[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 64 (Wednesday, April 5, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Page 16634]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-06681]


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LEGAL SERVICES CORPORATION


Legal Services Corporation Performance Criteria; Request for 
Comments on Performance Area 4

AGENCY: Legal Services Corporation.

ACTION: Request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) is in the process of 
revising the Performance Criteria that LSC uses to evaluate the quality 
of legal assistance provided by its grantees. LSC is seeking comments 
on the proposed changes to Performance Area 4, ``Effectiveness of 
governance, leadership, and administration.''

DATES: All comments must be received on or before the close of business 
on May 29, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:

 Agency Web site: http://www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/matters-comment
 Email: [email protected]
 Fax: (202) 337-6813
 Mail: Legal Services Corporation, 3333 K Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20007.
    Instructions: All comments should be addressed to Zoe Osterman, 
Project Coordinator for the Executive Office, Legal Services 
Corporation. Include ``Revisions to Performance Area 4'' as the heading 
or subject line for all comments submitted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Zoe Osterman, [email protected], (202) 
295-1617.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: As an entity created and funded by Congress, 
LSC has the statutory responsibility to ensure that recipients of LSC 
funds provide economical and effective legal assistance to eligible 
individuals in all parts of the country, including U.S. territories. 
With this goal in mind, LSC adopted the Performance Criteria in 1995. 
LSC last revised the Performance Criteria in 2007.
    Beginning in 2016, LSC initiated a process to revise the 
Performance Criteria. LSC started with Performance Area 4, 
``Effectiveness of governance, leadership, and administration.'' LSC 
established an internal working group and an external advisory 
committee comprised of board governance experts, judges, executive 
directors and former board members of LSC recipients, and 
representatives from the American Bar Association and the National 
Legal Aid and Defender Association. These groups worked to identify 
criteria within Performance Area 4 in need of revisions, best practices 
in nonprofit governance, and the strengths and weaknesses of proposed 
revisions. LSC also consulted with the advisory committee to identify 
the best ways to ensure recipient compliance with the Performance 
Criteria and the best tools for monitoring recipient board governance 
and leadership performance. This process culminated in the creation of 
charts, broken down by criteria, that show the existing indicators and 
the areas of inquiry LSC uses to evaluate recipients' performance on 
each indicator the proposed new indicators and areas of inquiry, and 
sources of support for each proposed change.
    LSC now seeks public comment on the proposed changes to Performance 
Area 4 described in the chart. Black font indicates language in the 
current performance criteria and red font indicates proposed language. 
The charts will be available at http://www.lsc.gov/about-lsc/matters-comment beginning March 31, 2017.
    LSC is following a similar process to revise Performance Criteria 
1-3. Additional information and opportunity to comment on the revisions 
to Performance Criteria 1-3 will be provided in future Federal Register 
notices.

    Dated: March 30, 2017.
Stefanie K. Davis,
Assistant General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2017-06681 Filed 4-4-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7050-01-P