[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 95 (Friday, May 15, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29440-29441]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10488]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Notice of Waivers Granted Under Section 3511 of the Coronavirus 
Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act

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

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In this notice, we announce waivers that the U.S. Department 
of Education (Department) granted, within the last 30 days, under the 
CARES Act.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Hugh Reid, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room Potomac Center Plaza (PCP)--
11114, Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 245-7491. 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.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3511(d)(3) of the CARES Act requires 
the Secretary to publish, in the Federal Register and on the 
Department's website, a notice of the Secretary's decision to grant a 
waiver. The Secretary must publish this notice no later than 30 days 
after granting the waiver and the notice must include which waiver was 
granted and the reason for granting the waiver. This notice is intended 
to fulfill the Department's obligation to publicize its waiver 
decisions by identifying the waivers granted under section 3511.
    The Department has approved waivers of the following requirement: 
Section 421(b) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) to extend 
the period of availability of fiscal year (FY) 2018 funds for programs 
in which the State educational agency (SEA) participates as the 
eligible agency until September 30, 2021.
    In the last 30 days, the Department's Office of Career, Technical, 
and Adult Education (OCTAE) granted 41 waivers to SEAs.

Waiver Data

I. Extensions of the Obligation Period

    A. Twenty-eight waivers were granted to SEAs for State grants 
authorized by Title I of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical 
Education Act of 2006 (Perkins), and 13 waivers to SEAs for State 
grants authorized by Title II of the Workforce Innovation and 
Opportunity Act (WIOA) (i.e., the Adult Education and Family Literacy 
Act (AEFLA)).
    1. Provision waived: Tydings Amendment, section 421(b) of GEPA (20 
U.S.C. 1225(b)).\1\
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    \1\ Section 3511(b) of the CARES Act only authorizes the 
Secretary to grant waivers requested by SEAs of the Tydings 
Amendment, section 421(b) of GEPA, to extend the period of 
availability of State formula grant funds authorized by the Carl D. 
Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins Act) and 
the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA). The Department 
currently does not have the authority to grant a waiver of the 
Tydings Amendment with respect to the Perkins Act or AEFLA to States 
in which the SEA is not the grantee for these State-administered 
programs.
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    Reasons: These waivers were granted under section 421(b) of GEPA to 
extend the period of availability of FY 2018 funds until September 30, 
2021, pursuant to the 2018 Consolidated Appropriations Act (GEPA 
section 421(b) waivers). It is not possible to obligate funds on a 
timely basis, as originally planned, due to extensive school and 
program disruptions in the States. These disruptions are in response to 
extraordinary circumstances for which a national emergency related to 
the COVID-19 pandemic has been duly declared by the President of the 
United States under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
Emergency Assistance Act, 100 Public Law 707, and will protect the 
health and safety of students, staff, and our communities.
    Waiver Applicants: The SEA GEPA section 421(b) waiver applicants 
provided assurance that the SEA will: (1) Use, and ensure that its 
subgrantees will use, funds under the respective programs in accordance 
with the provisions of all applicable statutes, regulations, program 
plans, and applications not subject to these waivers; (2) work to 
mitigate, and ensure that its subgrantees will work to mitigate, any 
negative effects that may occur as a result of the requested waiver; 
and (3) provide the public and all subgrantees in the State with notice 
of, and the opportunity to comment on, this request by posting 
information regarding the waiver request and the process for commenting 
on the State website.
    The Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education, 
reviewed the SEAs' requests for a GEPA section 421(b) waiver and 
determined that the following SEAs met the requirements for a GEPA 
section 421(b) waiver on the dates indicated below:
    (1) State grants authorized by Title I of Perkins:
     Alabama State Department of Education, April 21, 2020;
     Alaska Department of Education and Early Development, 
April 21, 2020;

[[Page 29441]]

     Arkansas Department of Education, April 17, 2020;
     Connecticut State Department of Education, April 27, 2020;
     Delaware Department of Education, April 22, 2020;
     Florida Department of Education, April 30, 2020;
     Georgia Department of Education, April 17, 2020;
     Illinois State Board of Education, April 21, 2020;
     Kentucky Department of Education, April 27, 2020;
     Maine Department of Education, April 23, 2020;
     Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary 
Education, April 20, 2020;
     Mississippi Department of Education, April 17, 2020;
     Nevada Department of Education, April 23, 2020;
     New Hampshire Department of Education, April 17, 2020;
     New Jersey Department of Education, April 27, 2020;
     New Mexico Public Education Department, April 30, 2020;
     New York State Education Department, April 21, 2020;
     North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, April 17, 
2020;
     Oregon Department of Education, April 27, 2020;
     Puerto Rico Department of Education, April 17, 2020;
     Rhode Island Department of Education, April 20, 2020;
     South Carolina Department of Education, April 21, 2020;
     Tennessee Department of Education, April 28, 2020;
     Texas Education Agency, April 21, 2020;
     Utah State Board of Education, April 24, 2020;
     Vermont Agency of Education, May 4, 2020;
     Virgin Islands Department of Education, April 22, 2020; 
and
     Virginia Department of Education, April 17, 2020.
    (2) State grants authorized by Title II of WIOA (AEFLA):
     Connecticut State Department of Education, April 27, 2020;
     Delaware Department of Education, April 22, 2020;
     Florida Department of Education, April 30, 2020;
     Iowa Department of Education, April 23, 2020;
     Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary 
Education, April 20, 2020;
     Nevada Department of Education, April 23, 2020;
     New York State Education Department, April 21, 2020;
     Puerto Rico Department of Education, April 17, 2020;
     Rhode Island Department of Education, April 20, 2020;
     South Carolina Department of Education, April 21, 2020;
     Virgin Islands Department of Education, April 22, 2020;
     Virginia Department of Education, April 17, 2020; and
     West Virginia Department of Education, April 21, 2020.
    The Secretary also announced the waiver decisions at: https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/pi/covid19/index.html.
    Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this 
document and a copy of the application package in an accessible format 
(e.g., braille, large print, audiotape, or compact disc) on request to 
the program 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. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. 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 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.

Scott Stump,
Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education.
[FR Doc. 2020-10488 Filed 5-14-20; 8:45 am]
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