7334 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 32 / Tuesday, February 18, 1997 / Proposed Rules

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Part 668

Student Assistance General Provisions

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Extension of comment period

and notification of the availability of

additional information.

SUMMARY: On September 20, 1996, the

Department of Education published in

the Federal Register a Notice of

Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the

Student Assistance General Provisions

(34 CFR Part 668). In the NPRM, the

Secretary proposed new standards of

financial responsibility (60 FR 49552–

49574) that would apply to all

institutions participating in a program

authorized by title IV of the Higher

Education Act of 1965, as amended (title

IV, HEA programs).

On December 18, 1996, the Secretary

published a Notice in the Federal

Register (61 FR 66854) reopening the

comment period on particular parts of

the NPRM until February 18, 1997. The

Secretary reopened the comment period

in response to public comment received

on the NPRM that the higher education

community needed more time to

analyze the proposed financial

standards and provide the Secretary

with additional comment based on that

analysis.

The Secretary is further extending the

reopened comment period. The

Secretary is doing so to allow the higher

education community to comment on

information regarding the proposed

ratio methodology, some of which will

not be available to the public before the

expiration of the reopened comment

period on February 18.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before March 24, 1997.

ADDRESSES: All comments concerning

this notice or the notice of proposed

rulemaking should be addressed to Mr.

David Lorenzo, U.S. Department of

Education, P.O. Box 23272, Washington,

D.C. 20026, or to the following internet

address: finlresp@ed.gov

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.

David Lorenzo or Mr. John Kolotos, U.S.

Department of Education, 600

Independence Avenue, S.W., Room

3045 ROB–3, Washington, D.C. 20202,

telephone (202) 708–7888. 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 standard time, Monday

through Friday.

Background

On September 20, 1996, the Secretary

published an NPRM proposing new

standards of financial responsibility

based on a ratio methodology developed

in consultation with the accounting firm

of KPMG Peat Marwick LLP (KPMG),

alternative standards of financial

responsibility and other requirements

under a proposed Subpart L of the

Student Assistance General Provisions

regulations, and compliance and

financial statement audit requirements

under Subpart B of these regulations.

On November 29, 1996, the Secretary

published a Notice of Final Regulations

amending Subpart B of the Student

Assistance General Provisions

regulations and making a conforming

amendment to § 600.5 of the

Institutional Eligibility regulations.

However, the Secretary did not codify

in the November 29, 1996 final

regulations the general standards of

financial responsibility, alternative

standards, and change of ownership

requirements proposed under Subpart L.

Instead, the Secretary decided to obtain

additional comment and information

from the higher education community,

and delayed promulgating final

regulations for these provisions pending

an extended review of that comment

and information. Accordingly, on

December 18, 1996, the Secretary

published a Notice reopening the

comment period until February 18,

1997. In that Notice, the Secretary

identified the proposed provisions for

which additional comment could be

submitted and solicited comment on

specific issues relating to those

provisions.

In the meantime, the Secretary has

retained KPMG to assist the Department

in gathering additional data and in

reexamining the proposed ratio

methodology in light of those data and

the issues raised by commenters. As the

Department and KPMG reexamine the

proposed ratio methodology and

generate information that can be shared

with the community, the Secretary will

make that information available through

meetings and by other means. To

provide an opportunity for the public to

comment on this additional

information, and to ensure that the

community’s views and analyses of this

information are incorporated in the

regulatory record, the Secretary extends

the current comment period.

While the Secretary will continue to

evaluate comments already submitted,

the Secretary is particularly interested

in receiving comments on new

information the Department makes

available. Interested parties may obtain

this information from the financial

responsibility section of the

Department’s web site at the following

URL address: http://www.ed.gov/

offices/OPE/PPI. This web site also

contains instructions for downloading

earlier Federal Register publications

and other documents relating to

financial responsibility.

Dated: February 13, 1997.

David A. Longanecker,

Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary

Education.

[FR Doc. 97–4054 Filed 2–14–97; 8:45 am]

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