Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 130 / Friday, July 5, 1996 / Notices 35195

For further information contact Robert

A. Dickinson, Office of Fisheries

Conservation and Management, (301)

713–2337.

Dated: June 27, 1996.

Richard W. Surdi,

Acting Director, Office of Fisheries

Conservation and Management, National

Marine Fisheries Service.

[FR Doc. 96–17158 Filed 7–3–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510–22–F

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY

COMMISSION

Sunshine Act Meeting

TIME AND DATE: 10:00 a.m., Wednesday,

July 10, 1996.

LOCATION: Room 420, East West Towers,

4430 East West Highway, Bethesda,

Maryland.

STATUS: Open to the Public.

MATTER TO BE CONSIDERED:

FY 1998 Budget Request

The Commission will consider issues

related to the Commission’s budget for fiscal

year 1998.

For a recorded message containing the

latest agenda information, call (301)

504–0709.

CONTACT PERSON FOR ADDITIONAL

INFORMATION: Sadye E. Dunn, Office of

the Secretary, 4330 East West Highway.,

Bethesda, MD 20207 (301) 504–0800.

Dated: July 1, 1996.

Sadye E. Dunn,

Secretary.

[FR Doc. 96–17287 Filed 7–2–96; 2:09 pm]

BILLING CODE 6355–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Notice of Proposed Information

Collection Requests

AGENCY: Department of Education

ACTION: Proposed collection; comment

request.

SUMMARY: The Director, Information

Resources Group, invites comments on

the proposed information collection

requests as required by the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to

submit comments on or before

September 3, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and

requests for copies of the proposed

information collection requests should

be addressed to Patrick J. Sherrill,

Department of Education, 600

Independence Avenue, S.W., Room

5624, Regional Office Building 3,

Washington, DC 20202–4651.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Patrick J. Sherrill (202) 708–8196.

Individuals who use a

telecommunications device for the deaf

(TDD) may call the Federal Information

Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339

between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time,

Monday through Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section

3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of

1995 (44 U. S. C. Chapter 35) requires

that the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) provide interested

Federal agencies and the public an early

opportunity to comment on information

collection requests. OMB may amend or

waive the requirement for public

consultation to the extent that public

participation in the approval process

would defeat the purpose of the

information collection, violate State or

Federal law, or substantially interfere

with any agency’s ability to perform its

statutory obligations. The Director of the

Information Resources Group publishes

this notice containing proposed

information collection requests prior to

submission of these requests to OMB.

Each proposed information collection,

grouped by office, contains the

following: (1) Type of review requested,

e.g., new, revision, extension, existing

or reinstatement; (2) Title; (3) Summary

of the collection; (4) Description of the

need for, and proposed use of, the

information; (5) Respondents and

frequency of collection; and (6)

Reporting and/or Recordkeeping

burden. OMB invites public comment at

the address specified above. Copies of

the requests are available from Patrick J.

Sherrill at the address specified above.

The Department of Education is

especially interested in public comment

addressing the following issues: (1) is

this collection necessary to the proper

functions of the Department, (2) will

this information be processed and used

in a timely manner, (3) is the estimate

of burden accurate, (4) how might the

Department enhance the quality, utility,

and clarity of the information to be

collected, and (5) how might the

Department minimize the burden of this

collection on the respondents, including

through the use of information

technology.

Dated: June 28, 1996.

Gloria Parker,

Director, Information Resources Group.

Office of Postsecondary Education

Type of Review: NEW.

Title: William D. Ford Federal Direct

Loan Program, Loan Discharge

Application Documents.

Frequency: On Occasion.

Affected Public: Individuals or

households.

Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping

Hour Burden:

Responses: 3,000.

Burden Hours: 1,500.

Abstract: These forms will serve as the

means of collecting the information

that the Department of Education

requires in order to determine

whether a direct loan borrower

qualifies for a loan discharge based on

school closure, false certification of

student eligibility, or unauthorized

signature.

Office of Elementary and Secondary

Education

Type of Review: NEW.

Title: Title IV Innovative Program

Strategies.

Frequency: Biennially.

Affected Public: State, local or Tribal

Gov’t, SEAs and LEAs.

Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour

Burden:

Responses: 52.

Burden Hours: 780.

Abstract: This form will be used by the

Department as a means for collecting

information on program effectiveness

to report to Congress. This report

requests information on the

participation of students and the

expenditure of funds.

[FR Doc. 96–17090 Filed 7–3–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

Office of Special Education and

Rehabilitative Services

Reauthorization of the Rehabilitation

Act of 1973, as Amended

AGENCY: Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of public meetings.

SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary

announces a series of public meetings to

solicit comments from the public

regarding needed improvements in the

Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended

(29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.), to assist in the

development of reauthorization

legislation.

DATES: Meetings will be held in

Oakland, California, on July 8, 1996, in

Washington, D.C., on July 11, 1996, in

Boston, Massachusetts, on July 23, 1996,

in Atlanta, Georgia, on September 17,

1996, in Chicago, Illinois, on September

19, 1996, and in Bellevue, Washington,

on October 29, 1996.

In addition, written comments will be

accepted and must be received on or

before October 29, 1996.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held at

the following locations:
35196 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 130 / Friday, July 5, 1996 / Notices

1. Oakland, California—Marriott City

Center, Jewett Ballroom A & B, 1001

Broadway, Oakland, California.

2. Washington, D.C.—Wilbur J. Cohen

Federal Building, 1st Floor Auditorium,

300 C Street, S.W., Washington, D.C.

3. Boston, Massachusetts—Thomas P.

O’Neill, Jr. Federal Building, 1st Floor

Auditorium, 10 Causeway Street,

Boston, Massachusetts.

4. Atlanta, Georgia—Shepherd Center,

Callaway Auditorium, Marcus Building,

2020 Peachtree Road, N.W., Atlanta,

Georgia.

5. Chicago, Illinois—O’Hare Marriott

Hotel, 8535 W. Higgens Road, Chicago,

Illinois.

6. Bellevue, Washington—Red Lion

Inn, 300 112th Street, S.E., Bellevue,

Washington.

Individuals who cannot attend the

meeting are invited to send in written

comments. Written comments should be

addressed to Fredric K. Schroeder, U. S.

Department of Education, 600

Independence Avenue, S.W., Room

3028, Mary E. Switzer Building,

Washington, D.C. 20202–2531.

Comments transmitted by facsimile

should be sent to (202) 205–9772 or

(202) 260–7527. Comments can be

transmitted in an electronic format

either through the electronic bulletin

board system (BBS) of the Rehabilitation

Services Administration (RSA) or

through internet. The internet address is

‘‘RehablReauth@ed.gov’’. The access

number for the RSA BBS is (202) 205–

5574 for low speed (2400 BPS or lower)

modems and (202) 401–6174 for high

speed (9600 BPS and higher) modems.

Comments can also be transmitted to the

RSA BBS through Fedworld via internet

using the telnet command. Telnet to:

‘‘Fedworld.gov’’. All comments

transmitted in an electronic format

should be sent to the following RSA

BBS mailbox: ‘‘RSADPPES’’. To

facilitate the analysis of comments,

electronic transmission of comments is

preferred.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Persons desiring to participate in the

meetings or seeking additional

information should contact Beverlee

Stafford, U.S. Department of Education,

600 Independence Avenue, S.W., Room

3014, Mary E. Switzer Building,

Washington, D.C. 20202–2550.

Telephone (202) 205–8831. Individuals

who use a telecommunications device

for the deaf (TDD) may call (202) 205–

5538.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Need for Reauthorization

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Act)

was reauthorized in 1992. The current

Act expires on September 30, 1997. The

need for another reauthorization in 1997

provides an opportunity to review and

revise the Act to strengthen Federal

efforts to assist individuals with

disabilities and to support the National

Education Goal that, by the year 2000,

every adult American will possess the

knowledge and skills necessary to

compete in a global economy and

exercise the rights and responsibilities

of citizenship.

Description of the Act

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as

amended, contains eight titles. Section 2

of the Act specifies that the purposes of

the Act are: (1) To empower individuals

with disabilities to maximize

employment, economic self-sufficiency,

independence, and inclusion and

integration into society through

comprehensive and coordinated stateof-the art programs of vocational

rehabilitation, independent living

centers and services, research, training,

demonstration projects, and the

guarantee of equal opportunity; and (2)

to ensure that the Federal Government

plays a leadership role in promoting the

employment of individuals with

disabilities, especially individuals with

severe disabilities, and in assisting

States and providers of services in

fulfilling the aspirations of individuals

with disabilities for meaningful and

gainful employment and independent

living.

Title I of the Act establishes The State

Vocational Rehabilitation Services

Program that supports the Federal-State

partnership in providing vocational

rehabilitation services to individuals

with disabilities with the goal of gainful

employment. The Act requires that, in

the event services cannot be provided to

all eligible individuals with disabilities

who apply, States shall give priority to

individuals with the most severe

disabilities. Each State is required to

define who is an ‘‘individual with the

most severe disabilities’’ for services in

that State. Each State vocational

rehabilitation agency that is not a

consumer-controlled independent

commission primarily concerned with

rehabilitation is also required to

establish a State Rehabilitation Advisory

Council to provide advice and guidance

to the State agency to ensure that

individuals with disabilities and other

stakeholders have input in the agency’s

policies and practices. This title also

includes the authorization for the State

Client Assistance Program and the

American Indian Vocational

Rehabilitation Services Program.

Title II of the Act establishes the

National Institute on Disability and

Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) and

authorizes research and related

activities. NIDRR administers a program

of rehabilitation research, including

research and training centers,

rehabilitation engineering research

centers, research and demonstration

projects, field-initiated research

projects, utilization and dissemination

projects, innovative research grants, and

career development grants.

Title III authorizes personnel training

programs and special demonstrations.

Training grants are authorized to assist

in increasing the numbers of and skills

of qualified personnel who provide

services to individuals with disabilities.

The training program supports preservice training at degree granting

institutions, experimental and

innovative training, continuing

education programs, in-service training

for personnel of State vocational

rehabilitation agencies, and training of

interpreters for individuals who are deaf

or deaf-blind.

The discretionary project authority

under title III funds demonstration

projects that focus on the service

delivery needs of individuals with

severe disabilities, including supported

employment and transition from schoolto-work services, projects for migratory

workers with disabilities, and

recreational programs for individuals

with disabilities.

Title IV of the Act establishes the

National Council on Disability. The

National Council on Disability is an

independent Federal agency whose

duties include providing advice to

Congress and the President on the

development of programs under the

Rehabilitation Act and reviewing and

evaluating, on a continuing basis, all

policies and programs for individuals

with disabilities conducted or assisted

by the Federal Government.

Title V contains various civil rights

provisions and establishes the Access

Board. The function of the Access Board

is to develop accessibility guidelines

and to ensure compliance with Federal

statutes requiring accessibility for

persons with disabilities. This title also

authorizes the Protection and Advocacy

of Individual Rights Program, which

supports a system in each State to

protect the human and legal rights of

individuals with disabilities who need

services that are beyond the scope of the

State Client Assistance Program and

who are not eligible for services from

other protection and advocacy

programs.

Title VI of the Act includes

authorization for funding Projects With

Industry and supported employment

programs. The primary goal of the
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 130 / Friday, July 5, 1996 / Notices 35197

discretionary Projects With Industry

grant program is to expand job

opportunities for individuals with

disabilities in the competitive labor

market. In order to develop a

partnership between business, industry,

labor, and the rehabilitation community,

each project is required to have a

Business Advisory Council to provide

advice on available jobs and training

requirements.

Title VI also includes a formula grant

program to assist States in developing

collaborative programs with public

agencies and nonprofit organizations to

provide training and other services

leading to supported employment for

individuals with the most severe

disabilities.

Title VII of the Act was amended

significantly in 1992. This title

authorizes funding for comprehensive

services for independent living,

independent living centers, and

independent living services for older

persons who are blind or visually

impaired. Each State must establish a

State Independent Living Council that

jointly prepares and submits the

required State plan for independent

living services.

A new title VIII was added to the Act

in 1992. This title authorizes a variety

of discretionary special demonstration

and training programs.

Cooperation with Other Federal

Agencies

The public meetings on the Act will

be held in cooperation with the National

Council on Disability and the Federal

agencies that are responsible for the

various civil rights provisions contained

in title V of the Act. The Assistant

Secretary encourages participants at the

public meetings and respondents to the

request for written comments to

consider the provisions of titles IV and

V of the Act in their deliberations, as

well as those research, training, and

service delivery programs contained in

the Act that are administered by the

Office of Special Education and

Rehabilitative Services.

AVAILABILITY OF COPIES OF THE

REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973, AS AMENDED:

An electronic copy of the Act can be

accessed through the RSA BBS by

calling the following access number:

(202) 205–9694. If you experience any

difficulty in accessing the BBS, please

contact either John Chapman at (202)

205–9290 or Teresa Darter at (202) 205–

8444, co-system operators (sysops), for

assistance. For those individuals unable

to access the BBS, copies of the Act are

available in regular print, large print,

and computer diskette (WordPerfect 5.1

and ASCII formats) by calling (202) 205–

8831. A limited number of copies in

braille are also available.

MEETING INFORMATION: Meetings will be

held in Oakland, California,

Washington, D.C., Boston,

Massachusetts, Atlanta, Georgia,

Chicago, Illinois, and Bellevue,

Washington. Individuals desiring to

present comments at the meetings are

encouraged to reserve a time on the

agenda. Individuals will be allowed

between five and seven minutes to

present comments. The amount of time

available will depend upon the number

of individuals who request reservations.

Commenters are encouraged to bring

two copies of their proposed comments.

Reservations will be accepted on a firstcome, first-served basis. Given the level

of response expected, individuals

should make reservations as soon as

possible. When making reservations,

individuals must indicate the need for

any special accommodations, including

sign language interpreters. While

reservations are not needed for those

individuals who wish to attend the

meetings but do not want to make

formal comments, reservations are

encouraged to facilitate the participant’s

access into the proceedings held in

Federal buildings. The meetings are

open to the public, and the meeting

rooms and proceedings will be

accessible for individuals with

disabilities.

The meeting in Oakland, California,

will be held on July 8, 1996, from 1:00

p.m. to 6:00 p.m. The location for the

meeting is the Marriott City Center

Hotel, Jewett Ballroom A & B, 1001

Broadway, Oakland, California. For

reservations for the meeting in Oakland,

California, please call Gilbert ‘‘Doc’’

Williams at (415) 437–7840.

The meeting in Washington, D.C., will

be held on July 11, 1996, from 10:00

a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The location for the

meeting is the Wilbur J. Cohen Federal

Building, 1st Floor Auditorium, 300 C

Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. Photo

identification is required to enter the

Federal building, and reservations are

encouraged to facilitate access. For

reservations for the meeting in

Washington, D.C., please call Beverlee

Stafford at (202) 205–8831.

The meeting in Boston,

Massachusetts, will be held on July 23,

1996, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at

the Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Federal

Building, 1st Floor Auditorium, 10

Causeway Street, Boston,

Massachusetts. Participants will have to

pass through a security check/metal

detector for admittance into the Federal

building. For reservations for the

meeting in Boston, Massachusetts,

please call Anthony Ruscio at (617)

223–4089.

The meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, will

be held on September 17, 1996, from

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the Shepherd

Center, Callaway Auditorium, Marcus

Building, 2020 Peachtree Road, N.W.,

Atlanta, Georgia. For reservations for the

meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, please call

Diane Hart at (404) 331–2352.

The meeting in Chicago, Illinois, will

be held on September 19, 1996, from

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the O’Hare

Marriott Hotel, 8535 W. Higgens Road,

Chicago, Illinois. For reservations for

the meeting in Chicago, Illinois, please

call Kathleen Niemi at (312) 886–8623.

The meeting in Bellevue, Washington,

will be held on October 29, 1996, from

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the Red Lion

Inn, 300 112th Street, S.E., Bellevue,

Washington. For reservations for the

meeting in Bellevue, Washington, please

call Cecelia Cramer at (206) 220–7840.

(Authority: 29 U.S.C. 701)

Dated: June 28, 1996.

Judith E. Heumann,

Assistant Secretary for Special Education and

Rehabilitative Services.

[FR Doc. 96–17087 Filed 7–3–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Morgantown Energy Technology

Center Financial Assistance Award

AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy

(DOE), Morgantown Energy Technology

Center.

ACTION: Notice of Noncompetitive

Financial Assistance Action, Award of

Cooperative Agreement.

SUMMARY: Based upon a determination

made pursuant to 10 CFR 600.6(c)(2),

the DOE, Morgantown Energy

Technology Center (METC) gives notice

of its plans to award a cooperative

agreement to The South Carolina Energy

Research & Development Center at the

Clemson University, Clemson, South

Carolina 29634–5180, in the amount of

approximately $2,400,000, of which

$400,000 will be funded by DOE in the

first budget period. The total project

period will be for an estimated three (3)

years.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: D.

Denise Riggi, I–07, U.S. Department of

Energy, Morgantown Energy Technology

Center, P.O. Box 880, Morgantown,

West Virginia 26507–0880. Telephone:

(304) 285–4241. Procurement Request

No. 21–96MC33115.000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

purpose of the agreement is to provide