[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 214 (Monday, November 7, 2005)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 67373-67374]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-22126]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
34 CFR Parts 673, 674, 675, and 676
Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Work-Study, Federal Supplemental
Educational Opportunity Grant Programs, and the General Provisions for
These Programs
AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice regarding reallocation of campus-based aid and waivers
of statutory and regulatory provisions pursuant to the Natural Disaster
Student Aid Fairness Act, Public Law 109-86.
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SUMMARY: The Natural Disaster Student Aid Fairness Act (Aid Fairness
Act), Public Law 109-86, signed by the President on October 7, 2005,
provides, in part, that the Secretary must reallocate unexpended
Federal Perkins Loan (Perkins), Federal Work-Study (FWS), and Federal
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) program funds
(campus-based funds) to institutions of higher education that are
located in areas affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita or
that have enrolled eligible students who were affected by Hurricane
Katrina or Hurricane Rita. In this notice, we announce the reallocation
process for institutions of higher education that have enrolled
students affected by Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita and waivers or
modifications of relevant statutory and regulatory provisions. We will
be addressing the reallocation of additional campus-based funds for
institutions that are located in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane
disaster through a separate process.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Kolotos, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., UCP, room 113F2, Washington, DC
20202. Telephone: (202) 377-4027, FAX: (202) 275-4552, or by e-mail at
[email protected].
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the program contact person listed in this
section.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 2(b) of the Aid Fairness Act requires the Secretary to
reallocate to certain eligible institutions of higher education
(institutions) any unexpended campus-based funds from the 2004-2005
award year as supplemental allocations for the 2005-2006 award year. An
institution is eligible to receive a reallocation if the institution
participates in the program for which excess allocations are being
reallocated and (1) is located in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane
disaster or (2) has accepted for enrollment any affected students, as
defined in the following paragraph, in academic year 2005-2006. The Aid
Fairness Act further authorizes the Secretary to determine the manner
in which excess allocations will be reallocated and authorizes the
Secretary to waive or modify any statutory or regulatory provisions
relating to reallocations.
The Aid Fairness Act defines an affected student as an individual
who has applied for, or received, student financial assistance under
title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and who
(1) was enrolled or accepted for enrollment, as of August 29, 2005, at
an institution in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster; (2)
was a dependent student enrolled or accepted for enrollment at an
institution that is not in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane
disaster, but whose parents resided or were employed, as of August 29,
2005, in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster; or (3) suffered
direct economic hardship as a direct result of a Gulf hurricane
disaster, as determined by the Secretary.
An area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster is any county or
parish in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas declared by FEMA
as Major Disaster Areas designated for Individual Assistance. A listing
of those counties and parishes is posted on the Department's
``Information for Financial Aid Professionals'' (IFAP) Web site at
http://www.ifap.ed.gov.
Reallocation for Institutions Enrolling Affected Students
In this notice, we are addressing the reallocation of campus-based
funds for only those institutions that participate in at least one of
the campus-based programs and that accepted affected students for
enrollment in academic year 2005-2006, including institutions located
in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane disaster that enrolled affected
students. We will be addressing the reallocation of additional campus-
based funds for institutions that participate in at least one of the
campus-based programs and that are located in an area affected by a
Gulf hurricane disaster through a separate process.
Criteria for Determining Economic Hardship
As provided in the Aid Fairness Act in the definition of ``affected
student,'' the Secretary has determined that a student has ``suffered
direct economic hardship as a direct result of a Gulf hurricane
disaster'' if the student (or if a dependent student, the student's
parents) lost a domicile, income, or other means of support as a result
of a Gulf hurricane disaster.
Procedures for Reallocation of Campus-Based Funds
Institutions that participate in at least one of the campus-based
programs and that have accepted for enrollment any affected students
may submit a request to the Secretary for reallocation of excess
campus-based funds, using the Reallocation Request Form described
below. We will be sending to institutions that participate in one or
more of the campus-based programs an e-mail message that will include,
as an attachment, a Reallocation Request Form. Any of these
institutions that have enrolled affected students and are requesting
reallocation of funds must complete this form and submit it to the
Department via FAX at the number that will be included in the e-mail
message. The e-mail message also will specify the deadline date by
which requests must
[[Page 67374]]
be received by the Department in order for an institution to be
considered for reallocated funds.
An institution's Reallocation Request Form must include the
following information:
(a) The number of students enrolled at the institution who were
enrolled or accepted for enrollment for the 2005-2006 academic year at
an institution located in an area affected by a Gulf hurricane
disaster, whether or not those students have applied for or are
recipients of Federal student aid.
(b) The number of affected students enrolled at the institution who
have applied for Federal student aid, as evidenced by a 2005-2006
Student Aid Report (SAR) or Institutional Student Information Record
(ISIR), received by the institution.
(c) The total amount of campus-based reallocated funds the
institution estimates it will be able to expend in the 2005-2006 award
year.
We advise institutions that, based on the amount of total funds
available for reallocation, it is possible that the amount received by
an institution that has enrolled fewer than 20 affected students would
be minimal when compared to the time and effort institutions might need
to prepare and submit a request.
The Secretary also will be posting an announcement on the
Department's IFAP Web site providing information on the process
institutions will need to follow to submit their requests.
Use of Reallocated Campus-Based Funds
An institution does not have to use the reallocated funds it
receives directly for affected students, but it must use the funds to
make campus-based awards to eligible students or for other statutorily
allowed purposes. Any reallocated funds an institution receives must be
included in the total program funds used for the purpose of calculating
carry-forward amounts, carry-back amounts, Job Location and Development
amounts, and campus-based administrative cost allowances.
Statutory and Regulatory Waivers
As noted earlier in this notice, the Aid Fairness Act authorizes
the Secretary to waive or modify certain statutory or regulatory
requirements pertaining to the reallocated campus-based funds. Under
that authority:
(1) The Secretary will not require an institution to provide a non-
Federal share or capital contribution under 34 CFR 674.8, 675.26, and
676.21 to match the reallocated campus-based funds.
(2) In its notification to an institution of the amount of its
reallocated funds, the Secretary will identify the dollar amount
associated with each of the campus-based programs for which reallocated
funds are being provided to the institution. However, the Secretary
will waive the funds transfer limitations of 34 CFR 674.18, 675.18, and
676.18, and allow the institution to transfer up to 100 percent of the
reallocated funds it receives under any of the programs to either the
FSEOG or FWS program, provided that the institution participates in the
program(s) to which the funds are transferred. However, the institution
cannot transfer any of the reallocated FSEOG or FWS funds to its
Perkins Loan program.
(3) Normally, under 34 CFR 673.4, an institution may use
reallocated FWS funds only to pay students performing community service
activities. However, an institution is not required to use any
reallocated FWS funds it receives under this process for community
service purposes. Nor is the institution required to use the amount of
its FWS reallocation in calculating the seven percent community service
requirement.
Documenting Requests for, and Use of, Reallocated Campus-Based Funds
An institution that requests supplemental campus-based funds under
this reallocation process must maintain documentation supporting its
request, including a list of the names of the affected students
included in the institution's request. In addition, the institution
must maintain information that documents how each affected student
qualifies under one of the three elements of the definition of
``affected student'' described in this notice.
The Secretary also reminds institutions that they are responsible
for accounting properly for any funds received and expended under the
Title IV, HEA programs, including any funds received as a result of
hurricane related statutory, regulatory, or administrative provisions.
Each institution that receives such funds is alerted that the Secretary
may request a separate accounting or report of its use of those funds.
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other documents of this
Department 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 numbers: 84.007 Federal
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program; 84.033 Federal
Work-Study Program; 84.038 Federal Perkins Loans)
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a, 1070b-1070b-4, 1070c-1070c-
4, 1071-1087-2, 1087a-1087j, 1087aa-1087ii, 1094, and 1099c; 42
U.S.C. 2751-2756b; Pub. L. 109-86.
Dated: November 2, 2005.
Sally L. Stroup,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 05-22126 Filed 11-4-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P