Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 27, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 89305 

III. Electronic Access

Persons with access to the internet

may obtain the SECG at https://

www.fda.gov/drugs/guidancecompliance-regulatory-information/ 

guidances-drugs, https://www.fda.gov/ 

regulatory-information/search-fdaguidance-documents, or https://

www.regulations.gov. Use the FDA 

websites listed in the previous sentence 

to find the most current version of the 

guidance. 

Dated: December 21, 2023. 

Lauren K. Roth, 

Associate Commissioner for Policy. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28530 Filed 12–26–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4164–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

34 CFR Chapter III 

[ED–2023–OSERS–0177] 

Final Waiver and Extension of the 

Project Period With Funding for 

Innovative Rehabilitation Training 

Grants 

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), 

Department of Education. 

ACTION: Final waiver and extension of 

project period with funding. 

SUMMARY: The Secretary waives the 

requirements in the Education 

Department General Administrative 

Regulations that generally prohibit 

project periods exceeding five years and 

project period extensions involving the 

obligation of additional Federal funds. 

The waiver and extension enable seven 

projects under Assistance Listing 

Number (ALN) 84.263C to receive 

funding for an additional period, not to 

exceed September 30, 2025. 

DATES: The waiver and extension of the 

project periods are effective December 

27, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Felipe Lulli, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

Room 4A110, Washington, DC 20202. 

Telephone: 202–987–0128. Email: 

Felipe.Lulli@ed.gov. 

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or 

have a speech disability and wish to 

access telecommunications relay 

services, please dial 7–1–1. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On October 3, 2023, the Department 

published a notice in the Federal 

Register (84 FR 32135) proposing a 

waiver and extension of the project 

period with funding in order to enable 

seven projects under Assistance Listing 

Number (ALN) 84.263C to receive 

continuation funding for an additional 

12-month period, not to exceed

September 30, 2025. The proposed

waiver and extension of the project

period with funding would allow the

Department to align those dates with

that of awards funded under ALNs

84.263E and 84.263F, which will each

receive their final year of funding in FY

2024, and end on September 30, 2025.

Due to the overlapping goals of these

three programs, the Department does

not believe that it would be in the

public interest to run a competition for

ALN 84.263C in FY 2024. Rather,

aligning the projects’ periods of

performance end dates for ALNs

84.263C, 84.263E, and 84.263F would

reduce financial and administrative

burden by allowing the Department to

conduct a single competition for all

84.263C, 84.263E, and 84.263F grants in

FY 2025, with a five-year performance

period that would run from October 1,

2025, through September 30, 2030.

There are no differences between the 

notice of proposed waiver and extension 

of the project period with funding and 

this notice of final waiver and extension 

of the project period with funding, as 

discussed in the Analysis of Comments 

and Changes section of this document. 

Public Comment 

In response to our invitation in the 

notice of proposed waiver and extension 

of the project period with funding, two 

parties submitted comments. 

Generally, we do not address 

technical and other minor changes or 

suggested changes the law does not 

authorize us to make under the 

applicable statutory authority. In 

addition, we do not address general 

comments that raised concerns not 

directly related to the proposed waiver 

and extension with funding. 

Analysis of Comments and Changes 

An analysis of the comments and of 

any changes in the priority since 

publication of the notice of proposed 

waiver and extension of the project 

period with funding follows. 

Comment: One commenter expressed 

strong support for the proposed waiver 

and extension of the project period with 

funding noting the vital importance of 

the Innovation Rehabilitation Training 

projects to the Vocational Rehabilitation 

field. The commenter described firsthand experience serving on an advisory 

board of one of the Innovative 

Rehabilitation Training grants and 

evaluating their products. The 

commenter noted the value of the 

products to the vocational rehabilitation 

field in meeting the needs of individuals 

with disabilities. 

Discussion: The Department 

appreciates support for the proposed 

waiver and extension of the project 

period with funding for the Innovative 

Rehabilitation Training grants. 

Change: None. 

Comment: One commenter analyzed 

whether the proposed waiver and 

extension of the project period with 

funding would lead to more efficient 

outcomes for the Innovative 

Rehabilitation Training program. The 

commenter presented one argument that 

extending the project period and 

providing additional funding would 

offer the Department streamlined 

decision-making and grantee flexibility 

to ensure the delivery of 

comprehensive, high-quality training 

that effectively meets the needs of their 

target populations. The commenter 

presented a counterargument that 

extending the project timeline might 

cause grantees to delay project 

milestones if they know extensions are 

readily available, leading to 

inefficiencies and prolonged timelines 

that do not guarantee improved 

outcomes. The commenter 

recommended the Department 

implement appropriate oversight 

procedures to alleviate possible risks 

and safeguard the effectiveness of the 

waiver and extension of the project 

period to alleviate financial and 

administrative burden. 

Discussion: The Department 

appreciates the commenter’s analysis of 

arguments for and against the proposed 

notice of waiver and extension of the 

project period with funding and 

carefully considered them in its 

decision making. The Department will 

monitor grantees in accordance with 

applicable regulations: (a) The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations in 34 CFR 

parts 75, 77, 79, 81, 82, 84, 86, 97, 98, 

and 99; (b) The Office of Management 

and Budget Guidelines to Agencies on 

Governmentwide Debarment and 

Suspension (Nonprocurement) in 2 CFR 

part 180, as adopted and amended as 

regulations of the Department in 2 CFR 

part 3485; and (c) The Uniform 

Administrative Requirements, Cost 

Principles, and Audit Requirements for 

Federal Awards in 2 CFR part 200, as 

adopted and amended as regulations of 

the Department in 2 CFR part 3474. 

Additionally, the Department will 

assess grant performance through 

annual reporting and tracking of 

expenditures to ensure that project 

milestones for both the current budget 

period and the additional budget period 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1
89306 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 247 / Wednesday, December 27, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 

are met in a timely and efficient 

manner, thus mitigating potential 

program and financial risk. 

Change: None. 

Final Waiver and Extension of the 

Project Period With Funding 

The Department believes aligning the 

projects’ period of performance for 

ALNs 84.263C, 84.263E, and 84.263F is 

in the best interest of the public, as the 

extension reduces the financial and 

administrative burden by allowing the 

Department to conduct a single 

competition for 84.263C, 84.263E, and 

84.263F in FY 2025, with a five-year 

performance period that would run from 

October 1, 2025, through September 30, 

2030. 

Consequently, the Secretary waives 

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. This waiver allows the 

Department to issue a one-year FY 2024 

continuation award to each of the seven 

currently funded FY 2019 84.263C 

projects. Any activities carried out 

during the year of this continuation 

award must be consistent with the 

scope, goals, and objectives of the 

grantees’ applications as approved in 

the FY 2019 competition. The 

requirements for continuation awards 

are set forth in 34 CFR 75.253. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification 

The Secretary certifies that the final 

waiver and extension of the project 

period with funding would not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

The only entities that would be affected 

by the final waiver and extension of the 

project period with funding are the 

seven grants that were awarded in FY 

2019 under ALN 84.263C. 

The Secretary certifies that the final 

waiver and extension 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 final waiver and 

extension of the project period with 

funding does not contain any 

information collection requirements. 

Intergovernmental Review 

These programs are 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 final 

notification of our specific plans and 

actions for this program. 

Accessible Format: On request to the 

program contact person listed under 

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. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

Dante ́ Allen, 

Commissioner, Rehabilitation Services 

Administration, Office of Special Education 

and Rehabilitative Services. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28375 Filed 12–26–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

34 CFR Chapter III 

[ED–2023–OSERS–0175] 

Final Waiver and Extension of the 

Project Period With Funding for 

Rehabilitation Long-Term Training 

Grants 

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and 

Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), 

Department of Education. 

ACTION: Final waiver and extension of 

project period with funding. 

SUMMARY: The Secretary waives the 

requirements in the Education 

Department General Administrative 

Regulations that generally prohibit 

project periods exceeding five years and 

project period extensions involving the 

obligation of additional Federal funds. 

The waiver and extension enables 51 

projects under Assistance Listing 

Numbers (ALN) 84.129B, 84.129H, 

84.129P, and 84.129Q to receive funding 

for an additional period, not to exceed 

September 30, 2025. 

DATES: The waiver and extension of the 

project periods are effective December 

27, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Karen Holliday Young, U.S. Department 

of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue 

SW, Room 4A10, Washington, DC 

20202. Telephone: 202–245–7318. 

Email: Karen.Holliday@ed.gov. 

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or 

have a speech disability and wish to 

access telecommunications relay 

services, please dial 7–1–1. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

October 3, 2023, the Department 

published in the Federal Register (88 

FR 67953) a proposal to waive and 

extend the project period with funding 

in order to enable 51 projects under 

Assistance Listing Numbers (ALN) 

84.129B, 84.129H, 84.129P, and 

84.129Q to receive continuation funding 

for an additional 12-month period, not 

to exceed September 30, 2025. The 

proposed waiver and extension of the 

project period with funding would 

allow the Department to align with the 

33 ALN 84.129B grant projects funded 

in FY 2020 that will receive their final 

year of funding in FY 2024 with a 

September 30, 2025, performance period 

ending date. There are no differences 

between the proposed waiver and 

extension of the project period with 

funding and this final waiver and 

extension of the project period with 

funding. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with RULES1