[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 78 (Friday, April 22, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 24055-24056]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-08557]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Chapter II


Final Waiver and Extension of the Project Periods for the 
Education Research and Special Education Research Grant Programs

AGENCY: Institute of Education Sciences (IES), 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 projects under Assistance Listing Numbers (ALN) 
84.305A, 84.305B, 84.305C, 84.305R, 84.324A, 84.324B, and 84.324R to 
receive funding for an additional period, not to exceed 1 year.

DATES: The waiver and extension of the project periods are effective 
April 22, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Allen Ruby, U.S. Department of 
Education, 550 12th Street SW, Room 4146, Washington, DC 20202. 
Telephone: (202) 245-8145. Email: [email protected].
    If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and 
wish to access telecommunications relay services, please dial 7-1-1.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Under the Education Research Grants Program (ALN 84.305A), the 
Education Research and Development Center Program (ALN 84.305C), 
Research Grants focused on Systematic Replication (ALN 84.305R), the 
Special Education Research Grants Program (ALN 84.324A), and Research 
Grants Focused on Systematic Replication in Special Education (ALN 
84.324R), IES supports research activities to improve the quality of 
U.S. education and thereby increase student academic achievement, 
advance teaching and learning for students with disabilities from birth 
through postsecondary education, reduce the achievement gap between 
high-performing and low-performing students, and increase access to and 
completion of postsecondary education. Under the Research Training 
Programs in the Education Sciences (ALN 84.305B) and the Research 
Training Programs in Special Education (ALN 84.324B), IES supports 
training programs to prepare individuals to conduct rigorous and 
relevant education research to advance knowledge in the field and 
address issues important to education policymakers and practitioners.
    Ongoing IES-funded projects under the above seven IES grant 
programs have been forced to put their research or training on hold for 
up to two years and may be required to remain on hold for additional 
time, due to the disruptions caused by COVID-19. During this period, 
such projects have not received their annual continuation funding from 
their original grant awards. Once these projects restart their research 
or training activities, the prohibitions against project periods 
exceeding five years and

[[Page 24056]]

project period extensions involving the obligation of additional 
Federal funds, would result in the projects receiving multiple years of 
continuation funding within one year.
    The waiver and extension enables these projects to receive their 
continuation funding over one additional period, not to exceed 1 year. 
By spreading out their continuation funding over an additional year, 
IES allows these grantees to properly budget their activities for the 
remaining years of the project, including an additional year 6.
    Final Waivers and Extensions: The Department believes it is in the 
best interest of the public to extend project periods for one year and 
allow continuation funding to be provided during the additional year. 
Correspondingly, the Secretary waives the requirements in 34 CFR 
75.250, which prohibit project periods exceeding five years. Any 
activities carried out under these continuation awards must be 
consistent with the scope and objectives of the grantees' applications 
as approved in the relevant grant competition. The requirements for 
continuation awards are set forth in 34 CFR 75.253.

Exemption From Proposed Rulemaking

    Under section 191 of the Education Sciences Reform Act, 20 U.S.C. 
9581, IES is not subject to section 437(d) of the General Education 
Provisions Act, 20 U.S.C. 1232(d), and is therefore not required to 
offer interested parties the opportunity to comment on matters relating 
to grants.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    Because notice-and-comment rulemaking is not necessary for this 
action, the Regulatory Flexibility Act (96 Pub. L. 354, 5 U.S.C. 601-
612) does not apply.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

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

Intergovernmental Review

    These competitions are not subject to Executive Order 12372 and the 
regulations in 34 CFR part 79.
    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities can 
obtain this document 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.

Mark Schneider,
Director, Institute of Education Sciences.
[FR Doc. 2022-08557 Filed 4-21-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P