[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 128 (Thursday, July 2, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 39833-39834]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-12954]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Chapter III

[ED-2020-OSERS-0034]


Final Waiver and Extension of the Project Periods for Television 
Access Grants

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

ACTION: Final waiver and extension of project periods.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary waives the requirements in the Education 
Department General Administrative Regulations that generally prohibit 
project periods exceeding five years and project period extensions 
involving the obligation of additional Federal funds. The waiver and 
extension enable five projects under Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance (CFDA) number 84.327C to receive funding for an additional 
period, not beyond September 30, 2021.

DATES: The waiver and extension of the project periods are effective 
July 2, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Glinda Hill, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room 5173, Potomac Center Plaza, 
Washington, DC 20202-5076. Telephone: 202-245-7376. 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:

Background

    On January 14, 2015, the Department of Education (Department) 
published in the Federal Register (80 FR 1900) a notice inviting 
applications for five video description and captioning projects for 
fiscal year (FY) 2015 under the Educational Technology, Media, and 
Materials program, authorized under sections 674 and 681(d) of the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
    The purpose of the video description and captioning projects is to 
improve the learning opportunities for children with disabilities by 
providing access to television programming through high-quality video 
description and captioning. These projects support access to widely 
available television programs that are appropriate for use in the 
classroom setting and are not otherwise required to be captioned or 
described by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). A table 
listing the FY 2015 video description and captioning projects follows:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
   FY 2015 awards under CFDA 84.327C           Grantee project name
------------------------------------------------------------------------
H327C150001............................  Companion Enterprise, Inc.,
                                          Tulsa, OK. Project: Narrative
                                          Television Network.
H327C150007............................  Bridge Multimedia, Inc., New
                                          York, NY. Project: Video
                                          Description for the Next
                                          Generation.
H327C150008............................  Bridge Multimedia, Inc., New
                                          York, NY. Project: Standards
                                          Aligned Video Description.
H327C150009............................  Closed Caption Latina, Corp.,
                                          Winter Springs, FL. Project:
                                          Captions and Video
                                          Description: Educational Tools
                                          for Hispanic Children with
                                          Disabilities.
H327C170002 (Transferred from            Captionmax LLC, Minneapolis,
 H327C150003).                            MN. Project: Television Access
                                          for Preschool and Elementary
                                          School Children.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Department also funds one project under CFDA 84.327N, 
Educational Technology, Media, and Materials for Individuals with 
Disabilities--Captioned and Described Educational Media, the Center for 
the Described and Captioned Media Program (DCMP). The purpose of the 
DCMP is to establish and operate an Accessible Learning Center that 
oversees the selection, acquisition, captioning, video description, and 
distribution of educational media through a free loan service for 
eligible users. The video description and captioning projects are 
required to use the DCMP's portal as a repository so that eligible 
users can easily access the video described and captioned media. The 
DCMP's project period started on October 1, 2016, and will end on 
September 30, 2021.
    On April 2, 2020, the Department published a notice in the Federal 
Register (85 FR 18508) proposing an extension of the project period and 
a waiver of the requirements in 34 CFR 75.250, which prohibit project 
periods exceeding five years, as well as a waiver of 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 proposed extension and waivers would 
enable the Secretary to provide additional funds to all five projects 
currently funded under CFDA number 84.327C for an additional period not 
beyond September 30, 2021.

Public Comment

    No comments were submitted in response to our invitation in the 
notice of proposed waiver and extension of the project periods.

Final Waivers and Extensions

    The Department is extending the end dates of the five video 
description and captioning projects to align with that of the DCMP, 
which ends on September 30, 2021, as it will receive its final year of 
funding in FY 2020. The Department does not believe that it is in the 
public interest to run a competition for CFDA 84.327C in FY 2020. 
Aligning the end dates of these project periods allows the Department 
to better coordinate the Description and Captioning program. Aligning 
the project periods of the video description and captioning projects 
and the DCMP also will improve coordination across projects, allow for 
more efficient use of the funding available to support these 
activities, and ensure easier access to a wider range and increasing 
numbers of captioned

[[Page 39834]]

and described educational media and programming.
    For these reasons, the Secretary waives the requirements in 34 CFR 
75.250, which prohibit project periods exceeding five years, as well as 
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. This waiver allows the 
Department to issue a one-time FY 2020 continuation award to each of 
the five currently funded 84.327C projects.
    Any activities carried out during the year of this continuation 
award will be consistent with, or a logical extension of, the scope, 
goals, and objectives of the grantees' applications as approved in the 
FY 2015 competition. The requirements for continuation awards are set 
forth in 34 CFR 75.253.

Waiver of Delayed Effective Date

    The Administrative Procedure Act requires that a substantive rule 
must be published at least 30 days before its effective date, except as 
otherwise provided for good cause (5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3)). A delayed 
effective date would be contrary to public interest by creating a gap 
in production of described and captioned educational programming and 
delays in the availability of programming for children with 
disabilities. Therefore, the Secretary waives the delayed effective 
date provision for good cause.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    The Secretary certifies that the waiver and extension of the 
project periods will not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. The only entities that will be 
affected by the waiver and extension of the project periods are the 
current grantees. Additionally, the extension of an existing project 
period imposes minimal compliance costs, and the activities required to 
support the additional year of funding will not impose additional 
regulatory burdens or require unnecessary Federal supervision.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    This waiver and extension of the project periods does not contain 
any information collection requirements.

Intergovernmental Review

    These programs are 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. 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.

Mark Schultz,
Commissioner, Rehabilitation Services Administration. Delegated the 
authority to perform the functions and duties of the Assistant 
Secretary for the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-12954 Filed 7-1-20; 8:45 am]
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