    Invitational Priority: Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(1) we do not give an 
application that meets this invitational priority a competitive or 
absolute preference over other applications.
    This priority is:
    Rehabilitation Technology
    Projects that offer certificate training to rehabilitation 
personnel on rehabilitation technology as it applies to the needs of 
customers of the public vocational rehabilitation (VR) program.
    Rehabilitation technology is defined in 34 CFR 385.4 as follows: 
``[T]he systematic application of technologies, engineering 
methodologies, or scientific principles to meet the needs of and 
address the barriers confronted by individuals with disabilities in 
areas that include education, rehabilitation, employment, 
transportation, independent living, and recreation. The term includes 
rehabilitation engineering, assistive technology devices, and assistive 
technology services.''
    Program authority: 29 U.S.C. 772.
    Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
81, 82, 84, 85, 86, and 99. (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.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Discretionary grants.
    Estimated Available Funds: $100,000.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 1.

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

    Project Period: Up to 60 months.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: States and public or nonprofit agencies and 
organizations, including Indian tribes and institutions of higher 
education.
    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: The Secretary has determined that a 
grantee must provide a match of at least 10 percent of the total cost 
of the project (34 CFR 389.40).

    Note: Under 34 CFR 75.562(c), an indirect cost reimbursement on 
a training grant is limited to the recipient's actual indirect cost, 
as determined by its negotiated indirect cost rate agreement, or 
eight percent of a modified total direct cost base, whichever amount 
is less. Indirect costs in excess of the eight percent limit may not 
be charged directly, used to satisfy matching or cost-sharing 
requirements, or charged to another Federal award.

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: 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 the 
competition as follows: CFDA number 84.264D.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application 
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, 
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the Grants and Contracts 
Services Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., 
room 5075, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-2550. Telephone: 
(202) 245-7363. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf 
(TDD), you may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements 
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you 
must submit, are in the application package for this competition. Page 
Limit: Part III of the application, the application narrative, 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:
     A page is 8.5'' by 11'', on one side only, with 1'' 
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
     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.
     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--
     You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
     You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the 
page limit.
    3. Submission Dates and Times: Applications Available: March 31, 
2005.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 2, 2005.
    Applications for grants under these competitions may be submitted 
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov), or in 
paper format by mail or hand delivery. For information (including dates 
and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or by 
mail or hand delivery, please refer to section IV. 6. Other Submission 
Requirements in this notice.
    We do not consider an application that does not comply with the 
deadline requirements.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: June 29, 2005.
    4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive 
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about 
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 
12372 is in the application package for this competition.
    5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding 
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
    6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under 
this competition may be submitted electronically or in paper format by 
mail or hand delivery.
    a. Electronic Submission of Applications.
    We have been accepting applications electronically through the 
Department's e-Application system since FY 2000. In

[[Page 16488]]

order to expand on those efforts and comply with the President's 
Management Agenda, we are continuing to participate as a partner in the 
new governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site in FY 2005. Rehabilitation 
Continuing Education Programs--CFDA Number 84.264D is one of the 
programs included in this project.
    If you choose to submit your application electronically, you must 
use the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov). Through this site, you will 
be able to download a copy of the application package, complete it 
offline, and then upload and submit your application. You may not e-
mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us. We request your 
participation in Grants.gov.
    You may access the electronic grant application for Rehabilitation 
Continuing Education Programs at: http://www.grants.gov. You must 
search for the downloadable application package for this program by the 
CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your 
search.
    Please note the following:
     Your participation in Grants.gov gov is voluntary.
     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.
     Applications received by Grants.gov are time and date 
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted with a 
date/time received by the Grants.gov gov system no later than 4:30 p.m., 
Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. We will not 
consider your application if it was received by the Grants.gov system 
later than 4:30 p.m. on the application deadline date. When we retrieve 
your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are 
rejecting your application because it was submitted after 4:30 p.m. on 
the application deadline date.
     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 in this notice for the submission of paper 
applications by mail or hand delivery.
     The amount of time it can take to upload an application 
will vary depending on a variety of factors including the size of the 
application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we 
strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline 
date to begin the application process through Grants.gov.
     You should review and follow the Education Submission 
Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are 
included in the application package for this competition to ensure that 
your application is submitted timely to the Grants.gov system.
     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 business days to complete the CCR 
registration.
     You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you 
if you submit your application in paper format.
     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. Any narrative 
sections of your application should be attached as files in a .DOC 
(document), .RTF (rich text) or .PDF (Portable Document) format.
     Your electronic application must comply with any page 
limit requirements described in this notice.
     After you electronically submit your application, you will 
receive an automatic acknowledgment 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 by e-
mail that will include a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying 
number unique to your application).
     We may request that you provide us original signatures on 
forms at a later date.
    b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail.
    If you submit your application in paper format by mail (through the 
U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier), you must mail the 
original and two copies of your application, on or before the 
application deadline date, to the Department at the applicable 
following address:
    By mail through the U.S. Postal Service:

    U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, 
Attention: (CFDA Number 84.264D), 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, 
DC 20202-4260; or

    By mail through a commercial carrier:

    U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center--Stop 
4260, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.264D), 7100 Old Landover Road, 
Landover, MD 20785-1506.

    Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing 
consisting of one of the following:
    (1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark,
    (2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the 
U.S. Postal Service,
    (3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial 
carrier, or
    (4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the 
U.S. Department of Education.
    If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do 
not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
    (1) A private metered postmark, or
    (2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
    If your application is postmarked after the application deadline 
date, we will not consider your application.

    Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated 
postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your 
local post office.

    c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.
    If you submit your application in paper format by hand delivery, 
you (or a courier service) must deliver the original and two copies of 
your application by hand, on or before the application deadline date, 
to the Department at the following address:

    U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, 
Attention: (CFDA Number 84.264D), 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, 
Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 202020-4260.

    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays, 
Sundays, and Federal holidays.
    Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail 
or hand deliver your application to the Department:
    (1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the 
Department--in Item 4 of the Application for Federal Education 
Assistance (ED 424) the CFDA number--and suffix letter, if any--of the 
competition under which you are submitting your application.
    (2) The Application Control Center will mail a grant application 
receipt acknowledgment to you. If you do not receive the grant 
application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the 
application deadline date,

[[Page 16489]]

you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application Control 
Center at (202) 245-6288.

V. Application Review Information

    1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this competition 
are from 34 CFR 75.210 and 34 CFR 389.30 and are in the application 
package.
    2. Review and Selection Process: Additional factors we consider in 
selecting an application for an award are the past performance of the 
applicant in carrying out similar training activities under previously 
awarded grants, as indicated by factors such as compliance with grant 
conditions, soundness of programmatic and financial management 
practices, and attainment of established project objectives (34 CFR 
385.33(b)).

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your 
U.S. Representatives and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award 
Notice. We may also notify you informally.
    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 
we notify you.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify 
administrative and national policy requirements in the application 
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable 
Regulations section of this notice.
    We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of 
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and 
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also 
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding 
commitments under the grant.
    3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a 
final performance report, including financial information, as directed 
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an 
annual performance report that provides the most current performance 
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in 
34 CFR 75.118.
    4. Performance Measures: The Government Performance and Results Act 
(GPRA) of 1993 directs Federal departments and agencies to improve the 
effectiveness of their programs by engaging in strategic planning, 
setting outcome-related goals for programs, and measuring program 
results against those goals.
    The goal of continuing education (CE) projects is to upgrade the 
skills of personnel currently employed in the public VR system, centers 
for independent living, client assistance programs, and private 
rehabilitation agencies and facilities that cooperate with State 
vocational rehabilitation units in providing vocational rehabilitation 
and other rehabilitation services and to develop their mastery of new 
program developments dealing with significant issues, priorities, and 
legislative thrusts of the public rehabilitation program.
    In order to measure the success of the project in meeting this 
goal, the CE grantee is required to conduct an evaluation of CE 
training activities. In annual performance reports, the CE project is 
required to provide specific information on the number of training 
activities, the topics of each training program, the number of 
participants served, the target groups represented by participants, and 
summary data from participant evaluations. This information allows the 
CE project to measure results against the needs assessment conducted by 
the project and against the goal of upgrading the skills of personnel 
currently employed in the public VR system, centers for independent 
living, client assistance programs, and private rehabilitation agencies 
and facilities that cooperate with State vocational rehabilitation 
units in providing vocational rehabilitation and other rehabilitation 
services and their mastery of new program developments, priorities, and 
legislative thrusts. The Rehabilitation Services Administration is in 
the process of developing a uniform data collection instrument for 
future use to collect these data directly from the grantee.

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Beverly Steburg, U.S. Department of 
Education, 61 Forsyth Street, SW., suite 18T91, Atlanta, GA 30303-8934. 
Telephone; (404) 562-6336.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) 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 in this 
section.

VIII. Other Information

    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.htm.


    Dated: March 28, 2005.
John H. Hager,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 05-6392 Filed 3-30-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-M