[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 223 (Tuesday, November 20, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65316-65318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-22680]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Migrant Education Program Consortium Incentive Grant Program

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

ACTION: Notice of proposed priority.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education 
proposes to add an eighth absolute priority to the seven absolute 
priorities for the Migrant Education Program (MEP) Consortium Incentive 
Grant (CIG) Program established in the notice of final requirements 
published in the Federal Register on March 3, 2004 (69 FR 10110) 
(Notice). The Assistant Secretary may use this proposed absolute 
priority and the absolute priorities established in the Notice for 
competitions in fiscal year (FY) 2008 and later years. We take this 
action to give State educational agencies the option to propose 
consortium arrangements that would address the educational attainment 
needs of out-of-school migratory youth whose education is interrupted.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before December 20, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about this proposed priority to Lisa 
Gillette, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Room 
3E253, LBJ, Washington, DC 20202-6135. If you prefer to send your 
comments through the Internet, use the following address: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lisa Gillette. Telephone: (202) 205-
0316 or via Internet: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the 
Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities can 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 this proposed priority.
    We invite you to assist us in complying with the specific 
requirements of Executive Order 12866 and its overall requirement of 
reducing regulatory burden that might result from this proposed 
priority. Please let us know of any further opportunities we should 
take to reduce potential costs or increase potential benefits while 
preserving the effective and efficient administration of the program.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public 
comments about this proposed priority in room 3E253 at the U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., LBJ, Washington, DC, 
between the hours of 8:30 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 this proposed priority. If you want to schedule 
an appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Background

    The MEP CIG Program is authorized under section 1308(d) of the 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the No 
Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (ESEA). The CIG Program provides, on a 
competitive basis, incentive grants to the State educational agencies 
(SEAs) receiving MEP Basic Formula Grant awards that participate in 
high-quality consortium arrangements with another State or appropriate 
entity. The purpose of these grants is to improve the delivery of 
services to migratory children whose education is interrupted.
    In the Notice, the Department established seven absolute priorities 
that promote key national objectives. SEAs that sought funding under 
the CIG had to propose a consortium that addressed one or more of these 
absolute priorities. These seven absolute priorities are:
    (1) Services designed to improve the proper and timely 
identification and recruitment of eligible migratory children whose 
education is interrupted;

[[Page 65317]]

    (2) Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to improve the school readiness of pre-school-aged migratory 
children whose education is interrupted;
    (3) Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to improve the reading proficiency of migratory children 
whose education is interrupted;
    (4) Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to improve the mathematics proficiency of migratory children 
whose education is interrupted;
    (5) Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to decrease the dropout rate of migratory students whose 
education is interrupted and improve their high school completion rate;
    (6) Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to strengthen the involvement of migratory parents in the 
education of migratory students whose education is interrupted; and
    (7) Services designed (based on a review of scientifically based 
research) to expand access to innovative educational technologies 
intended to increase the academic achievement of migratory students 
whose education is interrupted.
    In the past few years, the Department has noticed an increasing 
trend in the numbers of out-of-school migratory youth (typically ages 
15-22) eligible for the MEP. Often, these young men and women have 
received limited schooling or have dropped out of high school before 
earning their diploma or general education development (GED) 
certificate. Due to their long work hours, the short periods of time 
that they remain in an area, and the remote locations, away from 
educational facilities, where they live and work, these out-of-school 
migratory youth are often the most difficult for SEAs to serve.
    The seven absolute priorities established in 2004 do not 
specifically authorize CIG Program awards for consortium arrangements 
designed to improve the educational attainment of these out-of-school 
migratory youth. Given the particular educational needs of this sector 
of the migrant population, the Department proposes a new, eighth 
absolute priority under the CIG Program for consortium arrangements 
that would address out-of-school migratory youth whose education is 
interrupted. Thus, the proposed change would allow SEAs, based on the 
needs of migratory children in their respective consortium States, to 
seek CIG Program funding for consortium activities that would address 
any one or more of these eight absolute priorities.
    We will announce the final priority in a notice in the Federal 
Register. We will determine the final priority after considering 
responses to this notice and other information available to the 
Department. This notice does not preclude us from proposing or funding 
additional priorities, subject to meeting applicable rulemaking 
requirements. This final priority will be in addition to the seven 
absolute priorities published in the Notice.

    Note: This notice does not solicit applications. In any year in 
which we choose to use this proposed priority, we invite 
applications through a notice in the Federal Register.

    Priority: Services designed (based on a review of scientifically 
based research) to improve the educational attainment of out-of-school 
migratory youth whose education is interrupted.

Executive Order 12866

    This notice of proposed priority has been reviewed in accordance 
with Executive Order 12866. Under the terms of the order, we have 
assessed the potential costs and benefits of this regulatory action.
    The potential costs associated with the notice of proposed priority 
are those resulting from statutory requirements and those we have 
determined as necessary for administering this program effectively and 
efficiently.
    In assessing the potential costs and benefits--both quantitative 
and qualitative--of this notice of proposed priority, we have 
determined that the benefits of the proposed priority justify the 
costs.
    We have also determined that this regulatory action does not unduly 
interfere with State, local, and tribal governments in the exercise of 
their governmental functions.
    Summary of potential costs and benefits: The addition of this 
proposed absolute priority will not increase the costs to the SEAs 
applying for consortium awards. The CIG Program is a competitive 
program for which SEAs may choose to apply. The only eligible 
applicants for the CIG Program are SEAs receiving MEP Basic State 
Formula grants under Title I, Part C of the ESEA. Under the MEP Basic 
State Formula program, SEAs are required to promote interstate and 
intrastate coordination of services for migratory children. Under the 
CIG Program, successful applicants receive awards in the form of 
supplements to their MEP awards. SEAs may use these newly awarded funds 
to pay for any costs they incur under the MEP--including costs of 
consortium activities described in their CIG Program applications.
    If finalized, this absolute priority will not create any new costs. 
In preparing the application package for the CIG Program, the 
Department estimated that SEAs would prepare a total of 15 applications 
and expend, over a two-year application cycle, 50.67 hours per 
application. The Department believes that the proposed absolute 
priority will not add to the costs of implementing the MEP. SEAs should 
take no more time to prepare a CIG application that addresses the 
proposed absolute priority than to prepare an application that 
addresses one of the seven existing absolute priorities. Further, the 
Department does not anticipate that the addition of this absolute 
priority will generate an increase in the number of applications it 
will receive.
    On the other hand, the proposed absolute priority will provide 
significant benefits. It will give SEAs the opportunity to seek these 
supplemental MEP funds on the basis of consortium activities that 
address an important new area--the educational attainment of out-of-
school migratory youth whose education is interrupted. In this regard, 
out-of-school migratory youth typically have received limited schooling 
or have dropped out of high school without attaining a high school 
diploma or GED certificate. Adding this new absolute priority to the 
seven existing absolute priorities for the CIG Program can thereby help 
out-of-school migratory youth improve their educational attainment.

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 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 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

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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 84.144 Migrant 
Education Coordination Program).

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 6398(d).

    Dated: November 5, 2007.
Kerri L. Briggs,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
 [FR Doc. E7-22680 Filed 11-19-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P