[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 96 (Monday, May 18, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29704-29705]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10563]


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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 Elementary and Secondary 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: Patrick Rooney, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room 3W202, Washington, DC 20202. 
Telephone: (202) 453-5514. 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 under that section. 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 fulfills the Department's obligation under section 
3511(d)(3).

Waiver Data

    As described in more detail below, the Department waived, for State 
educational agencies (SEAs) from each of the 50 States, Puerto Rico, 
and the District of Columbia, and for the Bureau of Indian Education 
(BIE), some or all of the following requirements:
     Section 1127(b) of Title I, Part A of the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended (ESEA), so that an SEA may 
waive, more than once every three years, if necessary, the 15 percent 
carryover limitation in ESEA section 1127(a) for fiscal year (FY) 2019 
Title I, Part A funds.
     Section 421(b) of the General Education Provisions Act 
(GEPA) to extend the period of availability of FY 2018 funds for 
programs in which an SEA participates under its approved consolidated 
State plan until September 30, 2021. The programs include:
    [cir] Title I, Part A of the ESEA (Improving Basic Programs 
Operated by LEAs), including the portions of an SEA's Title I, Part A 
award used to carry out section 1003 school improvement, section 1003A 
direct student services, if applicable, and Title I, Part D, Subpart 2.
    [cir] Title I, Part B of the ESEA (State Assessment Formula 
Grants).
    [cir] Title I, Part C of the ESEA (Education of Migratory 
Children).
    [cir] Title I, Part D, Subpart 1 of the ESEA (Prevention and 
Intervention Programs for Children and Youth Who Are Neglected, 
Delinquent, or At Risk).
    [cir] Title II, Part A of the ESEA (Supporting Effective 
Instruction).
    [cir] Title III, Part A of the ESEA (English Language Acquisition, 
Language Enhancement, and Academic Achievement).
    [cir] Title IV, Part A of the ESEA (Student Support and Academic 
Enrichment Grants).
    [cir] Title IV, Part B of the ESEA (21st Century Community Learning 
Centers).
    [cir] Title V, Part B, Subpart 2 of the ESEA (Rural and Low-Income 
School Program).
    [cir] McKinney-Vento Education for Homeless Children and Youth 
Program.
     Section 4106(d) of Title IV, Part A of the ESEA related to 
local educational agency (LEA) needs assessments for the 2019-2020 
school year.
     Section 4106(e)(2)(C), (D), and (E) of Title IV, Part A of 
the ESEA with respect to content-area spending requirements for FYs 
2018 and 2019 Title IV, Part A funds.
     Section 4109(b) of Title IV, Part A of the ESEA with 
respect to the spending limitation for technology infrastructure for 
FYs 2018 and 2019 Title IV, Part A funds.
     Section 8101(42) of the ESEA, which defines ``professional 
development,'' for activities funded for the 2019-2020 school year.

[[Page 29705]]

    Reasons: Due to the extraordinary circumstances caused by the 
COVID-19 pandemic and resulting school closures, the Department invited 
SEAs to request waivers to provide fiscal and operational flexibility 
and to help SEAs and LEAs in their planning for how to resume 
education. The waivers provide an SEA the ability to approve an LEA to 
carry over more than 15 percent of its Title I, Part A funds, even if 
the LEA had received approval to exceed this limitation in the past 
three years. An SEA would be able to extend for itself and its 
subgrantees the period of availability of FY 2018 funds for programs 
included in its consolidated State plan to allow additional time to 
obligate those funds. An SEA would also be able to permit an LEA or 
consortium of LEAs to use its Title IV, Part A funds to best meet its 
needs without regard to content-area spending requirements, spending 
limits on technology infrastructure, or completing a needs assessment. 
Finally, by waiving the definition of professional development, an SEA 
and its subgrantees would be able to conduct time-sensitive, one-time 
or stand-alone professional development focused on supporting educators 
to provide effective distance learning.
    Waiver Applicants:
    SEAs from all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 
BIE requested and received these waivers. Each received all of the 
waivers listed above, with the following exceptions:
     Title I, Part B: Vermont did not request a waiver under 
section 421(b) of GEPA to extend the period of availability of FY 2018 
funds.
     Title I, Part C: BIE, Connecticut, the District of 
Columbia, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, West Virginia, and Wyoming did not 
request a waiver under section 421(b) of GEPA to extend the period of 
availability of FY 2018 funds.
     Title I, Part D, Subpart 1: BIE, South Dakota, and Vermont 
did not request a waiver under section 421(b) of GEPA to extend the 
period of availability of FY 2018 funds.
     Title III, Part A: BIE did not request a waiver under 
section 421(b) of GEPA to extend the period of availability of FY 2018 
funds.
     Title V, Part B, Subpart 2: Alaska, Connecticut, Delaware, 
the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island did not 
receive a waiver under section 421(b) of GEPA to extend the period of 
availability of FY 2018 funds.
    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.

Frank T. Brogan,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
[FR Doc. 2020-10563 Filed 5-15-20; 8:45 am]
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