Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.: Postsecondary education— study programs,

[Federal Register: June 1, 1998 (Volume 63, Number 104)]

[Notices]

[Page 29719-29720]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr01jn98-76]

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[CFDA No.: 84.033]

Office of Postsecondary Education; Federal Work-Study Programs

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of the closing date for institutions to submit a request for a waiver of the requirement that an institution shall use at least five percent of the total amount of its Federal Work-Study (FWS) Federal funds granted for the 1998-99 award year to compensate students employed in community service jobs.

SUMMARY: The Secretary gives notice to institutions of higher education of the deadline for an institution to submit a written request for a waiver of the statutory requirement that an institution shall use at least five percent of its total FWS Federal funds granted for the 1998- 99 award year (July 1, 1998 through June 30, 1999) to compensate students employed in community service jobs.

[[Page 29720]]

DATES: Closing Date for submitting a Waiver Request and any Supporting Information or Documents. To request a waiver of the requirement that an institution use at least five percent of the total amount of its FWS Federal funds granted for the 1998-99 award year to compensate students employed in community service jobs, an institution must mail or hand- deliver its waiver request and any supporting information or documents to the Department on or before June 19, 1998. The Department will not accept a waiver request submitted by facsimile transmission. The waiver request must be submitted to the Institutional Financial Management Division at one of the addresses indicated below.

ADDRESSES: Waiver Request and any Supporting Information or Documents Delivered by Mail. The waiver request and any supporting information or documents delivered by mail must be addressed to Ms. Sandra Donelson, Institutional Financial Management Division, U.S. Department of Education, P.O. Box 23781 Washington, D.C. 20026-0781.

An applicant must show proof of mailing its waiver request by June 19, 1998. Proof of mailing consists of one of the following: (1) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the U.S. Postal Service, (2) a legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark, (3) a dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial carrier, or (4) any other proof of mailing acceptable to the U.S. Secretary of Education.

If a waiver request is sent through the U.S. Postal Service, the Secretary does not accept either of the following as proof of mailing: (1) A private metered postmark, or (2) a mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service. An institution should note that the U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before relying on this method, an institution should check with its local post office. An institution is encouraged to use certified or at least first-class mail. Institutions that submit waiver requests and any supporting information or documents after the closing date will not be considered for a waiver.

Waiver Requests and any Supporting Information or Documents Delivered by Hand. A waiver request and any supporting information or documents delivered by hand must be taken to Ms. Sandra Donelson, Campus-Based Financial Operations Branch, Institutional Financial Management Division, Accounting and Financial Management Service, Student Financial Assistance Programs, U.S. Department of Education, Room 4714, Regional Office Building 3, 7th and D Streets, S.W., Washington, D.C.

Hand-delivered waiver requests will be accepted between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. daily (Eastern time), except Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays. A waiver request for the 1998-99 award year that is hand-delivered will not be accepted after 4:30 p.m. on June 19, 1998.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under section 443(b)(2)(A) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), an institution must use at least five percent of the total amount of its FWS Federal funds granted for an award year to compensate students employed in community service, except that the Secretary may waive this requirement if the Secretary determines that enforcing it would cause hardship for students at the institution. The institution must submit a written waiver request and any supporting information or documents by the established June 19, 1998 closing date.

The waiver request must be signed by an appropriate institutional official and above the signature the official must include the statement: ``I certify that the information the institution provided in this waiver request is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge. I understand that the information is subject to audit and program review by representatives of the Secretary of Education.'' If the institution submits a waiver request and any supporting information or documents after June 19, 1998, the request will not be considered.

To receive a waiver, an institution must demonstrate that complying with the five percent requirement would cause hardship for students at the institution. To allow flexibility to consider factors that may be valid reasons for a waiver, the Secretary is not specifying the particular circumstances that would support granting a waiver. However, the Secretary does not foresee many instances in which a waiver will be granted. The fact that it may be difficult for the institution to comply with this provision of the HEA is not a basis for granting a waiver.

Applicable Regulations

The following regulations apply to the Federal Work-Study program:

(1) Student Assistance General Provisions, 34 CFR Part 668.

(2) General Provisions for the Federal Perkins Loan Program, Federal Work-Study Program, and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program, 34 CFR Part 673.

(3) Federal Work-Study Programs, 34 CFR Part 675.

(4) Institutional Eligibility Under the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, 34 CFR Part 600.

(5) New Restrictions on Lobbying, 34 CFR Part 82.

(6) Government Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) and Government Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Grants), 34 CFR Part 85.

(7) Drug-Free Schools and Campuses, 34 CFR Part 86.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To receive information, contact Ms. Sandra Donelson, Institutional Financial Management Division, U.S. Department of Education, P.O. Box 23781 Washington, D.C. 20026-0781. Telephone (202) 708-9751. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday.

Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape or computer diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding paragraph.

Electronic Access to This Document

Anyone may view this document, as well as all other Department of Education documents published in the Federal Register, in the text or portable document format (pdf) on the World Wide Web at either of the following sites:

http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg.htm http://www.ed.gov/news.html

To use the pdf you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader Program with Search, which is available free at either of the previous sites. If you have questions about using the pdf, call the U.S. Government Printing Office toll free at 1-888-293-6498.

Anyone may also view these documents in text copy only on an electronic bulletin board of the Department. Telephone: (202) 219-1511 or, toll free, 1-800-222-4922. The documents are located under Option G--Files/Announcements, Bulletins and Press Releases.

Note: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register.

(Authority: 42 U.S.C. 2753)

Dated: May 11, 1998. David A. Longanecker, Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.

[FR Doc. 98-14427Filed5-29-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000-01-P