Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 234 / Friday, December 5, 1997 / Notices 64379

provision has been adopted to ensure

timely acknowledgement of services

rendered.

Federal Communications Commission.

Magalie Roman Salas,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–31888 Filed 12–4–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS

COMMISSION

[CC Docket No. 90–571; DA 97–2527]

Notice of Telecommunications Relay

Services (TRS) Applications for State

Certification Accepted

Released: December 1, 1997.

Notice is hereby given that the states

listed below have applied to the

Commission for State

Telecommunications Relay Service

(TRS) Certification. Current state

certifications expire July 25, 1998.

Applications for certification, covering

the five year period of July 26, 1998 to

July 25, 2003, must demonstrate that the

state TRS program complies with the

Commission’s rules for the provision of

TRS, pursuant to Title IV of the

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA),

47 U.S.C. 225. These rules are codified

at 47 CFR 64.601–605.

Copies of applications for certification

are available for public inspection at the

Commission’s Common Carrier Bureau,

Network Services Division, Room 235,

2000 M Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.,

Monday through Thursday, 8:30 AM to

3:00 PM (closed 12:30 to 1:30 PM) and

the FCC Reference Center, Room 239,

1919 M Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.,

daily, from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM.

Interested persons may file comments

on or before January 5, 1997. Comments

should reference the relevant state file

number of the state application that is

being commented upon. One original

and five copies of all comments must be

sent to William F. Caton, Acting

Secretary, Federal Communications

Commission, 1919 M Street, N.W.,

Washington, D.C. 20554. Two copies

also should be sent to the Network

Services Division, Common Carrier

Bureau, 2000 M Street, N.W., Room 235,

Washington, D.C. 20554.

A number of state TRS programs

currently holding FCC certification have

failed to apply for recertification.

Applications received after October 1,

1997, for which no extension has been

requested before October 1, 1997, must

be accompanied by a petition explaining

the circumstances of the late-filing and

requesting acceptance of the late-filed

application.

File No: TRS–97–41.

Applicant: Louisiana Relay

Administration Board, State of

Louisiana.

File No: TRS–97–51.

Applicant: Rhode Island Division of

Public Utilities and Carriers, State of

Rhode Island.

For further information, contact Al

McCloud, (202) 418–2499,

amccloud@fcc.gov, or Andy Firth, (202)

418–2224 (TTY), afirth@fcc.gov, at the

Network Services Division, Common

Carrier Bureau, Federal

Communications Commission.

Federal Communications Commission.

Magalie Roman Salas,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–31887 Filed 12–4–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE

CORPORATION

Sunshine Act Meeting

Pursuant to the provisions of the

‘‘Government in the Sunshine Act’’ (5

U.S.C. 552b), notice is hereby given that

the Federal Deposit Insurance

Corporation’s Board of Directors will

meet in open session at 10:00 a.m. on

Tuesday December 9, 1997, to consider

the following matters:

SUMMARY AGENDA: No substantive

discussion of the following items is

anticipated. These matters will be

resolved with a single vote unless a

member of the Board of Directors

requests that an item be moved to the

discussion agenda.

Disposition of minutes of previous

Board of Directors’ meetings.

Reports of actions taken pursuant to

authority delegated by the Board of

Directors.

Memorandum re: Proposed Rule

Amending Part 309—E–FOIA.

DISCUSSION AGENDA:

Memorandum and resolution re: The

Corporation’s 1998 Annual Budget.

Memorandum and resolution re:

Proposed Amendments to Part 325

(Market Risk Capital Rules).

Memorandum re: 1997 Alternative

Dispute Resolution Annual Report

to the Board.

The meeting will be held in the Board

Room on the sixth floor of the FDIC

Building located at 550—17th Street,

N.W., Washington, D.C.

The FDIC will provide attendees with

auxiliary aids (e.g., sign language

interpretation) required for this meeting.

Those attendees needing such assistance

should call (202) 416–2449 (Voice);

(202) 416–2004 (TTY), to make

necessary arrangements.

Requests for further information

concerning the meeting may be directed

to Mr. Robert E. Feldman, Executive

Secretary of the Corporation, at (202)

898–6757.

Dated: December 2, 1997.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Robert E. Feldman,

Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–32017 Filed 12–3–97; 10:50 am]

BILLING CODE 6714–01–M

FEDERAL MEDIATION AND

CONCILIATION SERVICE

Labor-Management Cooperation

Program; Application Solicitation for

Labor-Management Committees FY

1998

A. Introduction

The following is the draft solicitation

for the Fiscal Year (FY) 1998 cycle of

the Labor-Management Cooperation

Program as it pertains to the support of

labor-management committees. These

guidelines represent the continuing

efforts of the Federal Mediation and

Conciliation Service to implement the

provisions of the Labor-Management

Cooperation Act of 1978 which was

initially implemented in FY81. The Act

generally authorizes FMCS to provide

assistance in the establishment and

operation of company/plant, area,

public sector, and industry-wide labormanagement committees which:

(A) have been organized jointly by

employers and labor organizations

representing employees in that

company/plant, area, government

agency, or industry; and

(B) are established for the purpose of

improving labor-management

relationships, job security, and

organizational effectiveness; enhancing

economic development; or involving

workers in decisions affecting their jobs,

including improving communication

with respect to subjects of mutual

interest and concern.

The Program Description and other

sections that follow, as well as a

separately published FMCS Financial

and Administrative Grants Manual,

make up the basic guidelines, criteria,

and program elements a potential

applicant for assistance under this

program must know in order to develop

an application for funding consideration

for either a company/plant, area-wide,

industry, or public sector labormanagement committee. Directions for

obtaining an application kit and an

optional video tape may be found in
64380 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 234 / Friday, December 5, 1997 / Notices

Section H. A copy of the Labor

Management Cooperation Act of 1978,

included in the application kit, should

be reviewed in conjunction with this

solicitation.

B. Program Description

Objectives

The Labor-Management Cooperation

Act of 1978 identifies the following

seven general areas for which financial

assistance would be appropriate:

(1) To improve communication

between representatives of labor and

management;

(2) To provide workers and employers

with opportunities to study and explore

new and innovative joint approaches to

achieving organizational effectiveness;

(3) To assist workers and employers

in solving problems of mutual concern

not susceptible to resolution within the

collective bargaining process;

(4) To study and explore ways of

eliminating potential problems which

reduce the competitiveness and inhibit

the economic development of the

company/plant, area, or industry;

(5) To enhance the involvement of

workers in making decisions that affect

their working lives;

(6) To expand and improve working

relationships between workers and

managers; and

(7) To encourage free collective

bargaining by establishing continuing

mechanisms for communication

between employers and their employees

through Federal assistance in the

formation and operation of labormanagement committees.

The primary objective of this program

is to encourage and support the

establishment and operation of joint

labor-management committees to carry

out specific objectives that meet the

aforementioned general criteria. The

term ‘‘labor’’ refers to employees

represented by a labor organization and

covered by a formal collective

bargaining agreement. These committees

may be found at either the plant

(company), area, industry, or public

sector levels. A plant or company

committee is generally characterized as

restricted to one or more organizational

or productive units operated by a single

employer. An area committee is

generally composed of multiple

employers of diverse industries as well

as multiple labor unions operating

within and focusing upon city, county,

contiguous multicounty, or statewide

jurisdictions. An industry committee

generally consists of a collection of

agencies or enterprises and related labor

union(s) producing a common product

or service in the private sector on a

local, state, regional, or nationwide

level. A public sector committee

consists either of government employees

and managers in one or more units of a

local or state government, managers and

employees of public institutions of

higher education, or of employees and

managers of public elementary and

secondary schools. Those employees

must be covered by a formal collective

bargaining agreement or other

enforceable labor-management

agreement. In deciding whether an

application is for an area or industry

committee, consideration should be

given to the above definitions as well as

to the focus of the committee.

In FY 1998, competition will be open

to company/plant, area, private

industry, and public sector committees.

Public Sector committees will be

divided into two sub-categories for

scoring purposes. One sub-category will

consist of committees representing

state/local units of government and

public institutions of higher education.

The second sub-category will consist of

public elementary and secondary

schools.

Special consideration will be given to

committee applications involving

innovative or unique efforts. All

application budget requests should

focus directly on supporting the

committee. Applicants should avoid

seeking funds for activities that are

clearly available under the other Federal

programs (e.g., job training, mediation of

contract disputes, etc.).

Required Program Elements

1. Problem Statement—The

application, which should have

numbered pages, must discuss in detail

what specific problem(s) face the

company/plant, area, government, or

industry and its workforce that will be

addressed by the committee. Applicants

must document the problem(s) using as

much relevant data as possible and

discuss the full range of impacts these

problem(s) could have or are having on

the company/plant, government, area, or

industry. An industrial or economic

profile of the area and workforce might

prove useful in explaining the

problem(s). This section basically

discusses WHY the effort is needed.

2. Results or Benefits Expected—By

using specific goals and objectives, the

application must discuss in detail

WHAT the labor-management

committee as a demonstration effort will

accomplish during the life of the grant.

Applications that promise to provide

objectives after a grant is awarded will

receive little or no credit in this area.

While a goal of ‘‘improving

communication between employers and

employees’’ may suffice as one over-all

goal of a project, the objectives must,

whenever possible, be expressed in

specific and measurable terms.

Applicants should focus on the

outcome, impacts or changes that the

committee’s efforts will have. Existing

committees should focus on expansion

efforts/results expected from FMCS

funding. The goals, objectives, and

projected impacts will become the

foundation for future monitoring and

evaluation efforts of the grantee, as well

as the FMCS grants program.

3. Approach—This section of the

application specifies HOW the goals and

objectives will be accomplished. At a

minimum, the following elements must

be included in all grant applications:

(a) A discussion of the strategy the

committee will employ to accomplish

its goals and objectives;

(b) A listing, by name and title, of all

existing or proposed members of the

labor-management committee. The

application should also offer a rationale

for the selection of the committee

members (e.g., members represent 70%

of the area of company/plant

workforce).

(c) A discussion of the number, type,

and role of all committee staff persons.

Include proposed position descriptions

for all staff that will have to be hired as

well as resumes for staff already on

board;

(d) In addressing the proposed

approach, applicants must also present

their justification as to why Federal

funds are needed to implement the

proposed approach;

(e) A statement of how often the

committee will meet (we require

meetings at least every other month) as

well as any plans to form subordinate

committees for particular purposes; and

(f) For applications from existing

committees (i.e., in existence at least 12

months prior to the submission

deadline), a discussion of past efforts

and accomplishments and how they

would integrate with the proposed

expanded effort.

4. Major Milestones—This section

must include an implementation plan

that indicates what major steps,

operating activities, and objectives will

be accomplished as well as a timetable

for WHEN they will be finished. A

milestone chart must be included that

indicates what specific

accomplishments (process and impact)

will be completed by month over the

life of the grant using September 15,

1998, as the start date. The

accomplishment of these tasks and

objectives, as well as problems and

delays therein, will serve as the basis for

quarterly progress reports to FMCS.
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 234 / Friday, December 5, 1997 / Notices 64381

5. Evaluation—Applicants must

provide for either an external evaluation

or an internal assessment of the project’s

success in meeting its goals and

objectives. An evaluation plan must be

developed which briefly discusses what

basic questions or issues the assessment

will examine and what baseline data the

committee staff already has or will

gather for the assessment. This section

should be written with the application’s

own goals and objectives clearly in

mind and the impacts or changes that

the effort is expected to cause.

6. Letters of Commitment—

Applications must include current

letters of commitment from all proposed

or existing committee participants and

chairpersons. These letters should

indicate that the participants support

the application and will attend

scheduled committee meetings. A

blanket letter signed by a committee

chairperson or other official on behalf of

all members is not acceptable. We

encourage the use of individual letters

submitted on company or union

letterhead represented by the

individual. The letters should match the

names provided under Section 3(b).

7. Other Requirements—Applicants

are also responsible for the following:

(a) The submission of data indicating

approximately how many employees

will be covered or represented through

the labor-management committee:

(b) From existing committees, a copy

of the existing staffing levels, a copy of

the by-laws, a breakout of annual

operating costs and identifications of all

sources and levels of current financial

support;

(c) A detailed budget narrative based

on policies and procedures contained in

the FMCS Financial and Administrative

Grants Manual;

(d) an assurance that the labormanagement committee will not

interfere with any collective bargaining

agreements; and

(e) an assurance that committee

meetings will be held at least every

other month and that written minutes of

all committee meetings will be prepared

and made available to FMCS.

Selection Criteria

The following criteria will be used in

the scoring and selection of applications

for award:

(1) The extent to which the

application has clearly identified the

problems and justified the needs that

the proposed project will address.

(2) The degree to which appropriate

and measurable goals and objectives

have been developed to address the

problems/needs of the applicant.

(3) The feasibility of the approach

proposed to attain the goals and

objectives of the project and the

perceived likelihood of accomplishing

the intended project results. This

section will also address the degree of

innovativeness or uniqueness of the

proposed effort.

(4) The appropriateness of committee

membership and the degree of

commitment of these individuals to the

goals of the application as indicated in

the letters of support.

(5) The feasibility and thoroughness

of the implementation plan in

specifying major milestones and target

dates.

(6) The cost effectiveness and fiscal

soundness of the application’s budget

request, as well as the application’s

feasibility vis-a-vis its goals and

approach.

(7) The overall feasibility of the

proposed project in light of all of the

information presented for consideration;

and

(8) The value to the government of the

application in light of the overall

objectives of the Labor-Management

Cooperation Act of 1978. This includes

such factors as innovativeness, site

location, cost, and other qualities that

impact upon an applicant’s value in

encouraging the labor-management

committee concept.

C. Eligibility

Eligible grantees include state and

local units of government, labormanagement committees (or a labor

union, management association, or

company on behalf of a committee that

will be created through the grant), and

certain third-party private non-profit

entities on behalf of one or more

committees to be created through the

grant. Federal government agencies and

their employees are not eligible.

Third-party private, non-profit

entities which can document that a

major purpose or function of their

organization has been the improvement

of labor relations are eligible to apply.

However, all funding must be directed

to the functioning of the labormanagement committee, and all

requirements under Part B must be

followed. Applications from third-party

entities must document particularly

strong support and participation from

all labor and management parties with

whom the applicant will be working.

Applications from third-parties which

do not directly support the operation of

a new or expanded committee will not

be deemed eligible nor will applications

signed by entities such as law firms or

other third-parties failing to meet the

above criteria.

Applicants who received funding

under this program in the past for

committee operations are generally not

eligible to apply. The only exceptions

apply to third-party grantees who seek

funds on behalf of an entirely different

committee.

D. Allocations

The total FY 1998 appropriation for

this program is $1.5 million, of which

at least $750,000 will be available

competitively for new applicants.

Specific funding levels will not be

established for each type of committee.

Instead, the review process will be

conducted in such a manner that at least

two awards will be made in each

category (company/plant, industry,

public sector, and area), providing that

FMCS determines that at least two

outstanding applications exist in each

category. After these applications are

selected for award, the remaining

applications will be considered

according to merit without regard to

category. A maximum of $400,000 of the

$1.5 million appropriation has been

reserved for the limited continuation of

FY96-funded grantees.

In addition to the competitive process

identified in the preceding paragraph,

FMCS will set aside a sum not to exceed

thirty percent of its non-reserved

appropriation to be awarded on a noncompetitive basis. These funds will be

used only to support industry-specific

national-scope initiatives and/or

regional industry models with high

potential for widespread replication that

have been solicited by the Director of

the Service.

FMCS reserves the right to retain up

to an additional five percent of the FY98

appropriation to contract for program

support purposes (such as evaluation)

other than administration.

E. Dollar Range and Length of Grants

and Continuation Policy

Awards to continue and expand

existing labor-management committees

(i.e., in existence 12 months prior to the

submission deadline) will be for a

period of 12 months. If successful

progress is made during this initial

budget period and if sufficient

appropriations for expansion and

continuation projects are available,

these grants may be extended or

continued for a limited time at a 40

percent cash match ratio. Initial awards

to establish new labor-management

committees (i.e., not yet established or

in existence less than 12 months prior

to the submission deadline), will be for

a period of 18 months. If successful

progress is made during this initial

budget period and if sufficient
64382 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 234 / Friday, December 5, 1997 / Notices

appropriations for expansion and

continuation projects are available,

these grants may be extended or

continued for a limited time at a 40

percent cash match ratio. The dollar

range of awards is as follows:

—Up to $35,000 in FMCS funds per

annum for existing company/plant or

single department public sector

applicants;

—Up to $50,000 over 18 months for new

company/plant committee or single

department public sector applicants;

—Up to $75,000 in FMCS funds per

annum for existing area, industry and

multi-departmental public sector

committee applicants;

—Up to $100,000 per 18-month period

for new area, industry, and multidepartment public sector committee

applicants.

Applicants are reminded that these

figures represent maximum Federal

funds only. If total costs to accomplish

the objectives of the application exceed

the maximum allowable Federal

funding level and its required grantee

match, applicants may supplement

these funds through voluntary

contributions from other sources.

Applicants are also strongly encouraged

to consult with their local or regional

FMCS field office to determine what

kinds of training may be available at no

cost before budgeting for such training

in their applications. A list of our field

leadership team and their phone

numbers is included in the application

kit.

F. Cash Match Requirements and Cost

Allowability

Applicants for new labor-management

committees must provide at least 10

percent of the total allowable project

costs. Applicants for existing

committees must provide at least 25

percent of the total allowable project

costs. All matching funds may come

from state or local government sources

or private sector contributions, but may

generally not include other Federal

funds. Funds generated by grantsupported efforts are considered

‘‘project income,’’ and may not be used

for matching purposes.

It will be the policy of this program

to reject all requests for indirect or

overhead costs as well as ‘‘in-kind’’

match contributions. In addition, grant

funds must not be used to supplant

private or local/state government funds

currently spent for these purposes.

Funding requests from existing

committees should focus entirely on the

costs associated with the expansion

efforts. Also, under no circumstances

may business or labor officials

participating on a labor-management

committee be compensated out of grant

funds for time spent at committee

meetings or time spent in training

sessions. Applicants generally will not

be allowed to claim all or a portion of

existing full-time staff as an expense or

match contribution. For a more

complete discussion of cost

allowability, applicants are encouraged

to consult the FY98 FMCS Financial

and Administrative Grants Manual

which will be included in the

application kit.

G. Application Submission and Review

Process

Applications should be signed by

both a labor and management

representative and be postmarked no

later than May 2, 1998. No applications

or supplementary materials can be

accepted after the deadline. It is the

responsibility of the applicant to ensure

that the application is correctly

postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service or

other carrier. An original application

containing numbered pages, plus three

copies, should be addressed to the

Federal Mediation and Conciliation

Service, Labor-Management Program

Services, 2100 K Street NW.,

Washington, DC 20427. FMCS will not

consider videotaped submissions or

video attachments to submissions.

After the deadline has passed, all

eligible applications will be reviewed

and scored initially by one or more

Customer Grant Review Boards. The

Board(s) will recommend selected

applications for further funding

consideration. The Director, LaborManagement Program Services, will

finalize the scoring and selection

process. The individual listed as contact

person in Item 6 on the application form

will generally be the only person with

whom FMCS will communicate during

the application review process.

All FY98 grant applicants will be

notified of results and all grant awards

will be made before September 15, 1998.

Applications submitted after the May 2

deadline date or that fail to adhere to

eligibility or other major requirements

will be administratively rejected by the

Director, Labor-Management Program

Services.

H. Contact

Individuals wishing to apply for

funding under this program should

contact the Federal Mediation and

Conciliation Service as soon as possible

to obtain an application kit. These kits

and additional information or

clarification can be obtained free of

charge by contacting the Federal

Mediation and Conciliation Service,

Labor-Management Program Services,

2100 K Street NW., Washington, DC

20427; or calling 202-606-8181.

John Calhoun Wells,

Director, Federal Mediation and Conciliation

Service.

[FR Doc. 97–31859 Filed 12–4–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6732–01–M

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

Change in Bank Control Notices;

Acquisitions of Shares of Banks or

Bank Holding Companies

The notificants listed below have

applied under the Change in Bank

Control Act (12 U.S.C. 1817(j)) and §

225.41 of the Board’s Regulation Y (12

CFR 225.41) to acquire a bank or bank

holding company. The factors that are

considered in acting on the notices are

set forth in paragraph 7 of the Act (12

U.S.C. 1817(j)(7)).

The notices are available for

immediate inspection at the Federal

Reserve Bank indicated. The notices

also will be available for inspection at

the offices of the Board of Governors.

Interested persons may express their

views in writing to the Reserve Bank

indicated for that notice or to the offices

of the Board of Governors. Comments

must be received not later than

December 19, 1997.

A. Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta

(Lois Berthaume, Vice President) 104

Marietta Street, N.W., Atlanta, Georgia

30303-2713:

1. Harold Gary Morse, Oxford,

Florida, Mark Morse Irrevocable Trust,

Lady Lake, Florida, Jennifer Boone

Irrevocable Trust, Lady Lake, Florida,

and Tracy Mathews Irrevocable Trust,

Lady Lake, Florida; to acquire

additional voting shares of Villages

Bancorporation, Inc., Lady Lake,

Florida, and thereby indirectly acquire

First Bank of the Villages, Lady Lake,

Florida.

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve

System, December 1, 1997.

Jennifer J. Johnson,

Deputy Secretary of the Board.

[FR Doc. 97–31838 Filed 12–4–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6210–01–F

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

Formations of, Acquisitions by, and

Mergers of Bank Holding Companies

The companies listed in this notice

have applied to the Board for approval,

pursuant to the Bank Holding Company

Act of 1956 (12 U.S.C. 1841 et seq.)

(BHC Act), Regulation Y (12 CFR Part