Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 110 /Tuesday, June 9, 1998 / Notices 31491

which the grantee may become liable to

the third party under the agreement.

The written agreement shall not

relieve the grantee of any part of its

responsibility or accountability to

ATSDR under the cooperative

agreement. The agreement shall

therefore retain sufficient rights and

control to the grantee to enable it to

fulfill this responsibility and

accountability.

Application Submission and Deadline

Dates

The original and two copies of

application PHS Form 5161–1 (OMB

Number 0937–0189) must be submitted

to Ron Van Duyne, Grants Management

Officer, Attn: Patrick A. Smith, Grants

Management Branch, Procurement and

Grants Office, Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC), 255 East

Paces Ferry Road, NE., Room 300,

Mailstop E–13, Atlanta, Georgia 30305,

on or before July 31, 1998. (By formal

agreement, the CDC Procurement and

Grants Office will act for and on behalf

of ATSDR on this matter.)

1. Deadline: Applications shall be

considered as meeting the deadline if

they are either:

(a) Received on or before the deadline

date, or

(b) Sent on or before the deadline date

and received in time for submission to

the objective review group.

(Applicants must request a legibly dated

U.S. Postal Service postmark or obtain

a legibly dated receipt from a

commercial carrier or U.S. Postal

Service. Private metered postmarks shall

not be acceptable as proof of timely

mailing.)

2. Late Applications: Applications

which do not meet the criteria in 1.(a)

or 1.(b) above are considered late

applications. Late applications will not

be considered and will be returned to

the applicant.

Where To Obtain Additional

Information

To receive additional written

information, call 1–888–GRANTS4. You

will be asked to leave your name,

address, and phone number and will

need to refer to ATSDR Announcement

98027. You will receive a complete

program description, information on

application procedures, and application

forms. CDC will not send application

kits by facsimile or express mail.

If you have questions after reviewing

the contents of all the documents,

business management technical

assistance may be obtained from Patrick

A. Smith, Grants Management

Specialist, Grants Management Branch,

Procurement and Grants Office, Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention

(CDC), 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE.,

Room 300, Mailstop E–13, Atlanta,

Georgia 30305, (404) 842–6803, or

INTERNET address phs3@cdc.gov.

Programmatic technical assistance

may be obtained from Morris L. Maslia,

P.E., Project Officer, Division of Health

Assessment and Consultation, Agency

for Toxic Substances and Disease

Registry, 1600 Clifton Road, NE.,

Mailstop E–32, Atlanta, Georgia 30333,

(404) 639–0674, or INTERNET address

mfm4@cdc.gov.

PLEASE REFER TO

ANNOUNCEMENT NUMBER 98027

WHEN REQUESTING INFORMATION

AND SUBMITTING AN APPLICATION.

Potential applicants may obtain a

copy of Healthy People 2000 (Full

Report, Stock No. 017–001–00474–0) or

Healthy People 2000 (Summary Report,

Stock No. 017–001–00473–1) referenced

in the Introduction through the

Superintendent of Documents,

Government Printing Office,

Washington, DC 20402–9325,

(telephone 202–783–3238).

This and other ATSDR and CDC

announcements are available through

the CDC homepage on the Internet. The

address for the CDC homepage is: http:/

/www.cdc.gov.

Dated: June 3, 1998.

Georgi Jones,

Director, Office of Policy and External Affairs,

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease

Registry.

[FR Doc. 98–15258 Filed 6–8–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4163–70–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Agency for Toxic Substances and

Disease Registry

[Program Announcement 98064]

Notice of Availability of Funds;

Program To Build Capacity To Conduct

Site-Specific Activities

A. Purpose

The Agency for Toxic Substances and

Disease Registry (ATSDR) announces

the availability of fiscal year (FY) 1998

funds for a cooperative agreement

program, Program to Build Capacity to

Conduct Site-Specific Activities. This

program addresses the Healthy People

2000 priority areas of: Educational and

Community Based Programs;

Environmental Health; and Surveillance

and Data Systems. This program will

provide State health Departments the

opportunity to conduct site-specific

health activities to determine the public

health impact of human exposure to

hazardous substances at hazardous

waste sites or releases. ATSDR

considers a site as consisting of the

actual boundaries of a release or facility

along with the resident community and

area impacted by the subject release or

facility. Specifically, funds will be used

to build capacity to conduct ‘‘core’’ sitespecific activities including public

health assessments, health

consultations, exposure investigations,

community involvement, and

preventive health education. These

activities may lead to more focused

public health activities including

environmental health interventions,

psychological effects interventions, and

risk communication. The purpose of the

program funded under this cooperative

agreement is to work toward the

ultimate goal of reducing exposures to

hazardous substances and mitigating

potential adverse health effects from

such exposures. This program is

directed to public health agencies which

have considerable need to continue to

build capacity to address health issues

related to hazardous substance releases

into the environment within their

jurisdictional boundary. The specific

purpose of these activities is to assist

public health agencies to build capacity,

in coordination and cooperation with

ATSDR, to conduct health related

activities under the Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liabilities Act

(CERCLA), and Resource Conservation

and Recovery Act (RCRA). This includes

conducting health consultations, public

health assessments, and exposure

investigations. These activities will also

assist recipients to conduct community

involvement activities, and to develop,

disseminate, and evaluate site-specific

preventive health education materials

and other programs related to exposure

to hazardous substances in the

environment.

B. Eligible Applicants

Limited Competition

Assistance will be provided only to

the health departments of States or their

bona fide agents, including the District

of Columbia, the Commonwealth of

Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana

Islands, American Samoa, Guam,

federally recognized Indian tribal

governments, the Federated States of

Micronesia, the Republic of the

Marshall Islands, and the Republic of

Palau. In consultation with States,

assistance may be provided to political

subdivisions of States.
31492 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 110 /Tuesday, June 9, 1998 / Notices

The 23 public health agencies

currently funded under Program

Announcement 607 are not eligible to

apply under this announcement. Those

public health agencies are: Alabama

Department of Public Health; Arizona

Department of Health Services;

Arkansas Department of Health;

California Department of Health

Services; Connecticut Department of

Public Health; Florida Department of

Health & Rehabilitative Services; Iowa

Department of Public Health; Illinois

Department of Public Health; Indiana

State Department of Health; Louisiana

Department of Health and Human

Services; Massachusetts Department of

Public Health; Michigan Department of

Community Health; Minnesota

Department of Health; Missouri

Department of Health; New York State

Department of Health; New Hampshire

Department of Health & Human

Services; New Jersey Department of

Health and Senior Services; Ohio

Department of Health; Pennsylvania

Department of Health; South Carolina

Department of Health & Environmental

Control; Texas Department of Health;

Washington State Department of Health;

and Wisconsin Department of Health &

Family Services.

C. Availability of Funds

Approximately $400,000 will be

available in FY 1998 to fund an

estimated six awards. The average new

award is expected to be $67,000, ranging

from $40,000 to $90,000. It is expected

that the awards will begin on or about

September 29, 1998, and will be made

for a 12-month budget period within a

project period of up to three years.

Funding estimates may change.

Continuation awards within an

approved project period will be made

on the basis of satisfactory progress as

evidenced by required reports and the

availability of funds.

Use of Funds

Funds may be expended for

reasonable program purposes, such as

personnel, travel, supplies and services.

Funds for contractual services may be

requested. However, the awardee, as the

direct and primary recipient of ATSDR

cooperative agreement funds, must

perform a substantive role in carrying

out project activities and not merely

serve as a conduit for an award to

another party or provide funds to an

ineligible party. Applicant must justify

the need to use a contractor. If

contractors are proposed, the following

must be provided: (1) name of

contractor, (2) method of selection, (3)

period of performance, (4) detailed

budget, (5) justification for use of

contractor, and (6) assurance of nonconflict of interest.

Equipment may be purchased with

cooperative agreement funds. However,

the equipment proposed should be

appropriate and reasonable for the

activity to be conducted. The applicant,

as part of the application process,

should provide: (1) a justification for the

need to acquire the equipment, (2) the

description of the equipment, (3) the

intended use of the equipment, and (4)

the advantages/disadvantages of

purchase versus lease of the equipment

(if applicable). Requests for equipment

purchases will be reviewed and

approved only under the following

conditions: (1) ATSDR retains the right

to request return of all equipment

purchased (in operable condition) with

cooperative agreement funds at the

conclusion of the project period, and (2)

equipment purchased must be

compatible with ATSDR hardware.

Computers purchased with ATSDR

funds should be IBM compatible and

adhere to the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC) and

ATSDR hardware standards.

Recipient activities may not be

conducted with funds from this

cooperative agreement program at any

Federal site where the State is a party

to litigation at the site.

Funding Background

Public health agencies have the

principal responsibility within their

jurisdiction for the protection of public

health through regulatory authority and

the delivery of public health program

services. Over the years, these agencies

have developed expertise as a direct

response to problems that they are

charged with resolving, including health

problems related to hazardous

substances in the environment.

Historically, there has been a long series

of environmental health problems

requiring the response and cooperation

of State and Federal public health

agencies. Environmental contamination

can potentially threaten the health, not

only of populations immediately

impacted by hazardous waste sites, but

of entire communities in cases where

contaminants have significantly

migrated or been released off site and

become important sources of human

exposure to hazardous substances.

Community involvement is an

integral part of site activities. The goal

of community involvement at sites is to

foster partnerships with communities

living near hazardous waste sites in the

development, implementation, and

evaluation of all site-specific public

health activities.

Health education is integral to the

overall site-specific public health

agenda. Community members have

expressed concern about the general

lack of environmental health

information available to them and have

expressed a need for community health

education. Additionally, State health

departments and concerned residents

living near hazardous waste sites have

reported a need for continuing

education programs to educate health

care professionals about (1) the health

effects of hazardous substances and (2)

the management of cases of exposure.

Following are definitions or

descriptions of the public health

activities allowable under this

cooperative agreement:

1. Public Health Assessment

Activities—The evaluation of data and

information on the release of hazardous

substances into the environment in

order to assess any current or future

impact on public health, develop health

advisories or other health

recommendations, and identify studies

or actions needed to evaluate and

mitigate or prevent human health

effects.

a. Petitioned Public Health

Assessment—results from a request

from a community member or other

interested party who believes exposures

to hazardous substances has occurred.

b. Public Health Advisory—a

communication from ATSDR that a

public health threat exists of such

importance and magnitude that

immediate action should be taken.

Keeping the community informed and

soliciting input is a vital part of the

public health assessment process.

c. Health Consultation—a written or

verbal response to a specific question or

specific request for information from or

via ATSDR staff or a request for

information about health risks posed by

a specific site, chemical release, or

hazardous material and may lead to

specific recommendations for public

health actions.

2. Exposure Investigation—Gathering

and analyzing site-specific information

to determine if human populations have

been exposed. Site-specific information

may include exposure point

environmental sampling, exposure dosereconstruction, biological testing, and

evaluation of existing health outcome

data. Information from an exposure

investigation is included in public

health assessments, health

consultations, and public health

advisories.

3. Community Involvement—Sitespecific community involvement is

designed to develop partnerships with

communities living near hazardous
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 110 /Tuesday, June 9, 1998 / Notices 31493

waste sites in the development,

implementation, and evaluation of sitespecific activities, which may include

needs assessment, site evaluation

activities, participation in community

meetings, and being available to the

community to gather and address health

concerns.

4. Site-Specific Health Education—

Site-specific health education

encompasses a program of education

activities implemented in communities

to enable them to prevent or mitigate the

health impact of exposure to hazardous

substances present at waste sites and

releases. Prevention of exposure is the

focus of community health education. It

is designed to address health risks and

assist the community in understanding,

preventing, or mitigating the health

effects of hazardous substances

exposure. Prevention of health effects

from exposure is the focus of health

professions education. The core

components of each site-specific

education activity are: (a) definition of

a target audience through a community

needs assessment profile, (b)

development, delivery, and evaluation

of an educational message; and (c)

evaluation of the impact of the public

health actions undertaken in a sitespecific community (assurance).

5. Technical Project Team—The

Technical Project Team (TPT) is made

up of representatives from the ATSDR

Division of Health Assessment and

Consultation (DHAC), ATSDR Division

of Health Studies (DHS), ATSDR

Division of Health Education and

Promotion (DHEP), ATSDR Office of

Regional Operations (ORO), and State

and local counterparts. The TPT is

responsible for assuring the planning,

implementation, and evaluation of all

public health actions for each site

assigned to the team. The TPT meets to

review data relative to the site and

considers the following questions: is

there or has there been a completed

exposure pathway and, are humans at

health risk?

Funding Preferences

Funding preference may be given to

the State entities currently funded

under ATSDR Program Announcements

415, ‘‘Program for State Department and

Public Health Agencies to Conduct

Health Consultations and Public Health

Assessment Activities’’ and ATSDR

Program Announcement 443,

‘‘Environmental Health Education

Activities for Health Professionals and

Communities Concerned with Human

Exposure to Hazardous Substances’’.

D. Program Requirements

ATSDR will assist and work jointly

with the recipient in conducting the

activities of this cooperative agreement

program. The application should be

presented in a manner that

demonstrates the applicant’s ability to

address the health issues in a

collaborative manner with ATSDR.

Note: Recipient activities may not be

conducted with funds from this cooperative

agreement program at any Federal site where

the State is a party to litigation at the site.

Recipient and ATSDR activities are

listed below:

1. Recipient Activities

The recipient will have primary

responsibilities as follows:

a. Public Health Assessments

Conduct Public Health Assessments,

including petitions, National Priority

List (NPL), Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability

Information System (CERCLIS) or other

sites or facilities within the recipient’s

territorial boundary in accordance with

the methodology provided in the

ATSDR Public Health Assessment

Guidance Manual, ATSDR’s Review and

Handling Procedures for Public Health

Assessments, and other applicable

guidance. The following activities are

also considered integral in the public

health assessment process:

1. Prepare addenda to update public

health assessments.

2. Prepare Site Review and Updates

(SRU) to evaluate current conditions

and determine the need for further

actions.

b. Health Consultations

Prepare a written or verbal response

to a specific question or specific request

for information about health risks posed

by a specific site (including Site

Accelerated Cleanup Model (SACM)),

chemical release, or hazardous material.

Health consultations may also be

written as a follow-up to Public Health

Assessments or SRUs. Consultations

may include the evaluation of

environmental data, community

concerns, health outcome data, and

demographic characterizations, and the

conduct of community outreach and

interaction activities and site work

plans.

c. Exposure Investigations

Exposure Investigations may be

conducted as part of a health assessment

or health consultation response.

d. Community Involvement

Site-specific community involvement

is designed to develop partnerships

with communities living near hazardous

waste sites in the development,

implementation, and evaluation of sitespecific activities, which may include

needs assessment, site evaluation

activities, participation in community

meetings, and to provide opportunities

within the community to address health

concerns. The recipient should:

1. Develop a site-specific community

involvement plan which, at a minimum,

should include: (1) a needs assessment

strategy, (2) an implementation strategy,

and (3) an evaluation strategy.

2. Implement the community

involvement plan and, where warranted

based on the needs assessment,

establish Community Assistance Panels.

e. Health Education

Site-specific health education

encompasses a program of education

activities implemented in communities

to enable them to prevent or mitigate the

health impact of exposure to hazardous

substances present at waste sites and

releases. Prevention of exposure is the

focus of community health education.

Prevention of health effects from

exposure is the focus of health

professions education. Based on the

community needs assessment, a

coordinated health education program

to address the needs identified for each

target audience should be developed.

The recipient should:

1. Develop materials that are

appropriate for the target audience

considering such issues as literacy level,

cultural values, and languages spoken.

2. Give priority to those sites where

specific actions can be taken to reduce

or prevent exposures or where a

significant public health concern exists.

3. Materials and programs targeted to

a community’s health care providers

should be designed to improve the

knowledge and skill of health care

professionals concerning the potential

exposure to hazardous substances at the

selected sites. Examples include

programs and materials designed to

enhance the ability of health care

providers to communicate risk, counsel

and advise community members

including their patients, recognize and

evaluate potential exposures, obtain

appropriate consultation from

environmental health experts when

needed or diagnose and treat conditions

that may arise from exposure to

hazardous substances.

4. Implement the planned actions

such as distributing materials, and

conducting projects such as Grand
31494 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 110 /Tuesday, June 9, 1998 / Notices

Rounds, short courses, seminars, poster

display sessions, and public availability

sessions.

f. Site-Specific Evaluation

As part of the work plan, develop a

site-specific evaluation plan prior to

conducting activities. The plan should

contain a component for each activity

undertaken at the site. Conduct

evaluation of activities and projects and

site-specific programs to determine if

community needs have been met as well

as intended purpose of the activities.

Both process and impact/outcome

measures should be included in the

evaluation plan.

g. Program Evaluation

An evaluation of effectiveness of

overall capacity building effort in

addressing public health issues in

communities living near hazardous

waste sites will be conducted jointly by

all participants. This evaluation will

focus on outcome and impact

measurements using a standard

evaluation instrument. Both process and

impact/outcome measures will be

included in the evaluation.

2. Other Recipient Activities

a. Participate in Technical Project

team (TPT) review and comply with

established review and handling

procedures for incorporating the results

of recommendations into site evaluation

activities.

b. Provide abstraction overview to

ATSDR on each site for which site

evaluation activities have been

conducted for inclusion in the

HAZDAT.

c. Workshops

1. Conduct and participate in local,

State, and federal health and

environmental workshops and

community meetings to discuss and

respond to questions concerning a

particular site’s impact on public health.

2. Participate in ATSDR-scheduled

training classes or workshops to

increase knowledge and skills in

environmental public health.

d. Respond to ATSDR’s requests

concerning congressional inquiries/

testimonies, program evaluation, or

other information in carrying out the

purpose of the project.

3. ATSDR Activities

ATSDR will have primary

responsibilities as follows:

a. Public Health Assessments

Collaborate with and assist recipient

in conducting Public Health Assessment

activities on CERCLIS or other sites or

facilities within the recipient’s

territorial boundary, which includes:

1. Collaborate and assist in preparing

addenda to update public health

assessments.

2. Collaborate and assist in preparing

Site Review and Updates (SRU) to

evaluate current conditions and

determine the need for further actions.

b. Health Consultations

Collaborate and assist recipient in

preparing a written or verbal response to

a specific question or specific request

for information about health risks posed

by a specific site [including Site

Accelerated Cleanup Model (SACM)],

chemical release, or hazardous material.

c. Exposure Investigations

Collaborate and assist in conducting

Exposure Investigations.

d. Community Involvement

1. Assist in developing effective

methods to conduct needs assessments

in communities living near hazardous

waste sites and in defining goals and

objectives.

2. Assist in development,

implementation, and evaluation of the

community involvement plan.

e. Site-Specific Health Education

1. Collaborate in developing and

reviewing all educational materials to

ensure scientific accuracy. Provide

existing materials as requested.

Collaborate in developing projects for

specific target audiences.

2. Collaborate with the State in the

implementation of programs and the

distribution of materials.

f. Evaluation

ATSDR will lead the evaluation of

each recipient’s total program. This

evaluation will focus on outcome and

impact measurements using a standard

evaluation instrument. In addition,

ATSDR will conduct an evaluation of

effectiveness of overall capacity

building effort in addressing public

health issues in communities living near

hazardous waste sites. Both process and

impact/outcome measures will be

included in the evaluation.

4. Other ATSDR Activities

a. Initiate and conduct review by

Technical Project Team.

b. Assist with abstraction overview for

the database on each site for which site

evaluation activities have been

conducted.

c. Workshops

1. Assist recipient with participation

in local, State, and Federal health and

environmental workshops and

community meetings to discuss and

respond to questions concerning a

particular site’s impact on public health.

2. Initiate and conduct ATSDRscheduled training classes or workshops

to increase recipients knowledge and

skills in environmental public health.

d. Assist recipient with requests

concerning program evaluation, or

congressional inquiries concerning the

cooperative agreement that are received

by ATSDR.

E. Application Content

Competing Applications

Use the information in the Program

Requirements, Other Requirements, and

Evaluation Criteria sections to develop

the application content. Your

application will be evaluated on the

criteria listed, so it is important to

follow them in laying out your program

plan. The application must include a

200 word or less abstract of the

proposal. The application pages must be

clearly numbered, and a complete index

to the application and its appendices

must be included. The original and each

copy of the application must be

submitted unstapled and unbound.

The budget should include funds for

selected cooperative agreement staff to

attend the annual training meeting in

Atlanta (five days).

F. Submission and Deadline

Application

Submit the original and two copies of

PHS Form 5161–1 (OMB Number 0937–

0189). Forms are in the application kit.

On or before August 5, 1998, submit the

application to: Patrick A. Smith, Grants

Management Specialist, Grants

Management Branch, Procurement and

Grants Office, Announcement 98064,

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC), Room 300, 255 East

Paces Ferry Road, NE., Mailstop E–13,

Atlanta, Georgia 30305–2209.

If your application does not arrive in

time for submission to the independent

review group, it will not be considered

in the current competition unless you

can provide proof that you mailed it on

or before the deadline (i.e., receipt from

U.S. Postal Service or a commercial

carrier; private metered postmarks are

not acceptable).

G. Evaluation Criteria

Each application will be evaluated

individually against the following

criteria by an independent review group

appointed by ATSDR. The proposed

program will account for a total of 70

percent of the score from the evaluation

criteria. Applications will be reviewed
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 110 /Tuesday, June 9, 1998 / Notices 31495

and evaluated according to the

following criteria:

a. Proposed Program—70 Percent

Applicant’s ability to address the

following:

1. Ability to respond to specific

public health issues that occur as a

result of actual or potential human

exposure to a hazardous substance

including methods to evaluate and

analyze toxicological, community, and

environmental health data; and to

conduct and analyze data from exposure

investigations.

2. Description of involvement with

communities response to concern about

a particular site’s impact on public

health. Ability to develop and provide

preventive health education in a timely

fashion in response to public health

issues including appropriateness and

thoroughness of the methods used to

evaluate preventive health education,

and the extent to which the evaluation

plan includes measures of program

outcome (i.e., effect of participant’s

knowledge, attitudes, skills, behaviors,

exposure to hazardous substances).

b. Program Personnel—15 Percent

The extent to which the proposal has

described or provided biographical data

on the:

1. Manner in which an integrated

team will be developed to address

components of this program. A

consistent team is vital to this effort.

ATSDR recommends that the team

consist of, at minimum, 1⁄2 to 1 FTE

health assessors and 1⁄2 to 1 FTE health

educators/community involvement

specialists/medical officers for core

activities.

2. Appropriate qualifications,

experience, leadership ability, and

percentage of time project director (or

principle investigator) will commit to

the project.

3. Appropriate qualifications,

experience, and description of how staff

will be utilized in relation to the

activities to be performed to accomplish

the work and their percentage of time to

be spent on the project; CVs should be

provided.

4. Ability of recipient to adhere to

‘‘Third Party Agreements’’ under ‘‘Other

Requirements’’ of this announcement if

contractors are proposed.

c. Capability—15 Percent

Description of the applicant’s

capability to carry out the proposed

project and suitability of facilities and

equipment available or to be purchased

for the project.

d. Program Budget—(Not Scored)

The extent to which the budget relates

directly to project activities, is clearly

justified, and is consistent with

intended use of funds. The budget

should include funds for scientific staff

to attend the annual training meeting in

Atlanta (five days).

e. Continuation Awards

Continuation awards within the

project period will be made on the basis

of an annually negotiated work plan

with ATSDR staff, and the following

criteria:

1. Satisfactory progress has been made

in meeting project objectives;

2. Objectives for the new budget

period are realistic, specific, and

measurable;

3. Proposed changes in described

methods of operation, need for financial

support, and/or evaluation procedures

will lead to achievement of project

objectives; and

4. The budget request is clearly

justified and consistent with the

intended use of cooperative agreement

funds.

H. Other Requirements

Technical Reporting Requirements

Provide ATSDR with original plus

two copies of:

1. Annual progress reports; the

progress reports must report on progress

toward addressing activities mutually

agreed to by ATSDR and the recipient

at the time of the annual budget

discussion, as part of the annually

negotiated work plan and should

include the following for each program,

function, or activity involved: (1) a

comparison of actual accomplishments

to the goals established for the period;

(2) the reasons for slippage if

established goals were not met; and (3)

other pertinent information.

2. Financial status report, no more

than 90 days after the end of the budget

period; and

3. Final financial and performance

reports, no more than 90 days after the

end of the project period.

Send all reports to: Patrick A. Smith,

Grants Management Specialist, Grants

Management Branch, Procurement and

Grants Office, Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention (CDC), Room

300, 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE.,

Mailstop E–13, Atlanta, GA 30305–

2209.

Disclosure. Recipient is required to

provide proof by way of citation to State

code or regulation or other State

pronouncement given the authority of

law, that medical information obtained

pursuant to the agreement, pertaining to

an individual, and therefore considered

confidential, will be protected from

disclosure when the consent of the

individual to release identifying

information is not obtained.

The following additional

requirements are applicable to this

program. For a complete description of

each, see Attachment I.

AR98–7—Executive Order 12372

Review

AR98–9—Paperwork Reduction Act

Requirements

AR98–10—Smoke-Free Workplace

Requirements

AR98–11—Healthy People 2000

AR98–17—Peer and Technical Reviews

of Final Reports of Health Studies—

ATSDR

AR98–18—Cost Recovery—ATSDR

AR98–19—Third Party Agreements—

ATSDR

I. Authority and Catalog of Federal

Domestic Assistance Number

This program is authorized under

Sections 104(i), (1)(E), (4), (6), (7), (9),

(14) and (15) of the Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act

(CERCLA) of 1980, as amended by the

Superfund Amendments and

Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986 [42

U.S.C. 9604(i)(1) (E), (4), (6), (7), (9), (14)

and (15)], and Section 3019 (b) and (c)

of the Resource Conservation and

Recovery Act (RCRA), as amended

(Hazardous and Solid Waste

Amendments of 1984) [42 U.S.C. 6939a

(b) and (c)].

The Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance numbers are 93.200, 93.201,

93.203.

J. Where To Obtain Additional

Information

Please refer to Announcement

Number 98064 when requesting

information and submitting an

application.

To receive additional written

information and to request an

application kit, call 1–888–GRANTS4

(1–888–472–6874). You will be asked to

leave your name and address and will

be instructed to identify the

Announcement number of interest.

If you have questions after reviewing

the contents of all of the documents,

business management technical

assistance may be obtained from: Patrick

A. Smith, Grants Management

Specialist, Grants Management Branch,

Procurement and Grants Office, Centers

for Disease Control and Prevention

(CDC), 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE.,

Room 300, Mailstop E13, Atlanta,

Georgia 30305, Telephone (404) 842–
31496 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 110 /Tuesday, June 9, 1998 / Notices

6803, INTERNET address

phs3@cdc.gov.

For programmatic technical assistance

contact: Sharon Conley, Financial

Acquisition Specialist, Office of

Program Operations & Management

(OPOM), Agency for Toxic Substances

and Disease Registry (ATSDR), 1600

Clifton Road, NE., Mailstop E–60,

Atlanta, Georgia 30333, Telephone (404)

639–0559, INTERNET address

sac7@cdc.gov.

Also, the CDC home-page on the

Internet: http://www.cdc.gov is available

for copies of this Announcement and

funding documents as well as

application forms.

Dated: June 3, 1998.

Georgi Jones,

Director, Office of Policy and External Affairs,

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease

Registry.

[FR Doc. 98–15256 Filed 6–8–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4163–70–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Agency for Toxic Substances and

Disease Registry

[ATSDR–135]

Availability of ATSDR Decision

Document Regarding the Bunker Hill,

Idaho, Medical Monitoring Program

AGENCY: Agency for Toxic Substances

and Disease Registry (ATSDR),

Department of Health and Human

Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice of availability for public

review and comment of draft Decision

Document Regarding the Bunker Hill,

Idaho, Medical Monitoring Program.

SUMMARY: ATSDR has reviewed

scientific literature and clinical

information in order to assess the need

for medical monitoring at Bunker Hill,

Idaho. ATSDR has determined that there

is a definable population at significantly

increased risk of disease that will

benefit from a medical monitoring

program. ATSDR has judged that the

medical monitoring program is

appropriate to provide periodic medical

evaluation and referrals to improve the

public health status of the affected

population. The current literature and

expert panel workshop held by ATSDR

reflect that medical monitoring at

Bunker Hill would be good public

health practice and of medical benefit to

the affected populations. This notice is

announcing the availability of the draft

report documenting ATSDR’s

justification for implementing a medical

monitoring program for the population

at the Bunker Hill Site: the ‘‘ATSDR

Decision Document Regarding the

Bunker Hill, Idaho, Medical Monitoring

Program’’, is available for public review

and comment.

DATES: Comments must be received by

July 9, 1998.

ADDRESSES: The report is available

through Dr. Vivian Rush, MD, Medical

Officer, ATSDR-Division of Health

Education and Promotion, 1600 Clifton

Road, NE., Mailstop E–33, Atlanta,

Georgia 30333, E-mail address

vcr1@cdc.gov and telephone (404) 639–

5080.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

Vivian Rush, Medical Officer, ATSDR;

telephone (404) 639–5080.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

104 (i)(9) of the Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act

(CERCLA), as amended [42 U.S.C. 9604

(i)(9)], provides for the Administrator of

ATSDR to initiate a health surveillance

program for populations at a significant

increased risk of adverse health effects

as a result of exposure to hazardous

substances released from a facility. A

program ATSDR includes under health

surveillance is referred to as ‘‘Medical

Monitoring or Screening’’ and is

defined, as published in the Federal

Register on July 28, 1995 (60 FR 38840),

in ‘‘ATSDR’s Final Criteria for

Determining the Appropriateness of a

Medical Monitoring Program under

CERCLA’’ as ‘‘the periodic medical

testing to screen people at significant

increased risk for disease.’’ There are 7

Medical Monitoring criteria associated

with this program and they are as

follows:

(1) There should be evidence of

contaminant levels in environmental

media that would suggest the high

likelihood of environmental exposure to

a hazardous substance and subsequent

adverse health outcomes.

(2) There should be a well-defined,

identifiable target population of concern

in which exposure to a hazardous

substance at a sufficient level has

occurred.

(3) There should be documented

human health research that

demonstrates a scientific basis for a

reasonable association between an

exposure to a hazardous substance and

a specific adverse health effect (such as

an illness or change in a biological

marker of effect).

(4) The monitoring should be directed

at detecting adverse health effects that

are consistent with the existing body of

knowledge and amenable to prevention

or intervention measures.

(5) The general requirements for a

medical screening program should be

satisfied. Those requirements are:

• The natural history of the disease

process should be understood

sufficiently for screening.

• The early detection through

screening should be known to have an

impact on the natural history of that

disease process.

• There should be an accepted

screening test that meets the

requirements for validity, reliability,

estimates of yield, sensitivity,

specificity, and acceptable cost.

(6) An accepted treatment,

intervention or both for the condition

(outcome or marker of exposure) must

exist and a referral system should be in

place prior to the initiation of a medical

monitoring program.

(7) The logistics of the system must be

resolved before the program can be

initiated.

Background

The 21-square-mile Bunker Hill

Superfund site includes the Bunker Hill

mining and smelting complexes and the

communities of Pinehurst, Page,

Smelterville, Kellogg and Wardner in

Shoshone county, in Silver Valley of

northern Idaho. Mining and mineral

refining has been the dominant industry

in the Silver Valley for more than 100

years. The mining and mineral refining

activities have severely impacted the

landscape, vegetation, and the quality of

the air, and soils in the area. A

population of workers and residents

who have worked in and lived

surrounding the former Bunker Hill lead

and zinc smelting facility have been

exposed to lead (and probably other

heavy metals) in the past at levels of

public health concern (i.e., at levels

where health effects could be expected

to occur). The most serious exposures

took place during the 1970’s after a

baghouse fire resulted in large amounts

of lead to be released into the air of

towns surrounding the smelter.

Epidemiologic studies have shown

adverse health effects in the populations

that were present during the past high

exposure periods. Since the smelter’s

closure in 1981, the exposures have

markedly decreased. In addition, the

Panhandle Health District has

implemented a program to detect excess

exposure in the community and

provides information and education on

preventing harmful exposures and

scientific literature supports these

findings.