[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 23 (Thursday, February 3, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6152-6154]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-02179]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Application Deadline for Fiscal Year 2022; Small, Rural School 
Achievement Program

AGENCY: Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of 
Education.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: Under the Small, Rural School Achievement (SRSA) program, 
Assistance Listing Number 84.358A, the U.S. Department of Education 
(Department) awards grants on a formula basis to eligible local 
educational agencies (LEAs) to address the unique needs of rural school 
districts. In this notice, we establish the deadline and describe the 
submission procedures for fiscal year (FY) 2022 SRSA grant 
applications. This notice relates to the approved information 
collection under OMB control number 1810-0646. All LEAs eligible for FY 
2022 SRSA funds must submit an application electronically via the 
process described in this notice by the deadline in this notice.

DATES: 
    Applications Available: February 9, 2022.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 15, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Leslie Poynter, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: 
(202) 401-0039. Email: [email protected].
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 
telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service, toll free, at 1-800-
877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Award Information

    Type of Award: Formula grant.
    Available Funds: The Administration has requested $96,420,000 for 
SRSA in FY 2022. The actual level of funding, if any, depends on final 
congressional action. However, we are inviting applications to allow 
enough time to complete the grant process if Congress appropriates 
funds for this program.
    Estimated Range of Awards: $0-$60,000.
    Note: Depending on the number of eligible LEAs identified in a 
given year and the amount appropriated by Congress for the program, 
some eligible LEAs may receive an SRSA allocation of $0 under the 
statutory funding formula.
    Estimated Number of Awards: 4,260.

II. Program Authority and Eligibility Information

Under what statutory authority will FY 2022 SRSA grant awards be made?

    The FY 2022 SRSA grant awards will be made under title V, part B, 
subpart 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as 
amended (ESEA).

Which LEAs are eligible for an award under the SRSA program?

    For FY 2022, an LEA (including a public charter school that meets 
the definition of LEA in section 8101(30) of the ESEA) is eligible for 
an award under the SRSA program if it meets both criteria below:
    (a) The total number of students in average daily attendance at all 
of the schools served by the LEA is fewer than 600; or each county in 
which a school served by the LEA is located has a total population 
density of fewer than 10 persons per square mile; and
    (b) All of the schools served by the LEA are designated with a 
school locale code of 41, 42, or 43 by the Department's National Center 
for Education Statistics (NCES); or the Secretary has determined, based 
on a demonstration by the LEA and concurrence of the State educational 
agency, that the LEA is located in an area defined as rural by a 
governmental agency of the State.
    The Department provides an eligibility spreadsheet containing each 
LEA eligible for FY 2022 SRSA grant funds, which is available on the 
Department's website at: https://oese.ed.gov/offices/office-of-formula-grants/rural-insular-native-achievement-programs/rural-education-achievement-program/small-rural-school-achievement-program/eligibility/ eligibility/.
    If an LEA on the Department's list of LEAs eligible to receive an 
FY 2022 SRSA award will close prior to the 2022-2023 school year, that 
LEA is no longer eligible to receive an FY 2022 SRSA award and should 
not apply.
    Note: The ``Choice of Participation'' provision under section 5225 
of the ESEA gives an LEA eligible for both SRSA and the Rural and Low-
Income School (RLIS) program authorized under title V, part B, subpart 
2 of the ESEA the option to participate in either the SRSA program or 
the RLIS program. An LEA eligible for both SRSA and RLIS is henceforth 
referred to as a ``dual-eligible LEA.''

[[Page 6153]]

Which eligible LEAs must submit an application to receive an FY 2022 
SRSA grant award?

    Under 34 CFR 75.104(a), the Secretary makes a grant only to an 
eligible entity that submits an application.
    In FY 2022, each LEA eligible to receive an SRSA award is required 
to submit an SRSA application in order to receive SRSA funds, 
regardless of whether the LEA received an award or submitted an 
application in any previous year. This includes each dual-eligible LEA 
that chooses to participate in the SRSA program instead of the RLIS 
program, and each SRSA-eligible LEA that is a member of an educational 
service agency (ESA) that does not receive SRSA funds on the LEA's 
behalf. In the case of an SRSA-eligible LEA that is a member of an 
SRSA-eligible ESA, the LEA and ESA must coordinate with each other to 
determine which entity will submit an SRSA application on the LEA's 
behalf, as both entities may not apply for or receive SRSA funds for 
the LEA. Pursuant to section 5225 of the ESEA, a dual-eligible LEA that 
applies for SRSA funds in accordance with these application submission 
procedures will not be considered for an RLIS award.
    A separate application must be submitted for each eligible LEA and 
each applicant must apply with its own unique entity identifier 
pursuant to 2 CFR part 25. For example, if a rural community has two 
distinct LEAs--one composed of its elementary school(s) and one 
composed of its high school(s)--each LEA is required to submit its own 
SRSA application with the LEA's own unique entity identifier.
    An LEA eligible to receive FY 2022 SRSA funds that fails to submit 
an FY 2022 SRSA application in accordance with the requirements below 
risks not receiving an FY 2022 SRSA award. The Department may consider 
applications submitted after the deadline to the extent practicable and 
contingent upon the availability of funding.
    As noted above, each applicant must apply with its own unique 
entity identifier. The applicant's Data Universal Numbering System 
(DUNS) number will serve as the entity identifier until April 4, 2022, 
when the Federal Government transitions government-wide from using DUNS 
numbers to the new Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) system for Federal 
awards. For more information and resources on the transition from DUNS 
number to UEI, please visit the Federal Service Desk website at 
fsd.gov.

III. Application and Submission Information

Electronic Submission of Applications Using MAX.gov

    The Department will email each LEA eligible for FY 2022 SRSA grant 
funds a uniquely identifiable application link on February 9, 2022. The 
email will include customized instructions for completing the 
electronic application via the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
MAX Survey platform.
    An eligible LEA must submit an electronic application via OMB MAX 
Survey by April 15, 2022, to be assured of receiving an FY 2022 SRSA 
grant award. The Department may consider applications submitted after 
the deadline to the extent practicable and contingent upon the 
availability of funding.
    Please note the following:
     We estimate that it will take 30 minutes to submit an 
application. We strongly recommend that you do not wait until the 
application deadline date to begin the application process, however.
     To better ensure applications are processed in a timely, 
accurate, and efficient manner, we will send reminder emails to any 
LEAs that have not submitted applications by March 1, 2022.
     An application received by OMB MAX Survey is date and time 
stamped upon submission and an applicant will receive a confirmation 
email after the application is submitted.
     If you need to update any information in the application 
after it has been submitted via OMB MAX Survey, you must contact the 
REAP program staff directly at [email protected].

Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of Technical Issues With 
OMB MAX Survey

    If you are unable to submit an application by April 15, 2022, 
because of technical problems with OMB MAX Survey, contact the REAP 
program staff at [email protected] within five business days and explain the 
technical problem you experienced. We will accept your late application 
as having met the deadline if we can confirm that a technical problem 
occurred with the OMB MAX Survey system and that the problem affected 
your ability to submit your application by the application deadline 
date. As noted above, if you submit your application after the deadline 
and the late submission is not due to a technical issue about which you 
have notified the REAP program staff, the Department may consider your 
application to the extent practicable and contingent upon the 
availability of funding.

IV. Other Procedural Requirements

System for Award Management

    To do business with the Department, you must register in the System 
for Award Management (SAM), the Federal Government's primary registrant 
database, using the following information:
    a. DUNS number until April 3, 2022, and UEI starting April 4, 2022.
    b. Legal business name.
    c. Physical address associated with your DUNS number or UEI.
    d. Taxpayer identification number (TIN).
    e. Taxpayer name associated with your TIN.
    f. Bank information to set up Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) 
(i.e., routing number, account number, and account type (checking/
savings)).
    For assistance on the SAM registration process, including 
directions for how to check your entity's registration status, please 
view the resources or utilize the live chat function on the FSD.gov 
website.

V. Accessibility Information and Program Authority

    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document and a copy of the application package in an 
accessible format. The Department will provide the requestor with an 
accessible format that may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or text 
format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, braille, large print, 
audiotape, or compact disc, or other accessible format.
    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.

[[Page 6154]]

    Program Authority: Sections 5211-5212 of the ESEA, 20 U.S.C. 7345-
7345a.

Ian Rosenblum,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy and Programs, Delegated the 
Authority to Perform the Functions and Duties of the Assistant 
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2022-02179 Filed 2-2-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P