[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 66 (Thursday, April 6, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17460-17461]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-4903]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Notice of Proposed Waivers for the Native American Vocational 
Technical Education Program (NAVTEP) and the Tribally Controlled 
Postsecondary Vocational and Technical Institutions Program (TCPVTIP) 
and Funding of Continuation Grants

AGENCY: Office of Vocational and Adult Education, Department of 
Education.
SUMMARY: The Secretary proposes to waive the requirements in 34 CFR 
75.250 of the Education Department General Administrative Regulations 
(EDGAR) that generally prohibit project periods exceeding five years 
and announces the proposed funding of continuation grants for current 
NAVTEP and TCPVTIP grantees. These waivers would enable the 30 current 
eligible grantees under NAVTEP and the two current eligible grantees 
under TCPVTIP to apply for and continue to receive Federal funding 
beyond the five-year limitation contained in 34 CFR 75.250.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before May 8, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about these proposed waivers to Sharon 
A. Jones, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 
11108, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-7242. If you prefer 
to send your comments through the Internet, use the following address: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharon A. Jones; Telephone: (202) 245-
7803.
    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 contact person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Invitation To Comment

    We invite you to submit comments regarding these proposed waivers. 
We are particularly interested in receiving comments on the potential 
impact that these proposed waivers may have on NAVTEP and TCPVTIP, and 
on potential applicants who would be eligible to apply for awards under 
a NAVTEP or TCPVTIP competition.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public 
comments about these proposed waivers in room 11108, Potomac Center 
Plaza, 550 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC, between the hours of 8 
a.m. and 4 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday of each week, 
except Federal holidays.

Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking 
Record

    On request, we will supply an appropriate aid, such as a reader or 
print magnifier, to an individual with a disability who needs 
assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public 
rulemaking record for these proposed waivers. If you want to schedule 
an appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Background

    NAVTEP and TCPVTIP support grants to operate vocational and 
technical education programs, as authorized by sections 116(a) through 
(g) and 117, respectively, of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and 
Technical Education Act of 1998 (Perkins Act) (20 U.S.C. 2326(a)-(g) 
and 2327). The Congress is now in the process of reauthorizing the 
Perkins Act and we do not believe it would be in the public interest to 
hold new competitions under either NAVTEP or TCPVTIP until after 
Congress has concluded that process.
    Eligible applicants for fiscal year (FY) 2005 NAVTEP funds (the 
appropriation currently available for expenditure for NAVTEP) are:
    (a) Federally recognized Indian tribes.
    (b) Tribal organizations.
    (c) Alaska Native entities.
    (d) Bureau-funded schools (as defined in the notice inviting 
applications published in the Federal Register on January 3, 2001 (66 
FR 560)), except for Bureau-funded schools proposing to use their award 
to support secondary school vocational and technical education 
programs.
    (e) Consortia of one or more eligible tribes, tribal organizations, 
Alaska Native entities, or eligible Bureau-funded schools.
    Eligible applicants for FY 2006 TCPVTIP funds (the appropriation 
currently available for expenditure for TCPVTIP) are tribally 
controlled postsecondary vocational and technical institutions that do 
not receive Federal support under the Tribally Controlled College or 
University Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.) or the 
Navajo Community College Act (25 U.S.C. 640a et seq.)
    To avoid a lapse in the availability of vocational and technical 
education and training provided by current NAVTEP and TCPVTIP grantees, 
the Secretary proposes to waive the requirements in 34 CFR 75.250, 
which prohibit project periods exceeding five years. With these waivers 
we would continue to fund current, eligible NAVTEP and TCPVTIP 
grantees, for as long as Congress continues to appropriate funds for 
the existing program authorities and possibly during a transition to 
any new program authorities. We have concluded that it would be 
contrary to the public interest to have a lapse in NAVTEP and TCPVTIP 
projects pending reauthorization of the Perkins Act. With these waivers 
of 34 CFR 75.250: (1) Current NAVTEP and TCPVTIP grants would be 
continued at least through FY 2006 and possibly beyond, if Congress 
continues to appropriate funds for NAVTEP or TCPVTIP under their 
current statutory authorities, and (2) we would not announce new 
competitions or make new awards under NAVTEP or TCPVTIP in FY 2006.
    In a July 16, 2004 Federal Register notice for NAVTEP (69 FR 
42701), and in a July 29, 2002 Federal Register notice for TCPVTIP (67 
FR 49015), we waived the requirements of 34 CFR 75.261(c)(2), which 
prohibit project period extensions involving the obligation of 
additional Federal funds. The waivers of 34 CFR 75.261(c)(2) announced 
in those notices remain in effect for current NAVTEP and TCPVTIP 
grantees. If the waivers of 34 CFR 75.250 proposed in this notice are 
announced by us in a final notice, the requirements applicable to 
continuation awards for current NAVTEP and TCPVTIP grantees that were 
established in our July 16, 2004 and July 29, 2002 Federal Register 
notices, and the requirements in 34 CFR 75.253 would apply to any 
continuation awards sought by eligible current grantees under these 
programs.
    The waivers of 34 CFR 75.250 and 75.261(c)(2) do not exempt current

[[Page 17461]]

NAVTEP and TCPVTIP grantees from the account closing provisions of 31 
U.S.C. 1552(a), nor do they extend the availability of funds previously 
awarded to current NAVTEP and TCPVTIP grantees. As a result of 31 
U.S.C. 1552(a), appropriations available for a limited period may be 
used for payment of valid obligations for only five years after the 
expiration of their period of availability for Federal obligation. 
After that time, the unexpended balance of those funds is canceled and 
returned to the U.S. Treasury Department and is unavailable for 
restoration for any purpose.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Secretary certifies that the proposed waivers would not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
    The small entities that would be affected by these proposed waivers 
are:
    (a) The FY 2000 grantees currently receiving Federal funds and the 
following entities that are eligible for an award under NAVTEP:
    (1) Federally recognized Indian tribes.
    (2) Tribal organizations.
    (3) Alaska Native entities.
    (4) Bureau-funded schools (as defined in the notice inviting 
applications published in the Federal Register on January 3, 2001 (66 
FR 560)), except for Bureau-funded schools proposing to use their award 
to support secondary school vocational and technical education 
programs.
    (b) The FY 2001 grantees currently receiving Federal funds and 
other tribally controlled postsecondary vocational and technical 
institutions that do not receive Federal support under the Tribally 
Controlled College or University Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801 
et seq.) or the Navajo Community College Act (25 U.S.C. 640a et seq.) 
that are eligible for an award under the TCPVTIP.
    The Secretary certifies that the proposed waivers would not have a 
significant economic impact on these entities because the proposed 
waivers and the activities required to support the additional years of 
funding would not impose excessive regulatory burdens or require 
unnecessary Federal supervision. The proposed waivers would impose 
minimal requirements to ensure the proper expenditure of program funds, 
including requirements that are standard for continuation awards.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    This notice of proposed waivers does not contain any information 
collection requirements.

Intergovernmental Review

    The NAVTEP and TCPVTIP are not subject to Executive Order 12372 and 
the regulations in 34 CFR part 79.

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/new/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 84.101 Native 
American Vocational and Technical Education Program and 84.245 
Tribally Controlled Postsecondary Vocational and Technical 
Institutions Program.)

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 2326(a) through (g) and 20 U.S.C. 
2327.

    Dated: March 31, 2006.
Beto D. Gonzalez,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education.
[FR Doc. E6-4903 Filed 4-5-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P