Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 250 / Tuesday, December 31, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 107001 

This document corrects a technical error 

in the regulations. This document does 

not contain any substantive changes to 

the regulations. 

DATES: Effective December 31, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Bruce Honer, U.S. Department of 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

5th Floor, Washington, DC 20202. 

Telephone: (202) 987–0750. Email: 

Bruce.Honer@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 July 

10, 2023, the Department published in 

the Federal Register a final rule 

amending regulations related to incomedriven repayment (88 FR 43820). Those 

final regulations contained a technical 

error, which we are correcting. 

Specifically, with respect to 34 CFR 

685.209(k)(6)(i), we indicated in the 

preamble to the final rule in a response 

to public comment that we were 

modifying the regulations to exclude 

periods in which a borrower is in an inschool deferment from counting toward 

the borrower’s time to forgiveness, and 

we explained our reasons for doing so, 

see, e.g., 88 FR 43855, but we 

inadvertently omitted that change in the 

regulatory text. This notice corrects that 

inadvertent omission. 

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking, 

Negotiated Rulemaking, and Delayed 

Effective Date 

In accordance with the 

Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 

U.S.C. 553, the Department generally 

offers interested parties the opportunity 

to comment on proposed regulations. 

However, the APA provides that an 

agency is not required to conduct 

notice-and-comment rulemaking when 

the agency, for good cause, finds that 

notice and public comment thereon are 

impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 

to the public interest (5 U.S.C. 553(b)). 

There is good cause to waive 

rulemaking here as unnecessary. 

Rulemaking is ‘‘unnecessary’’ in those 

situations in which ‘‘the administrative 

rule is a routine determination, 

insignificant in nature and impact, and 

inconsequential to the industry and to 

the public.’’ Utility Solid Waste 

Activities Group v. EPA, 236 F.3d 749, 

755 (D.C. Cir. 2001), quoting U.S. 

Department of Justice, Attorney 

General’s Manual on the Administrative 

Procedure Act 31 (1947) and South 

Carolina v. Block, 558 F. Supp. 1004, 

1016 (D.S.C. 1983). The regulatory 

change in this document is necessary to 

properly and accurately reflect the 

outcome of the rulemaking process, by 

correcting a technical error: regulatory 

text that was proposed and explained 

but inadvertently was omitted from the 

final regulatory text. It reflects the 

substantive rule stated in the preamble, 

which was the product of the notice and 

comment process and does not establish 

any new substantive rule. Therefore, the 

Department has determined that 

publication of a proposed rule is 

unnecessary under 5 U.S.C. 553(b). 

In addition, under section 492 of the 

Higher Education Act of 1965, as 

amended (HEA) (20 U.S.C. 1098a), all 

regulations proposed by the Department 

for programs authorized under title IV of 

the HEA are subject to negotiated 

rulemaking requirements. Section 

492(b)(2) of the HEA provides that 

negotiated rulemaking may be waived 

for good cause when doing so would be 

‘‘impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 

to the public interest.’’ There is likewise 

good cause to waive the negotiated 

rulemaking requirement in this case, 

since, as explained above, notice and 

comment rulemaking is unnecessary 

and has already been conducted. 

The APA generally requires that 

regulations be published at least 30 days 

before their effective date, unless the 

agency has good cause to implement its 

regulations sooner (5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3)). 

As previously stated, because the 

regulatory change corrects an error, 

there is good cause to waive the delayed 

effective date in the APA and make the 

correction effective as of the date of 

publication. 

Accessible Format: On request to the 

program contact person listed under FOR

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 Adobe 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. 

List of Subjects in 34 CFR Part 685 

Administrative practice and 

procedure; Colleges and universities; 

Education; Loan programs—education; 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements; Student aid; Vocational 

education. 

Nasser Paydar, 

Assistant Secretary, Office of Postsecondary 

Education. 

Accordingly, the Secretary corrects 34 

CFR part 685 by making the following 

correcting amendment: 

PART 685—WILLIAM D. FORD 

FEDERAL DIRECT LOAN PROGRAM 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 685 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070g, 1087a, et seq., 

unless otherwise noted. 

■ 2. Section 685.209 is amended by 

revising paragraph (k)(6)(i) to read as 

follows: 

685.209 Income-driven repayment plans. 

* * * * * 

(k) * * * 

(6) * * * 

(i) A borrower may obtain credit 

toward forgiveness as defined in 

paragraph (k) of this section for any 

months in which a borrower was in a 

deferment or forbearance not listed in 

paragraph (k)(4)(iv) of this section, other 

than periods in an in-school deferment, 

by making an additional payment equal 

to or greater than their current IDR 

payment, including a payment of $0, for 

a deferment or forbearance that ended 

within 3 years of the additional 

repayment date and occurred after July 

1, 2024. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2024–31217 Filed 12–30–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

38 CFR Part 38 

RIN 2900–AS13 

Veterans Legacy Grants Program 

Improvements 

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Veterans 

Affairs (VA) amends its Veterans Legacy 

Grants Program (VLGP) regulations to 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
107002 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 250 / Tuesday, December 31, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 

align them with regulatory updates to 

the uniform administrative 

requirements and other requirements for 

Federal awards and makes additional 

revisions to improve the process for 

administration of the grant program. 

This rulemaking implements 

housekeeping amendments to key terms, 

legal citations, and definitions and 

extends timelines for grant recipient 

reporting requirements. 

DATES: This rule is effective January 30, 

2025. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John 

Williams, Senior Grants Management 

Specialist, Veterans Legacy Grants 

Program, National Cemetery 

Administration, Department of Veterans 

Affairs, 810 Vermont Avenue NW, 

Washington, DC 20420. Telephone: 

(314) 348–4073 (this is not a toll-free 

number). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August 

12, 2024, VA published a proposed rule 

in the Federal Register (89 FR 65572) 

that would align VLGP regulations with 

regulatory updates to the uniform 

requirements for Federal awards in 2 

CFR part 200 and make additional 

revisions to improve the process for 

administration of the grant program. 

The public comment period ended on 

October 11, 2024, and VA received 1 

comment in response to the proposed 

rule. 

The commenter expressed support for 

the VLGP and noted that the updates to 

the regulations would ensure clarity and 

compliance, provide grant recipients 

with additional flexibility to meet 

reporting requirements, and improve the 

program’s overall effectiveness. VA 

appreciates the commenter’s support 

and feedback. VA makes no changes to 

the rulemaking based on this comment. 

Executive Orders 12866, 13563 and 

14094 

Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory 

Planning and Review) directs agencies 

to assess the costs and benefits of 

available regulatory alternatives and, 

when regulation is necessary, to select 

regulatory approaches that maximize 

net benefits (including potential 

economic, environmental, public health 

and safety effects, and other advantages; 

distributive impacts; and equity). 

Executive Order 13563 (Improving 

Regulation and Regulatory Review) 

emphasizes the importance of 

quantifying both costs and benefits, 

reducing costs, harmonizing rules, and 

promoting flexibility. Executive Order 

14094 (Executive Order on Modernizing 

Regulatory Review) supplements and 

reaffirms the principles, structures, and 

definitions governing contemporary 

regulatory review established in 

Executive Order 12866 of September 30, 

1993 (Regulatory Planning and Review), 

and Executive Order 13563 of January 

18, 2011 (Improving Regulation and 

Regulatory Review). The Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs has 

determined that this rulemaking is not 

a significant regulatory action under 

Executive Order 12866, as amended by 

Executive Order 14094. The Regulatory 

Impact Analysis associated with this 

rulemaking can be found as a 

supporting document at 

www.regulations.gov. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Secretary hereby certifies that 

this final rule will not have a significant 

economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities as they are 

defined in the Regulatory Flexibility Act 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612). Amendments in the 

final rule will likely not be 

determinative of whether small entities 

receive or do not receive a grant because 

they will have limited impact on small 

entities complying with grant 

application and reporting requirements. 

In addition to some technical revisions 

to the VLGP regulations, this rule will 

merely align those regulations to 

updates to the uniform administrative 

requirements and other requirements for 

Federal awards (2 CFR part 200). 

Therefore, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), 

the initial and final regulatory flexibility 

analysis requirements of 5 U.S.C. 603 

and 604 do not apply. 

Unfunded Mandates 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 requires, at 2 U.S.C. 1532, that 

agencies prepare an assessment of 

anticipated costs and benefits before 

issuing any rule that may result in the 

expenditure by State, local, and Tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100 million or more 

(adjusted annually for inflation) in any 

one year. This final rule will have no 

such effect on State, local, and Tribal 

governments, or on the private sector. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

Although this final rule contains 

collection of information under the 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501–3521), there 

are no provisions associated with this 

rulemaking constituting any new 

collection of information or any 

revisions to the existing collection of 

information. The collections of 

information for 38 CFR 38.730 are 

currently approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) and 

have been assigned OMB control 

numbers 4040–0004, 4040–0006, 4040– 

0007, and 4040–0013. 

Assistance Listing 

The Assistance Listing number and 

title for the program affected by this 

document are 64.204, Veterans Legacy 

Grants Program. 

Congressional Review Act 

Pursuant to Subtitle E of the Small 

Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act of 1996 (known as the 

Congressional Review Act) (5 U.S.C. 801 

et seq.), the Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs designated this rule 

as not satisfying the criteria under 5 

U.S.C. 804(2). 

Signing Authority 

Denis McDonough, Secretary of 

Veterans Affairs, signed and approved 

this document on December 20, 2024, 

and authorized the undersigned to sign 

and submit the document to the Office 

of the Federal Register for publication 

electronically as an official document of 

the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

List of Subjects in 38 CFR Part 38 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Cemeteries, Claims, Crime, 

Grants programs—veterans, Veterans. 

Michael P. Shores, 

Director, Office of Regulation Policy & 

Management, Office of General Counsel, 

Department of Veterans Affairs. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the Department of Veterans 

Affairs amends 38 CFR part 38 as set 

forth below: 

PART 38—NATIONAL CEMETERIES 

OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 

AFFAIRS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 38 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 38 U.S.C. 107, 501, 512, 531, 

2306, 2400, 2402, 2403, 2404, 2407, 2408, 

2411, 7105. 

■ 2. Amend § 38.715 by: 

■ a., Removing ‘‘Notice of Funding 

Availability (NOFA)’’ and adding in its 

place ‘‘Notice of Funding Opportunity 

(NOFO)’’ in the introductory text; 

■ b. Removing ‘‘NOFA’’ and adding in 

each place ‘‘NOFO’’ in paragraphs (a) 

and (c)(3) and the paragraph (k) 

heading; and 

■ c. Revising paragraphs (j) and (k) and 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 38.715 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

(j) Recipient means an eligible 

recipient (or entity) that is awarded a 


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Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 250 / Tuesday, December 31, 2024 / Rules and Regulations 107003 

VLGP grant under this part. It does not 

include a subrecipient or individual that 

is a beneficiary of the award. 

(k) Notice of Funding Opportunity 

(NOFO) means a formal announcement 

of the availability of a Federal funding 

opportunity published in the OMBdesignated government-wide website 

Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov) in 

accordance with § 38.725 and 2 CFR 

200.1 and 200.204. 

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(d), 2400 note, 2 

CFR 200.1 and 200.204)) 

§ 38.720 [Amended] 

■ 3. Amend § 38.720 by: 

■ b. Removing ‘‘NOFA’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘NOFO’’ in paragraph (b); 

■ b. Removing ‘‘grantee’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘recipient’’ in paragraphs (b), 

(c), and (e); 

■ c. Removing ‘‘grantee’s’’ and adding 

in its place ‘‘recipient’s’’ in paragraph 

(c); and 

■ d. Removing ‘‘NOFA’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘NOFO’’ in paragraph (e). 

■ 4. Amend § 38.725 by: 

■ a. Revising the section heading and 

introductory text; and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.204’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 38.725 Notice of Funding Opportunity 

(NOFO). 

When funds are available for VLGP 

grants, VA will publish a NOFO at 

Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov). The 

NOFO will identify: 

* * * * * 

■ 5. Amend § 38.730 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘NOFA’’ each place it 

appears and adding in each place 

‘‘NOFO’’; 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.208’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section; and 

■ c. Adding a parenthetical OMB 

reference to the end of the section. 

The addition reads as follows: 

§ 38.730 Applications. 

* * * * * 

(The Office of Management and Budget has 

approved the information collection 

provisions in this section under control 

numbers 4040–0004, 4040–0006, 4040–0007, 

and 4040–0013). 

■ 6. Amend § 38.735 by: 

■ a. Revising paragraphs (a) and (b); and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.206’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 38.735 Additional factors for deciding 

applications. 

(a) Applicant’s history of 

performance. VA may consider the 

applicant’s record in managing Federal 

awards, if a prior recipient of a Federal 

award, including timeliness of 

compliance with applicable reporting 

requirements and conformance to the 

terms and conditions of any previous 

Federal award. 

(b) Applicant’s financial stability. 

Applicants must meet and have 

maintained standards of financial 

stability for participation in Federal 

grant programs. 

* * * * * 

§ 38.740 [Amended] 

■ 7. Amend § 38.740 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘NOFA’’ each place it 

appears and adding in each place 

‘‘NOFO’’; and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.205’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

§ 38.745 [Amended] 

■ 8. Amend § 38.745 in the authority 

citation by removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ 

and adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 

200.211’’. 

§ 38.750 [Amended] 

■ 9. Amend § 38.750 in the authority 

citation by removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ 

and adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 

200.204’’. 

§ 38.755 [Amended] 

■ 10. Amend § 38.755 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘grantee’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘recipient’’ in the first sentence 

of the introductory text; and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.211’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

■ 11. Amend § 38.760 by: 

■ a. Revising paragraph (a); 

■ b. Removing ‘‘NOFA’’ and adding in 

its place ‘‘NOFO’’ in paragraph (b); and 

■ c. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.305’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

The revision reads as follows: 

§ 38.760 Payments under the grant. 

(a) Manner of payment. Recipients are 

to be paid in accordance with 2 CFR 

200.305. 

* * * * * 

■ 12. Amend § 38.765 by: 

■ a. Revising the section heading and 

paragraph (a); and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.344’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 38.765 Recipient reporting requirements. 

(a) Final report. The recipient must 

submit to VA, no later than 120 calendar 

days after the end date of the period of 

performance, all financial, performance, 

and other reports as required by the 

terms and conditions of the Federal 

award. 

* * * * * 

■ 13. Amend § 38.770 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘grantee’’ each place it 

appears and adding in each place 

‘‘recipient’’; and 

■ b. Revising the authority citation at 

the end of the section. 

The revision reads as follows: 

§ 38.770 Recovery of funds by VA. 

* * * * * 

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(d), 2400 note, 2 

CFR 200.339 and 200.410) 

§ 38.775 [Amended] 

■ 14. Amend § 38.775 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘grantee’’ each place it 

appears and adding in each place 

‘‘recipient’’; and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.203’’ and 

adding in its place ‘‘2 CFR 200.329’’ in 

the authority citation at the end of the 

section. 

§ 38.780 [Amended] 

■ 15. Amend § 38.780 by: 

■ a. Removing ‘‘grantees’’ and 

‘‘Grantees’’ and adding in their places 

‘‘recipients’’ and ‘‘Recipients’’, 

respectively, in paragraph (b); and 

■ b. Removing ‘‘2 CFR 200.400– 

200.475’’ and adding in each place ‘‘2 

CFR 200.400–200.476’’. 

■ 16. Revise § 38.785 to read as follows: 

§ 38.785 Record retention and access. 

Recipients must ensure that records 

are maintained and accessible in 

accordance with 2 CFR 200.334– 

200.338. Recipients must produce such 

records at VA’s request. 

(Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501(d), 2400 note, and 

2 CFR 200.334–200.338) 

[FR Doc. 2024–31230 Filed 12–30–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 8320–01–P 

POSTAL SERVICE 

39 CFR Part 111 

Labeling List Updates 

AGENCY: Postal ServiceTM. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Postal Service is 

amending Mailing Standards of the 


khammond on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES