[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 105 (Thursday, May 31, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32084-32085]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-13182]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Notice of Proposed Information Collection Requests; Office of 
Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development; EDFacts Collection of 
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) Flexibility Data

SUMMARY: On September 23, 2011, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) 
invited State educational agencies (SEAs) to request flexibility 
pursuant to the authority in section 9401 of ESEA, which allows the 
Secretary of Education to waive, with certain exceptions, any statutory 
or regulatory requirement of the ESEA for an SEA that receives funds 
under a program authorized by the ESEA and requests a waiver. In order 
to ensure that SEAs receiving ESEA flexibility are continuing to meet 
the intent and purpose of Title I of ESEA, including meeting the 
educational needs of low-achieving students, closing achievement gaps, 
and holding schools, local educational agencies, and SEAs accountable 
for improving the academic achievement of all students, ED will 
continue to collect all data related to student proficiency rates as 
well as performance against the annual measurable objectives. This 
collection will be applicable to SEAs with approved flexibility 
requests.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
July 30, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Written comments regarding burden and/or the collection 
activity requirements should be electronically mailed to 
[email protected] or mailed to U.S. Department of Education, 400 
Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, Washington, DC 20202-4537. Copies of the 
proposed information collection request may be accessed from http://edicsweb.ed.gov, by selecting the ``Browse Pending Collections'' link 
and by clicking on link number 04860. When you access the information 
collection, click on ``Download Attachments'' to view. Written requests 
for information should be addressed to U.S. Department of Education, 
400 Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, Washington, DC 20202-4537. Requests may 
also be electronically mailed to [email protected] or faxed to 202-
401-0920. Please specify the complete title of the information 
collection and OMB Control Number when making your request.
    Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) 
may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-
8339.

[[Page 32085]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires that Federal agencies provide 
interested parties an early opportunity to comment on information 
collection requests. The Director, Information Collection Clearance 
Division, Privacy, Information and Records Management Services, Office 
of Management, publishes this notice containing proposed information 
collection requests at the beginning of the Departmental review of the 
information collection. The Department of Education is especially 
interested in public comment addressing the following issues: (1) Is 
this collection necessary to the proper functions of the Department; 
(2) will this information be processed and used in a timely manner; (3) 
is the estimate of burden accurate; (4) how might the Department 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and (5) how might the Department minimize the burden of this 
collection on the respondents, including through the use of information 
technology. Please note that written comments received in response to 
this notice will be considered public records.
    Title of Collection: EDFacts Collection of ESEA Flexibility Data.
    OMB Control Number: Pending.
    Type of Review: New.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 52.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 1,248.
    Abstract: On September 23, 2011, the U.S. Department of Education 
(ED) invited each State educational agency (SEA) to voluntarily request 
flexibility on behalf of itself, its local educational agencies, and 
schools, in order to better focus on improving student learning and 
increasing the quality of instruction. Since then, ED has approved 11 
SEA requests for flexibility, and is currently reviewing an additional 
27 requests. ED expects to receive requests from additional SEAs by 
September 6, 2012. SEAs are invited to request flexibility pursuant to 
the authority in section 9401 of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act of 1965 (ESEA), which allows the Secretary of Education to waive, 
with certain exceptions, any statutory or regulatory requirement of the 
ESEA for an SEA that receives funds under a program authorized by the 
ESEA and requests a waiver. This clearance request is for the 
collection of data that may be needed to ensure that SEAs receiving 
ESEA flexibility are continuing to meet the intent and purpose of Title 
I of ESEA, including meeting the educational needs of low-achieving 
students, closing achievement gaps, and holding schools, local 
educational agencies, and SEAs accountable for improving the academic 
achievement of all students. This collection will be applicable to SEAs 
with approved flexibility plans. In order to reduce burden on SEAs and 
maximize the availability and utility of the data within ED, ED plans 
to require states to submit these data electronically through EDFacts, 
as allowable under 34 CF. Part 76. ``Flexibility Clearance Attachment 
B'' outlines the 22 new data groups proposed for collection. ED is 
requesting SEAs to review the last page of Attachment B which provides 
two directed questions (see the link to EDICSweb to link number 04860 
in the Addresses section above.) ED is requesting the data providers of 
each SEA respond to two specific questions about the proposed data 
groups. Responses to these questions will help ED determine whether or 
not to adjust the proposed data groups, as well as to determine which 
of the data can currently be provided by SEAs.

    Dated: May 24, 2012.
Darrin A. King,
Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Privacy, 
Information and Records Management Services, Office of Management.
[FR Doc. 2012-13182 Filed 5-30-12; 8:45 am]
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