FR Doc E8-6689[Federal Register: April 1, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 63)]
[Notices]
[Page 17341-17344]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr01ap08-52]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Migrant Education Coordination Program--Migrant Student
Information Exchange (MSIX) State Data Quality Grants
AGENCY: Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of
Education.
ACTION: Notice of proposed requirements.
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SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education
proposes to establish requirements for Migrant Student Information
Exchange (MSIX) State Data Quality grants funded under section 1308(b)
of Title I, Part C of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (ESEA), as amended by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
Subject to the availability of funds in any fiscal year, the Department
would use the requirements to make annual grant awards by formula,
beginning in FY 2008, to provide additional resources to State
[[Page 17342]]
educational agencies (SEAs) in order to assist them and their local
operating agencies (LOAs) in implementing the interstate exchange of
migrant children's records electronically through the Migrant Student
Information Exchange (MSIX).
DATES: We must receive your comments on or before May 1, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Address all comments about the proposed requirements to
Alejandra Velez-Paschke, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland
Avenue, SW., LBJ, room 3E249, Washington, DC 20202-6135. Telephone:
(202) 260-2834. If you prefer to send your comments through the
Internet, use the following address: MsixTeam@ed.gov.
You must include the term ``MSIX State Data Quality Grants Proposed
Requirements'' in the subject line of your electronic message.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Alejandra Velez-Paschke. Telephone:
(202) 260-2834 or via Internet: MsixTeam@ed.gov.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the
Federal Relay Service (FRS) toll free 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
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
Invitation To Comment
We invite you to submit comments regarding these proposed
requirements.
We invite you to assist us in complying with the specific
requirements of Executive Order 12866 and its overall requirement of
reducing regulatory burden that might result from the proposed
requirements. Please let us know of any further opportunities we should
take to reduce potential costs or increase potential benefits while
preserving the effective and efficient administration of the program.
During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public
comments about the proposed requirements at the U.S. Department of
Education, LBJ, room 3E249, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC
20202 between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Eastern time, Monday
through Friday of each week except Federal holidays.
Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking
Record
On request, we will supply an appropriate aid, such as a reader or
print magnifier, to an individual with a disability who needs
assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public
rulemaking record for the proposed requirements. If you want to
schedule an appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Background
The Migrant Education Program (MEP), authorized in Title I, Part C,
of the ESEA, is a State-operated, formula grant program under which
SEAs receive funds to help improve the academic achievement of
migratory children who reside in their States. Under section 1304(b)(3)
of the ESEA, SEAs receiving MEP funds have a responsibility to carry
out activities that promote the interstate and intrastate coordination
of services for migratory children. This responsibility includes
carrying out activities that provide for educational continuity through
the timely transfer of pertinent school records, including health
information, for migratory children, whether or not they move during
the regular school year.
Section 1308(b) of the ESEA requires, among other things, that the
Department (1) assist States in developing methods for the electronic
transfer of migrant student records, (2) ensure the linkage of State
electronic records-exchange systems, and (3) establish the minimum data
elements (MDEs) that States must collect and maintain in their migrant
student databases for the purpose of electronically exchanging health
and educational records on migrant children. To meet these statutory
responsibilities, on September 28, 2007, the Department established the
MSIX. When fully operational, the MSIX will allow all States
participating in the MEP (and all LOAs in those States) to share an
established set of MDEs on their migrant children with any State and
LOA in which a migrant child enrolls by electronically linking the
States' existing migrant student databases. On November 27, 2007, the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved an information
collection package (1810-0683) that establishes 66 MDEs.
Even though MSIX links existing databases, the Department
recognizes that States and LOAs will incur some additional costs in
collecting and maintaining data and transmitting those data to the
MSIX. While States generally use their annual MEP Basic State formula
grant to pay for those costs, through this notice the Department
proposes to establish, using funds the Department reserves for migrant
coordination activities under section 1308 of the ESEA, a new formula
grant program (and associated requirements) that will provide financial
support to SEAs to assist them, during the early implementation of
MSIX, to transfer migrant student data using MSIX. Subject to the
availability of funds, the Department would provide these grant awards
annually, beginning in FY 2008, out of funds it reserves for migrant
coordination activities under section 1308 of the ESEA.
We will announce the final requirements for the MSIX State Data
Quality grants in a notice in the Federal Register. We will determine
the final requirements for these grants after considering responses to
public comments provided on this notice and other information available
to the Department. This notice does not preclude us from establishing
additional requirements, subject to meeting applicable rulemaking
requirements.
Note: This notice does not solicit applications. Applications
will be requested pursuant to the issuance of the Notice of final
requirements.
Proposed Requirements
Requirement 1: SEAs would use these funds to help pay for
additional costs that their agencies and the LOAs in their States may
assume for various activities related to the transfer of the OMB-
approved MDEs. Examples of these activities include:
(a) Enhancements to the State's migrant or State student
database to ensure the inclusion of the MDEs in accordance with MSIX
data specifications;
(b) Staffing or information technology (IT) services
needed for the collection, data entry, and maintenance of the MDEs or
the connectivity to MSIX;
(c) Development of manuals, procedures, pamphlets, or
other materials that support the implementation of the State's records
exchange program; and
(d) Support for activities directly related to staff
training on the use of MSIX, including staff attendance and travel to
MSIX meetings and workshops. In consultation with the LOAs and the
State's parent advisory council, each SEA would determine how these
funds would be used in the State.
Requirement 2: Only an SEA that receives an MEP Basic State Formula
grant award would be eligible to receive an MSIX State Data Quality
grant. To receive an MSIX State Data Quality grant, an SEA would be
required to
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submit a letter, signed by the Chief State School Officer or his or her
authorized representative, (a) requesting an MSIX State Data Quality
grant award, and (b) providing an assurance that these funds will be
used only for activities that comport with the requirements in the
notice of final requirements for this program. In each fiscal year for
which sufficient section 1308 funds are available, the Department would
announce the amount of each grant award and invite SEAs to submit their
letters of application.
Requirement 3: Grant awards would be subject to the financial
reporting requirements in section 80.41 of the Education Department
General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) (34 CFR 80.41). With regard
to performance reporting, the Department does not propose to apply the
provisions contained in section 80.40(b) of EDGAR. Instead, the
Department proposes to use program monitoring conducted in conjunction
with the overall MEP Basic State Formula Grant program as a means of
obtaining information, including supporting documentation, on how the
SEA and LOAs in the State used MSIX State Data Quality grant funds to
support MSIX-related activities. Monitoring activities would examine
progress relative to the MSIX efficiency measure, which assesses the
percentage of migrant student records that are consolidated when school
enrollment has occurred in more than one State.
Requirement 4: The Department proposes that, in any fiscal year in
which sufficient funds are available under section 1308, the Department
would award these MSIX State Data Quality grants using the following
formula:
75 percent of the total amount available would be awarded
in equal amounts to each SEA with a MEP Basic State Formula grant
award; and
The remaining 25 percent of the funds would be awarded
proportionally relative to the amount of each State's Basic MEP State
Formula grant award amount made on July 1 of the fiscal year; except
that
No SEA would receive an MSIX State Data Quality grant
award that exceeds 20 percent of its MEP Basic State Formula grant
award.
Amount of the Grants
At this time, the Department anticipates that a total of $2 million
will be available for MSIX State Data Quality grant awards in FY 2008.
Given this projection, an estimated $1.5 million would be awarded in
equal amounts to each eligible SEA (subject to the 20 percent
limitation), and $0.5 million would be awarded proportionally based on
the amount of each State's MEP State formula grant award. An appendix
to this notice contains a table presenting the estimated size of each
State's award assuming that all eligible SEAs apply. If an SEA does not
apply for these funds or does not receive a MEP Basic State formula
grant in any given year, its share of grant funds would be distributed
to the requesting SEAs on the basis of the formula established in the
notice of final requirements.
In subsequent fiscal years, the Department would inform the States
of the total amount of funds available, if any, under this grant
program.
The Department believes that the proposed formula, including the 20
percent limitation, represents an appropriate means for distributing
funds under this new program for helping SEAs to effectively connect
their migrant databases with the MSIX and transmit the required MDEs to
the MSIX. In this regard, the proposed formula is designed to provide
funds to address, at least partially, both the basic, initial costs
that all States will incur, and those additional costs States would
incur due to the relative numbers of migrant students in their State.
Executive Order 12866
This notice of proposed requirements has been reviewed in
accordance with Executive Order 12866. Under the terms of the order, we
have assessed the potential costs and benefits of this regulatory
action.
The potential costs associated with the notice of proposed
requirements are those resulting from statutory requirements and those
we have determined as necessary for administering this program
effectively and efficiently.
In assessing the potential costs and benefits--both quantitative
and qualitative--of this notice of proposed requirements, we have
determined that the benefits of the proposed requirements justify the
costs.
We have also determined that this regulatory action does not unduly
interfere with State, local, and tribal governments in the exercise of
their governmental functions.
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA)
The application procedure has been approved under OMB control
number 1810-0683.
Intergovernmental Review
This program is 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.
Applicable Statutory and Regulatory Requirements
This grant program will be subject to the requirements established
in the notice of final requirements to be published in the Federal
Register for this grant program.
This grant program is also subject to the definitions used to
determine the eligibility of a ``migrant child'' found in section
1309(2) of the ESEA and 34 CFR Sec. 200.81. Consistent with the
``Tydings Amendment'' (section 421(b) of the General Education
Provisions Act, and restated in section 76.709 of EDGAR), funds awarded
under this program are available for obligation until September 30 of
the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which they are awarded.
Because it is a formula grant, the program also is subject to the
requirements of parts 76 and 80 of EDGAR (34 CFR parts 76 and 80).
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe
Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site:
http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S.
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in
the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at:
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 84.144, Migrant
Education Coordination Program)
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 6398.
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Dated: March 27, 2008.
Kerri L. Briggs,
Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.
Appendix--Estimated Proposed Award Amounts for the FY 2008 MSIX State
Data Quality Grants Appendix
Note: The estimated size of awards are based on FY 2007 MEP
Basic State Grant award amounts, and assume each State's decision to
request an award.
NATIONAL TOTALS............................................ $2,000,000
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ALABAMA.................................................... $32,987
ALASKA..................................................... 39,868
ARIZONA.................................................... 39,302
ARKANSAS................................................... 37,461
CALIFORNIA................................................. 213,595
COLORADO................................................... 40,820
CONNECTICUT................................................ 31,449
DELAWARE................................................... 30,431
DIST. COLUMBIA............................................. 0
FLORIDA.................................................... 63,000
GEORGIA.................................................... 42,041
HAWAII..................................................... 31,072
IDAHO...................................................... 35,887
ILLINOIS................................................... 32,770
INDIANA.................................................... 37,349
IOWA....................................................... 32,422
KANSAS..................................................... 46,757
KENTUCKY................................................... 40,390
LOUISIANA.................................................. 33,493
MAINE...................................................... 31,533
MARYLAND................................................... 30,761
MASSACHUSETTS.............................................. 32,343
MICHIGAN................................................... 42,401
MINNESOTA.................................................. 32,429
MISSISSIPPI................................................ 31,914
MISSOURI................................................... 32,202
MONTANA.................................................... 31,383
NEBRASKA................................................... 37,410
NEVADA..................................................... 30,325
NEW HAMPSHIRE.............................................. 28,573
NEW JERSEY................................................. 32,893
NEW MEXICO................................................. 31,255
NEW YORK................................................... 43,717
NORTH CAROLINA............................................. 38,573
NORTH DAKOTA............................................... 30,321
OHIO....................................................... 33,578
OKLAHOMA................................................... 32,859
OREGON..................................................... 47,090
PENNSYLVANIA............................................... 43,158
RHODE ISLAND............................................... 13,579
SOUTH CAROLINA............................................. 30,777
SOUTH DAKOTA............................................... 31,183
TENNESSEE.................................................. 30,770
TEXAS...................................................... 113,262
UTAH....................................................... 32,518
VERMONT.................................................... 30,882
VIRGINIA................................................... 31,151
WASHINGTON................................................. 52,410
WEST VIRGINIA.............................................. 16,450
WISCONSIN.................................................. 30,891
WYOMING.................................................... 30,315
PUERTO RICO................................................ 0
[FR Doc. E8-6689 Filed 3-31-08; 8:45 am]
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