[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 149 (Friday, August 2, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 46858-46860]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-18529]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Chapter III


Proposed Waiver and Extension of the Project Period for the 
Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Partnership Project

AGENCY: Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), Office of Special 
Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Department of Education.

ACTION: Proposed waiver and extension of the project period.

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[Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.326A.]

SUMMARY: For the currently funded IDEA Partnership Project (Partnership 
Project) grantee, the Secretary proposes to waive the requirements that 
generally prohibit project periods exceeding five years and project 
period extensions involving the obligation of additional Federal funds. 
The Secretary also proposes to extend current project period for one 
year. The proposed waiver and extension of the project period would 
enable the currently funded Partnership Project grantee to receive 
funding from October 1, 2013, through September 30, 2014.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before September 3, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about this proposed waiver and 
extension of the project period to Renee Bradley, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., room 4103, Potomac Center Plaza 
(PCP), Washington, DC 20202-2600.
    If you prefer to send your comments by email, use the following 
address: [email protected]. You must include the phrase ``Proposed 
waiver and extension of the project period'' in the subject line of 
your message.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Renee Bradley. Telephone: (202) 245-
7277, or by email: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 
telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-
800-877-8339.

[[Page 46859]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Invitation to Comment: We invite you to submit comments regarding 
this proposed waiver and extension. During and after the comment 
period, you may inspect all public comments about this proposed waiver 
and extension of the project period in room 4103, PCP, 550 12th Street, 
SW., Washington, DC, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., 
Washington, DC time, Monday through Friday of each week, except Federal 
holidays.
    Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities in Reviewing the 
Rulemaking Record: On request, we will provide an appropriate 
accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability who 
needs assistance to review the comments or other documents in the 
public rulemaking record for this notice. If you want to schedule an 
appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Background

    On July 15, 2008, the Department published a notice in the Federal 
Register (73 FR 40548) inviting applications for new awards for fiscal 
year (FY) 2008 for the Partnership Project funded under the Technical 
Assistance and Dissemination to Improve Services and Results for 
Children with Disabilities (TA&D) program, authorized under section 663 
of IDEA. The Partnership Project is intended to provide opportunities 
for national associations to collaborate with each other and with their 
collective State and local affiliates to improve the implementation of 
education policies and practices in States. The goal of the Partnership 
Project is also intended to bridge the gap between research, policy, 
and practice in both special education and general education so that 
the needs of all students can be meaningfully addressed. The 
Partnership Project has worked to unite multiple national associations, 
and their State and local affiliates, representing policymakers, 
service providers, local-level administrators, and families to improve 
the implementation of IDEA and outcomes for students with disabilities. 
These associations and their State and local affiliates need continued 
support to engage in meaningful dialogue, continual learning, and 
problem solving that will improve the implementation of IDEA and 
outcomes for students with disabilities.
    The Department made one award for a period of 60 months to the 
National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) 
to establish the Partnership Project. The current project period is 
scheduled to end on September 30, 2013.
    The Partnership Project links the expertise and resources available 
through the OSEP Technical Assistance and Dissemination Network with 
stakeholder organizations to build innovative dissemination strategies. 
The Partnership Project has developed and enhanced tools and strategies 
to improve the collaboration and engagement of stakeholder 
organizations linked with State improvement efforts to implement 
evidence-based practices, improve the implementation of IDEA, and 
improve outcomes for children with disabilities within general 
education reform efforts. Engagement tools and strategies include: (1) 
Various Dialogue Guides, focused on education reform efforts such as 
standards-based assessment, college- and career-readiness, and the 
school-to-prison pipeline; (2) communities of practice development and 
implementation; and (3) stakeholder engagement protocols.
    At this time, we do not believe that it would be in the public 
interest to run a competition for a new Partnership Project because the 
Department is planning to change the organization of its technical 
assistance (TA) activities to better meet the needs of States and local 
affiliates and families. We also have concluded that it would be 
contrary to the public interest to have a lapse in the provision of the 
TA services currently provided by the Partnership Project pending the 
changes to the organization of the Department's TA activities.
    For these reasons, the Secretary proposes to waive the requirements 
in 34 CFR 75.250, which prohibit project periods exceeding five years, 
and waive the requirements in 34 CFR 75.261(a) and (c)(2), which allow 
the extension of a project period only if the extension does not 
involve the obligation of additional Federal funds. The Secretary 
further proposes to issue a continuation award in the amount of 
$1,699,000 to NASDSE for an additional 12-month period. This 
continuation award should ensure that the Partnership Project's TA, 
coordinated training, outreach, and dissemination of information to the 
partners' State and local affiliates and families will not be 
interrupted.
    Any activities to be carried out during the year of the 
continuation award would have to be consistent with, or be a logical 
extension of, the scope, goals, and objectives of the grantee's 
application as approved in the 2008 Partnership Project competition.
    If the proposed waiver and extension of the project period are 
announced in a final notice in the Federal Register, the requirements 
applicable to continuation awards for this competition set forth in the 
July 15, 2008, notice inviting applications and the requirements in 34 
CFR 75.253 would apply to any continuation awards sought by the current 
IDEA Partnership grantee. If we announce the waiver and extension as 
final, we will base our decisions regarding a continuation award on the 
program narrative, budget, budget narrative, and program performance 
report submitted by the current grantee, as well as the requirements in 
34 CFR 75.253.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Department certifies that the proposed waiver and extension of 
the project period would not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. The only entity that would be 
affected by the proposed waiver and extension of the project period is 
the current grantee.
    The Secretary certifies that the proposed waiver and extension 
would not have a significant economic impact on this entity because the 
proposed waiver and extension of the project period imposes minimal 
compliance costs, and the activities required to support the additional 
year of funding would not impose additional regulatory burdens or 
require unnecessary Federal supervision.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    This notice of proposed waiver and extension of the project period 
does not contain any information collection requirements.
    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 compact disc) on request to the contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Electronic Access to This Document: 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

[[Page 46860]]

available via the Federal Digital System at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this 
site 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). To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, 
which is available free at the site.
    You may also access documents of the Department published in the 
Federal Register by using the article search feature at: 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

    Dated: July 29, 2013.
Michael K. Yudin,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services.
[FR Doc. 2013-18529 Filed 8-1-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P