21014 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 76 / Wednesday, April 19, 2000 / Notices

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Civil Rights Division; Office of Special

Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair

Employment Practices; Immigration

Related Employment Discrimination:

Public Education Grants

AGENCY: Office of Special Counsel for

Immigration Related Unfair

Employment Practices, Civil Rights

Division, U.S. Department of Justice.

ACTION: Notice of availability of funds

and solicitation for grant applications.

SUMMARY: The Office of Special Counsel

for Immigration Related Unfair

Employment Practices (OSC) announces

the availability of funds for grants to

conduct public education programs

about the rights afforded potential

victims of employment discrimination

and the responsibilities of employers

under the antidiscrimination provisions

of the Immigration and Nationality Act

(INA), 8 U.S.C. 1324b.

It is anticipated that a number of

grants will be competitively awarded to

applicants who can demonstrate a

capacity to design and successfully

implement public education campaigns

to combat immigration related

employment discrimination. Grants will

range in size from $40,000 to $100,000.

OSC will accept proposals from

applicants who have access to potential

victims of discrimination or whose

experience qualifies them to educate

workers, employers and the general

public about the antidiscrimination

provisions of the INA. OSC welcomes

proposals from diverse nonprofit

organizations such as local, regional or

national ethnic and immigrants’ rights

advocacy organizations, labor

organizations, trade associations,

industry groups, professional

organizations, or other nonprofit

entities, including state and local

government agencies, providing

information services to potential victims

of discrimination and/or employers.

APPLICATION DUE DATE: June 5, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Pattia McEvoy, Public Affairs Specialist,

Office of Special Counsel for

Immigration Related Unfair

Employment Practices, 1425 New York

Ave., NW, Suite 9000, P.O. Box 27728,

Washington, DC 20038–7728. Tel. (202)

616–5594, or (202) 616–5525 (TDD for

the hearing impaired). OSC’s e-mail

address is: osc.crt@usdoj.gov

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office

of Special Counsel for Immigration on

Related Unfair Employment Practices of

the Civil Rights Division of the

Department of Justice announces the

availability of funds to conduct costeffective public education programs

concerning the antidiscrimination

provisions of INA. Funds will be

awarded to selected applicants who

propose cost-effective ways of educating

employers, workers covered by this

statute, and/or the general public.

Background

The Immigration and Nationality Act

makes knowingly hiring unauthorized

workers unlawful, and requires

employers to verify the identity and

work authorization of all new

employees. Employers who violate this

law are subject to sanctions, including

fines and possible criminal prosecution.

The INA also prohibits employers of

four or more employees from

discriminating on the basis of

citizenship status or national origin in

hiring, firing, recruitment or referral for

a fee, and prohibits employers from

engaging in document abuse in the

employment eligibility verification

process.

U.S. citizens and certain classes of

work authorized individuals are

protected from citizenship status

discrimination. Protected non-citizens

include:

• Temporary Residents;

• Legal Permanent Residents;

• Refugees;

• Asylees.

Citizens and all work authorized

individuals are protected from

discrimination on the basis of national

origin. However, this prohibition

applies only to employers with four to

fourteen employees. National origin

discrimination complaints against

employers with fifteen or more

employees remain under the

jurisdiction of the Equal Employment

Opportunity Commission pursuant to

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,

42 U.S.C. 2000e, et seq.

In addition, under the document

abuse provision of the law, employers

must accept all forms of work

authorization and proof of identity

allowed by the Immigration and

Naturalization Service (INS) for

completion of the Employment

Eligibility Verification (I–9) Form.

Employers may not prefer or require one

form of documentation over another for

hiring purposes. Requiring more or

specific documents to prove identity

and work authorization may constitute

document abuse.

OSC is responsible for receiving and

investigating discrimination charges

and, when appropriate, filing

complaints with specially designated

administrative law judges. OSC also

initiates independent investigations of

possible immigration related job

discrimination.

While OSC has established a record of

vigorous enforcement, studies by the

U.S. General Accounting Office and

other sources have shown that there is

an extensive lack of knowledge on the

part of protected individuals and

employers about the antidiscrimination

provisions of the INA. Enforcement

cannot be effective if potential victims

of discrimination are not aware of their

rights. Moreover, discrimination can

never be eradicated so long as

employers are not aware of their

responsibilities.

Purpose

OSC seeks to educate both workers

and employers about their rights and

responsibilities under the

antidiscrimination provisions of INA.

Because previous grantees have

developed a wealth of materials (e.g.,

brochures, posters, booklets,

information packets and videos) to

educate these groups, OSC has

determined that the main focus of the

program should be on the actual

delivery of these materials to educate

further both potential victims and

employers. OSC seeks proposals that

will use existing materials effectively to

educate large numbers of workers or

employers about exercising their rights

or fulfilling their obligations under the

antidiscrimination provisions. OSC will,

of course, consider any proposal that

articulates and substantiates other

creative means of reaching these

populations.

Program Description

The program is designed to develop

and implement cost-effective

approaches to educate potential victims

of employment discrimination about

their rights and to educate employers

about their responsibilities under INA’s

antidiscrimination provisions.

Applications may propose to educate

potential victims only, employers only,

or both in a single campaign. Program

budgets must include the travel, lodging

and other expenses necessary for up to

two program staff members to attend the

mandatory OSC grantee training (2 days)

held in Washington, DC at the beginning

of the grant period (late Autumn).

Proposals should outline the following

key elements of the program:

Part I: Intended Audience

The educational efforts under the

grant should be directed to (1) workauthorized non-citizens who are

protected individuals, since this group

is especially vulnerable to employment

discrimination; (2) those citizens who

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 76 / Wednesday, April 19, 2000 / Notices 21015

are most likely to become victims of

employment discrimination; and/or (3)

employers, especially small businesses.

The proposals should define the

characteristics of the work authorized

population or the employer group(s)

intended to be the focus of the

educational campaign, and the

applicant’s qualifications to reach

credibly and effectively large segments

of the intended audiences(s).

The proposals should also detail the

reasons for focusing on each group of

protected individuals or employers by

describing particular needs or other

factors to support the selection. In

defining the campaign focuses and

supporting the reasons for the selection,

applicants may use census data, studies,

surveys, or any other sources of

information of generally accepted

reliability.

Part II: Campaign Strategy

We encourage applicants to devise

effective and creative means of public

education and information

dissemination that are specifically

designed to reach the widest possible

intended audience. Those applicants

proposing educational campaigns

addressing potential victims of

discrimination should keep in mind that

some of the traditional methods of

public communication may be less than

optimal for educating members of

national or linguistic groups that have

limited community-based support and

communication networks.

Some grantees who are conducting

citizenship campaigns have, in the past,

combined those efforts and resources

with the INA antidiscrimination

education campaigns in order to

maximize the scope and breadth of the

project and to reach a larger number of

individuals. Applicants proposing to

combine these efforts, should discuss

how the programs will interact and how

the budgets will be administered.

Proposals should discuss the

components of the campaign strategy,

detail the reasons supporting the choice

of each component, and explain how

each component will effectively

contribute to the overall objective of

cost-effective dissemination of useful

and accurate information to a wide

audience of protected individuals or

employers. Discussions of the campaign

strategies and supporting rationale

should be clear, concise, and based on

sound evidence and reasoning.

Since there presently exists a wealth

of materials for use in educating the

public, applicants should include in

their budget proposals the costs for

distribution of materials received from

OSC or from current/past OSC grantees.

To the extent that applicants believe the

development of original materials

particularly suited to their campaign is

necessary, their proposal should articulate in

detail the circumstances requiring the

development of such materials. All such

materials must be approved by OSC prior to

production to ensure legal accuracy and

proper emphasis. Proposed revisions/

translations of OSC-approved materials must

also be submitted for clearance. All

information distributed should also identify

OSC as a source of assistance, information

and action, and include the correct address

and telephone numbers of OSC, (including

the toll-free numbers, TDD numbers) and

OSC e-mail and Internet addresses.

Part III: Evaluation of the Strategy

One of the central goals of this

program is determining what public

education strategies are most effective

and thus, should be included in future

pubic education efforts. Therefore, it is

crucial that the methods of evaluating

the campaign strategy and public

education materials and their results be

carefully detailed. A full evaluation of a

project’s effectiveness is due within 60

days of the conclusions of a campaign.

Interim evaluation/activity reports are

due at least quarterly, or more

frequently as needed throughout the

grant year.

Selection Criteria

The final selection of grantees for

award will be made by the Special

Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair

Employment Practices.

A panel made up of OSC staff will

review and rate the applications and

make recommendations to the Special

Counsel regarding funding. The panel’s

results are advisory in nature and not

binding on the Special Counsel. Letters

of support, endorsement, or

recommendation are not part of the

grant application process and will not

be considered.

In determining which applications to

fund, OSC will consider the following

(based on a one-hundred point scale):

1. Program Design (50 Points)

Sound program design and costeffective strategies for educating the

intended population are imperative.

Consequently, areas that will be closely

examined include the following:

a. Evidence of in-depth knowledge of

the goals and objectives of the project.

(15 points)

b. Selection and definition of the

intended audience(s) for the campaign,

and the factors that support the

selection, including special needs, and

the applicant’s qualifications to reach

effectively the intended audience(s). (10

points)

c. A cost-effective campaign strategy

for educating employers and/or

members of the protected class, with a

justification for the choice of strategy,

including the degree to which the

campaign has prevented immigration

related unfair employment practices and

has reached individuals with such

claims. (15 points)

d. The evaluation methods proposed

by the applicant to measure the

effectiveness of the campaign and their

precision in indicating to what degree

the campaign is successful. (10 points)

2. Administrative Capability (20 Points)

Proposals will be rated in terms of the

capability of the applicant to define the

intended audience, reach it and

implement the public education and

evaluation components of the campaign:

a. Evidence of proven ability to

provide high quality results. (10 points)

b. Evidence that the applicant can

implement the campaign, and complete

the evaluation component within the

time lines provided.

Note: OSC’s experience during previous

grant cycles has shown that a number of

applicants choose to apply as a consortium

of individual entities; or, if applying

individually, propose the use of

subcontractors to undertake certain limited

functions. It is essential that these applicants

demonstrate the proven management

capability and experience to ensure that, as

lead agency, they will be directly accountable

for the successful implementation,

completion, and evaluation of the project. (10

points)

3. Staff Capability (10 Points)

Applications will be evaluated in

terms of the degree to which:

a. The duties outlined for grantfunded positions appear appropriate to

the work that will be conducted under

the award. (5 points)

b. The qualifications of the grantfunded positions appear to match the

requirements of these positions. (5

points)

Note: If the grant project manager or other

member of the professional staff is to be hired

later as part of the grant, or should there be

any change in professional staff during the

grant period, hiring is subject to review and

approval by OSC at that time.

4. Previous Experience (20 Points)

The proposals will be evaluated on

the degree to which the applicant

demonstrates that it has successfully

carried out programs or work of a

similar nature in the past.

Eligible Applicants

This grant competition is open to

nonprofit organizations, including labor

organizations and state and local

government agencies.

21016 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 76 / Wednesday, April 19, 2000 / Notices

Grant Period and Award Amount

It is anticipated that several grants

will be awarded and will range in size

from $40,000 to $100,000.

Publication of this announcement

does not require OSC to award any

specific number of grants, or to obligate

all or any part of available funds. The

period of performance will be twelve

months from the date of the grant

award, in most cases beginning October

1, 2000.

Application Deadline

All applications must be received by

6:00 PM EDT, on lll. If using regular

first-class mail, send to: Office of

Special Counsel for Immigration Related

Unfair Employment Practices, U.S.

Department of Justice, P.O. Box 27728,

Washington, D.C. 20038–7728. If using

overnight or priority mail, send to:

Office of Special Counsel for

Immigration Related Unfair

Employment Practices, U.S. Department

of Justice, 1425 New York Ave., N.W.,

suite 9000, Washington, D.C. 20005.

Applications may not be submitted via

facsimile machine.

Application Requirements

Applicants should submit an original

and two (2) copies of their completed

proposal by the deadline established

above. All submissions must contain the

following items in the order listed

below:

1. A completed and signed

Application for Federal Assistance

(Standard Form 424). Note: the

Catalogue of Federal Domestic

Assistance number is 16.110 and the

title is, Education & Enforcement of the

Antidiscrimination Provision of the

Immigration and Nationality Act (box

#10 of the SF 424).

2. OJP Form 4061/6 (Certification

Regarding Lobbying; Debarment,

Suspension and Other Responsibility

Matters; and Drug-Free Workplace

Requirements).

3. OJP Form 4000/3 (Assurances).

4. An abstract of the full proposal, not

to exceed one page.

5. A program narrative of not more

than fifteen (15) double-spaced typed

pages that includes the following:

a. A clear statement describing the

approach and strategy to be used to

complete the tasks identified in the

program description;

b. A clear statement of the proposed

goals and objectives, including a listing

of the major events, activities, products

and timetables for completion;

c. the proposed staffing plan (Note: If

the grant project manager or other

professional staff member is to be hired

later as part of the grant, or should there

be a change in professional staff during

the grant period, hiring is subject to

review and approval by OSC at that

time); and

d. Description of how the project will

be evaluated.

6. A proposed budget outlining all

direct and indirect costs for personnel,

fringe benefits, travel, equipment,

supplies, subcontracts, and a short

narrative justification of each budgeted

line item cost. If an indirect cost rate is

used in the budget, then a copy of a

current fully executed agreement

between the applicant and the cognizant

Federal agency must accompany the

budget. Note: Program budgets must

include the travel, lodging and other

expenses necessary for not more than

two program staff members to attend the

mandatory OSC grantee training (2 days)

held in Washington, D.C. at the

beginning of the grant period (late

Autumn).

7. Copies of resumes of the

professional staff proposed in the

budget.

In order to facilitate handling, please

do not use covers, binders or tabs.

Application forms may be obtaining

by writing or telephoning: Office of

Special Counsel for Immigration Related

Unfair Employment Practices, P.O. Box

27728, Washington, D.C. 20038–7728.

Tel. (202) 616–5594, or (202) 616–5525

(TDD for the hearing impaired). This

announcement will also appear on the

World Wide Web at www.usdoj.gov/

cert/osc/.

Approved: April 13, 2000.

Robin M. Stutman,

Acting Special Counsel, Office of Special

Counsel for Immigration, Related Unfair

Employment Practices.

[FR Doc. 00–9735 Filed 4–18–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4410–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Notice of Lodging of Consent Decree

Under The Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act

Notice is hereby given that on March

14, 2000, a complaint and a proposed

consent decree in United States and the

State of Colorado v. Beazer East, Inc.

and Butala Construction Company,

Civil Action No. 00–561, were lodged

with the United States District Court for

the District of Colorado.

In this action, the United States seeks

recovery of approximately $631,000 in

unreimbursed response costs incurred

in relation to Operable Unit #2 of the

Smeltertown Superfund Site, located

near Salida, Colorado, under Section

107(a) of the Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act. The

State of Colorado seeks recovery of

response costs to be incurred at the Site.

Under the proposed decree, the

defendants will implement a remedial

action selected by the United States

Environmental Protection Agency,

which is designed to prevent the further

migration of hazardous substances at

Operable Unit #2, and will reimburse all

of EPA’s past costs, as well as all of

EPA’s and the State of Colorado’s future

response costs incurred at Operable

Unit #2.

The Department of Justice will receive

for a period of thirty (30) days from the

date of this publication comments

relating to the proposed consent decree.

Comments should be addressed to the

Assistant Attorney General of the

Environment and Natural Resources

Division, Department of Justice,

Washington, DC 20530, and should refer

to United States and State of Colorado

v. Beazer East, Inc. and Butala

Construction Company, D.J. Ref. 90–11–

3–1522.

The propose consent decrees may be

examined at the Office of the United

States Attorney, 1961 Stout Street, 11th

Floor, Drawer 3608, Denver, CO 80294;

at U.S. EPA Region VIII, 999 18th Street,

Denver, Colorado 80202; and at the

Consent Decree Library, P.O. U.S.

Department of Justice, P.O. Box 7611,

Washington, DC 20044–7611. In

requesting a copy, please enclose a

check in the amount of $20.00 (25 cents

per page reproduction cost) payable to

the Consent Decree Library.

Joel M. Gross,

Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section,

Environment and Natural Resources Division.

[FR Doc. 00–9743 Filed 4–18–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4410–15–M

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Notice of Lodging of Consent Decree

Under the Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act

Notice is hereby given that on April

7, 2000, a proposed Consent Decree in

United States v. Fleetwood Industries,

Inc., et al. Civil Action No. 00–CV–

1818, was lodged with the United States

District Court for the Eastern District of

Pennsylvania.

In this action the United States sought

the reimbursement of response costs in

connection with the Berks Landfill

Superfund Site in Spring Township,

Pennsylvania (‘‘the Site’’) pursuant to