[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 115 (Wednesday, June 16, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34250-34251]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-14404]



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Part III





Department of Education





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Centers for Independent Living Program--Training and Technical 
Assistance; Notices

  Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 115 / Wednesday, June 16, 2010 / 
Notices  

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Centers for Independent Living Program--Training and Technical 
Assistance

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.400B.

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, 
Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of final priority.

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SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and 
Rehabilitative Services announces a priority under the Centers for 
Independent Living Program--Training and Technical Assistance. The 
Assistant Secretary may use this priority for competitions in fiscal 
year (FY) 2010, using American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 
(ARRA) funds appropriated for the Centers for Independent Living (CIL) 
program authorized under title VII, chapter 1, part C of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (the Act), and competitions in 
later years. We take this action to improve outcomes for individuals 
with significant disabilities by enhancing the quality of independent 
living (IL) services provided to those individuals and the efficiency 
of the delivery of those services by CILs funded through the CIL 
program.

DATES: Effective Date: This priority is effective July 16, 2010.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sean Barrett, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 5016, Potomac Center Plaza 
(PCP), Washington, DC 20202-2800. Telephone: (202) 245-7604 or by e-
mail: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the 
Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Purpose of Program: The purpose of the CIL program is to maximize 
independence, productivity, empowerment, and leadership of individuals 
with disabilities and integrate these individuals into the mainstream 
of society.
    CILs are consumer-controlled, community-based, cross-disability, 
nonresidential, private nonprofit agencies that are designed and 
operated within a local community by individuals with disabilities and 
provide an array of IL services to individuals with significant 
disabilities, including the core services of information and referral, 
IL skills training, peer counseling, and individual and systems 
advocacy.
    Each State has established a Statewide Independent Living Council 
(SILC) that jointly develops and signs the State Plan for Independent 
Living with the designated State unit; monitors, reviews, and evaluates 
the implementation of the State plan; and coordinates activities with 
the State Rehabilitation Council and other organizations related to 
issues that affect individuals with disabilities. A majority of a 
SILC's members are individuals with disabilities. Other members include 
CIL representatives and State agency representatives, as well as other 
appropriate individuals.
    Through the ARRA, Congress has appropriated $87,500,000 for the CIL 
program to be obligated by FY 2010. Under section 721(b)(1) of the Act, 
the Department is required to reserve between 1.8 and 2 percent of the 
funds appropriated for the CIL program to provide training and 
technical assistance to CILs, agencies eligible to become CILs, and 
SILCs with respect to planning, developing, conducting, administering, 
and evaluating CILs.

    Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 796f(b).

    Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR part 366.
    We published a notice of proposed priority for this program in the 
Federal Register on March 22, 2010 (75 FR 13521). That notice contained 
background information and our reasons for proposing the particular 
priority.
    There are no differences between the proposed priority and this 
final priority.
    Public Comment: In response to our invitation in the notice of 
proposed priority, we did not receive any comments on the proposed 
priority.

Final Priority

Centers for Independent Living (CILs) Community-Based Training and 
Technical Assistance Project

    The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services establishes a priority to support a Training and Technical 
Assistance Project to assist CILs in one or more of the following 
important and challenging areas: Developing strategies to address the 
needs of underserved populations and underserved geographic areas; 
promoting community-based alternatives to institutionalization; 
assisting transition-age youths to succeed after secondary school; and 
providing IL services in rural settings.
    To meet this priority, applicants must demonstrate all of the 
following in their applications:
    (a) Evidence that the project team includes staff members with 
expertise in each of the priority topic areas on which the applicant is 
proposing to provide training and technical assistance;
    (b) A sound plan for providing training and technical assistance 
and materials that (1) Is based on rigorous research, where available; 
(2) utilizes a broad range of available, accessible technologies and 
methodologies; and (3) is sufficient to provide training and technical 
assistance to as many CILs as possible.
    (c) An assurance that the applicant will coordinate and collaborate 
with other training projects funded by the Department to ensure that 
its training activities are complementary and non-duplicative and that 
its dissemination activities are effective and efficient. At a minimum, 
the Training and Technical Assistance Project must coordinate with 
RSA's CILs Training and Technical Assistance Center.

Types of Priorities

    When inviting applications for a competition using one or more 
priorities, we designate the type of each priority as absolute, 
competitive preference, or invitational through a notice in the Federal 
Register. The effect of each type of priority follows:
    Absolute priority: Under an absolute priority, we consider only 
applications that meet the priority (34 CFR 75.105(c)(3)).
    Competitive preference priority: Under a competitive preference 
priority, we give competitive preference to an application by (1) 
awarding additional points, depending on the extent to which the 
application meets the priority (34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i)); or (2) 
selecting an application that meets the priority over an application of 
comparable merit that does not meet the priority (34 CFR 
75.105(c)(2)(ii)).
    Invitational priority: Under an invitational priority, we are 
particularly interested in applications that meet the priority. 
However, we do not give an application that meets the priority a 
preference over other applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).
    This notice does not preclude us from proposing additional 
priorities, requirements, definitions, or selection criteria, subject 
to meeting applicable rulemaking requirements.

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

    Executive Order 12866: This notice 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 proposed regulatory 
action and have

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determined that it is not ``significant'' under the terms of that 
Executive order.
    We have determined, also, that this final regulatory action does 
not unduly interfere with State, local, and Tribal governments in the 
exercise of their governmental functions.
    We summarized the costs and benefits of this regulatory action in 
the notice of proposed priority.
    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.
    Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this 
document in an accessible 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 can 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.

    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.


    Dated: June 9, 2010.
Alexa Posny,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. 2010-14404 Filed 6-15-10; 8:45 am]
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