SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Invitation to Comment: We invite you to submit comments regarding this proposed waivers and extensions notice. To ensure that your comments have maximum effect in developing the notice of final waivers and extensions, we urge you to identify clearly the specific grantee or grantees (listed in the table under the Background section) that each comment addresses.

We invite you to assist us in complying with the specific requirements of Executive Orders 12866, 13563, and 14192 and their overall requirement of reducing regulatory burden that might result from the proposed waivers and extensions. Please let us know of any further ways we could reduce potential costs or increase potential benefits while preserving the effective and efficient administration of the program. ( printed page 16600)

During and after the comment period, you may inspect public comments about the proposed waivers and extensions by accessing Regulations.gov.

Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking Record: On request, we will provide an appropriate accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability who needs assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public rulemaking record for the proposed waivers and extensions. If you want to schedule an appointment for this type of accommodation or auxiliary aid, please contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT .

Background: Under section 121(a) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (the Act), the purpose of the AIVRS program is to provide grants to the governing bodies of Indian Tribes located on Federal and State reservations (and consortia of such governing bodies) to pay 90 percent of the total costs of vocational rehabilitation (VR) services, including services traditionally used by Indian Tribes, to American Indians with disabilities who reside on or near Federal or State reservations.

Under section 121(c) of the Act, the purpose of the AIVRTTAC is to provide training and technical assistance to the governing bodies of Indian Tribes, or consortia of those governing bodies, that have received an AIVRS grant under section 121(a) of the Act, to improve the delivery of VR services to American Indians with disabilities, and to support AIVRS project personnel.

In fiscal year (FY) 2021, the Department published in the Federal Register notices inviting applications (NIAs) announcing grant competitions for the AIVRS program under ALN 84.250N (85 FR 83918) and the AIVRTTAC under ALN 84.250Z (86 FR 14414) for up to five years. Forty-three AIVRS grants and one AIVRTTAC grant were awarded from these competitions.

The Department proposes to waive the requirements in 34 CFR 75.250, which prohibit project periods exceeding 60 months (five years). Additionally, the Department proposes to waive 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 waivers and extensions would enable the Department to provide additional funds, not to exceed their Year 5 planned award amount, to projects currently funded under ALNs 84.250N and 84.250Z for an additional period, not beyond September 30, 2027. These proposed waivers and extensions would maximize continuity of services to those served by the AIVRS program and support grantees by providing an efficient process by which they can obtain their grant funds for this fiscal year.

This action would allow the 43 AIVRS grantees and one AIVRTTAC grantee to submit a request for continuation funding in FY 2026. Within their request, grantees would certify that they have the capacity to continue activities. In making a continuation award under 34 CFR 75.253, the Secretary considers, among other things: whether a grantee has made substantial progress in achieving the goals and objectives of the project; whether the grantee has expended funds in a manner that is consistent with its approved application and budget; and, if the Secretary has established performance measurement requirements, whether the grantee has made substantial progress in achieving the performance targets in the grantee's approved application, or whether the continuation of the project is in the best interest of the Federal Government.

In making a continuation award, the Secretary also considers whether the grantee is operating in compliance with the assurances in its approved application, including those applicable to Federal civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination in programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance from the Department (34 CFR 100.4, 104.5, 106.4, 108.8, and 110.23).

Waivers and Extensions: The Department believes that it is in the public interest to extend the AIVRS program and the AIVRTTAC in lieu of running a new competition in FY 2026.

Extending the project end dates of the 43 AIVRS and one AIVRTTAC grants for one year will allow for efficient continuity of VR services for American Indians with disabilities. Pending FY 2027 appropriations, there may be new competitions for all eligible applicants.

For these reasons, the Department proposes to waive 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. These waivers would allow the Department to consider FY 2026 continuation awards to the 43 AIVRS projects (ALN 84.250N) and one AIVRTTAC project (ALN 84.250Z) based on their Year 5 planned amount. It is estimated that each grantee's continuation award would amount to the following, pending review and discussion of carryover:

Any activities to be carried out during the year of these continuation awards would have to be consistent with, or a logical extension of, the scope, goals, and objectives of the grantees' applications as approved in the FY 2021 AIVRS and AIVRTTAC competitions. The FY 2021 AIVRS and AIVRTTAC NIAs would continue to govern each grantee's project during the extension.

Intergovernmental Review

These programs are not subject to Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

The Secretary certifies that the proposed waivers and extensions of the project period would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The only entities that would be affected by the proposed waivers and extensions of the project period are the current ALN 84.250N and the ALN 84.250Z grantees, and any potential new applicants who might have applied in the FY 2026 grant competitions.

The Secretary certifies that the proposed waivers and extensions would not have a significant economic impact on these entities, because the extension of an existing project period imposes minimal compliance costs, and the activities required to support the additional year of funding would not impose additional regulatory burdens or require unnecessary Federal supervision.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

This notice of proposed waivers and extensions of the project period does not contain any information collection requirements.

Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed under FOR 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.

91 FR 16599