[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 48 (Wednesday, March 12, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14017-14019]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-05431]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Proposed Waiver and Extension of the Project Period for the 
Literacy Information and Communication System Regional Professional 
Development Centers

[Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.191B.]

AGENCY: Career, Technical, and Adult Education, Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Proposed waiver and extension of the project period.

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SUMMARY: For the current 36-month grant projects under the Literacy

[[Page 14018]]

Information and Communication System (LINCS) Regional Professional 
Development Centers (RPDC) program, the Secretary proposes to: (1) 
Waive the restriction against project period extensions involving the 
obligation of additional Federal funds; and (2) extend for an 
additional 12 months the project period of these grants. The Secretary 
proposes this action because we do not believe that it would be in the 
public interest to hold a LINCS RPDC competition in FY 2014, the same 
year in which the Department's LINCS Resource Collection contract and 
the LINCS technical services contract will end. This proposed one-year 
extension of the LINCS RPDC project period is intended to ensure 
seamless technical assistance service delivery to our adult education 
customers.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before April 11, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Address all comments about this proposed waiver and 
extension of the project period to Patricia Bennett, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., Room 11013, Potomac Center Plaza, 
Washington, DC 20202-7241.
    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 for LINCS RPDCs'' 
in the subject line of your message.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia Bennett by telephone at (202) 
245-7758 or by email at: [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.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Invitation to Comment:
    We invite you to submit comments regarding this notice. We are 
particularly interested in receiving comments on the potential impact 
that this proposed project period waiver and extension might have on 
current LINCS RPDCs and on potential applicants that would be eligible 
to apply for grant awards under any new LINCS RPDC notice inviting 
applications, should there be one.
    The following entities would be eligible to apply should the 
Department conduct a new competition for LINCS RPDCs:
    (a) Institutions of higher education;
    (b) Public or private nonprofit agencies or organizations; and
    (c) Consortia of eligible institutions, organizations, or agencies.
    During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public 
comments about this proposed waiver and extension of the project period 
in room 11013, Potomac Center Plaza, 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 of proposed waiver and 
extension of the project period. If you want to schedule an appointment 
for this type of aid, please contact the person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Background

    In fiscal year (FY) 2011, using FY 2010 funds, we funded four LINCS 
RPDC grants, as authorized under title II of the Workforce Investment 
Act of 1998 (WIA) (20 U.S.C. 9253(2)(H)), the Adult Education and 
Family Literacy Act (AEFLA). Each RPDC serves one of the following four 
regions:
    (1) Region 1--Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maine, 
Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, 
Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Vermont, and the Virgin 
Islands.
    (2) Region 2--Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, 
Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, 
Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.
    (3) Region 3--Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, 
Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
    (4) Region 4--Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, 
Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, Guam, 
American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and 
the Republic of Palau.
    Through the LINCS RPDC grants we support evidenced-based virtual or 
in-person adult education professional development (AEPD) activities to 
assist educators who provide adult education services \1\ or adult 
education instruction \2\ to adult learners (adult educators).
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    \1\ Adult education services (e.g., career counseling, 
transportation counseling, education counseling) are provided to 
adult learners by educators who may include staff of eligible 
providers identified in section 203(5) of the AEFLA, as well as 
State staff responsible for the implementation of adult education 
programs.
    \2\ Adult education instruction (e.g., instruction in basic 
literacy, mathematics, and English language skills) is provided to 
adult learners by educators who may include adult education teachers 
and other instructional personnel of eligible providers identified 
in section 203(5) of the AEFLA.
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    In addition, the LINCS RPDCs support each eligible agency 
responsible for administering or supervising policy for adult education 
and literacy programs under section 203(4) of the AEFLA \3\ (eligible 
agency), and adult education and related organizations within each 
State \4\ and outlying area \5\ by--
    (1) Disseminating information on the materials and the AEPD in the 
LINCS Resource Collection \6\ to each eligible agency in the region 
that the grantee serves and to adult education and related 
organizations within each State and outlying area in that region;
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    \3\ Section 203(4) of the AEFLA defines the term ``eligible 
agency'' as the sole entity or agency in a State or an outlying area 
responsible for administering or supervising policy for adult 
education and literacy in the State or outlying area, respectively, 
consistent with the law of the State or outlying area, respectively.
    \4\ See section 203(17) of the AEFLA.
    \5\ See section 203(14) of the AEFLA.
    \6\ For more information on the LINCS Resource Collection, see 
http://lincs.ed.gov/collections.
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    (2) Collaborating closely with eligible agencies to organize and 
deliver virtual or in-person AEPD; and
    (3) Fostering the use of new technologies, including virtual 
moderated communities of practice \7\ (CoP), for adult educators.
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    \7\ Communities of practice are groups of people who share a 
concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it 
better as they interact regularly (see http://www.ewenger.com/theory/).
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    The RPDCs provide substantial and direct operational involvement in 
the management of project implementation and on plans for AEPD and 
project activities, including by facilitating the collaboration between 
grantees and the Department's LINCS Resource Collection contractor and 
the LINCS technical services contractor.
    In conducting the required activities under the cooperative 
agreements, the LINCS RPDCs--
    (1) Use the LINCS Resource Collection materials and other AEPD 
materials available on the Department's LINCS Web site for 
dissemination and AEPD;
    (2) Work collaboratively with the Department's LINCS Resource 
Collection contractor and the LINCS technical services contractor to 
meet the project's goals, objectives, and outcomes; and
    (3) Implement the requirements established in the notice for 
applications for new awards for Literacy

[[Page 14019]]

Information and Communication System Regional Professional Development 
Centers, published in the Federal Register on June 30, 2011 (76 FR 
38374).
    For the four current LINCS RPDC grantees the Secretary now proposes 
to waive the requirement of 34 CFR 75.261(a) and (c)(2) of the 
Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) that 
generally prohibits project period extensions involving the obligation 
of additional Federal funds. The Secretary also proposes to extend the 
current LINCS RPDC project period for 12 months. This will allow each 
of the four current LINCS RPDC grantees that received awards under the 
FY 2011 competition to seek a continuation award for one additional 
year through FY 2015 with FY 2014 funds. Further, the waiver and 
extension, as proposed, would mean that we would not announce new 
awards in FY 2014.
    Holding an RPDC competition in FY 2014--the same year in which the 
Department's LINCS Resource Collection contract and the LINCS technical 
services contract end--would not be in the public interest. Because all 
of the LINCS service providers would be transitioning at the same time, 
there would be a disruption to the continuity and stability of services 
that we provide to adult educators, resulting in a negative impact on 
service delivery to our adult education customers.
    Therefore, to ensure continuity and stability of LINCS services, we 
plan to hold competitions during FY 2014 for the LINCS Resource 
Collection contract and the LINCS technology services contract, both 
new contracts to begin in FY 2015. We then plan to issue in FY 2015 a 
LINCS RPDC notice inviting applications for new awards for a three-year 
period to begin in FY 2016. This proposed one-year extension of the 
LINCS RPDC project period will ensure seamless technical assistance 
service delivery to our adult education customers.
    If the waiver of 34 CFR 75.261(a) and (c)(2) that we propose in 
this notice is announced by the Department in a final notice, the 
requirements applicable to continuation awards for current LINCS RPDC 
grantees and the requirements in section 75.253 of EDGAR would apply to 
any continuation awards sought by current LINCS RPDC grantees.
    If we announce this proposed waiver and extension of the project 
period as final, we would make continuation awards based on information 
that each grantee had provided, indicating that it is making 
substantial progress performing its LINCS RPDC grant activities based 
on the requirements in the notice inviting applications, and based on 
the regulations in 34 CFR 75.253.
    Any activities to be carried out during the continuation year must 
be consistent with, or be a logical extension of, the scope, goals, and 
objectives of each grantee's application as approved in the FY 2011 
LINCS RPDC competition. Under this proposed waiver and extension, the 
project period for current LINCS RPDC grantees would be extended 
through FY 2015.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Secretary certifies that the proposed waiver and extension of 
the project period and the activities required to support the 
additional year of funding would not have a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities. The small entities that 
would be affected by this proposed waiver and extension of the project 
period are the four currently-funded LINCS RPDC grantees and any 
potential eligible applicants for the LINCS RPDC grants.
    The proposed waiver and extension of these current projects would 
involve 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

    The LINCS RPDC program is subject to Executive Order 12372 and the 
regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about Intergovernmental 
Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 12372 is in the 
application package for this competition.
    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 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.

    Program Authority:  20 U.S.C. 9253(2)(H).

    Dated: March 7, 2014.
Brenda Dann-Messier,
Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education.
[FR Doc. 2014-05431 Filed 3-11-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P