31418 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 125 / Wednesday, July 1, 2009 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Office of Postsecondary Education; 

Overview Information: Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program; Notice Inviting 

Applications for New Awards for Fiscal 

Year (FY) 2009 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

(CFDA) Number: 84.116E. 

Dates: 

Applications Available: July 1, 2009. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: July 31, 2009. 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program provides 

scholarships to individuals pursuing a 

course of study that will lead to a career 

in industrial health and safety 

occupations, including mine safety. 

This program is designed to increase the 

skilled workforce in these fields at both 

the fundamental skills level and the 

advanced skills level. The program has 

a service obligation component, which 

requires recipients of the scholarship to 

begin employment in a career position 

related to industrial health and safety no 

later than six months after completion 

of the degree program, and to continue 

to work in a career position related to 

industrial health and safety, including 

mine safety, for a period of one year. 

The scholarships are available to 

students in the following eligible areas 

of study related to industrial health and 

safety: Mining and mineral engineering, 

industrial engineering, occupational 

safety and health technology/technician, 

quality control technology/technician, 

industrial safety technology/technician, 

hazardous materials information 

systems technology/technician, mining 

technology/technician, and 

occupational health and industrial 

hygiene. 

Program Authority: The Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program is established by 

Title III of the Omnibus Appropriations 

Act, 2009, Public Law 111–8. 

Applicable Regulations: The 

Education Department General 

Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 

34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 80, 81, 82, 84, 

85, 86, 97, 98, and 99. 

II. Award Information 

Type of Award: Discretionary grant. 

Estimated Available Funds: 

$1,000,000. 

Estimated Average Size of Awards: 

$2,500 (associate’s degree student); 

$5,000 (bachelor’s degree student); 

$10,000 (graduate student). 

Estimated Number of Awards: 110. 

The number of scholarships awarded 

will be allocated between undergraduate 

students and graduate students in the 

same proportion as the number of 

fundable applications received from 

those groups of students, taking into 

account the size of the awards to be 

made to students in those groups. 

Note: The Department is not bound by any 

estimates in this notice. 

Project Period: Up to 24 months. 

III. Eligibility Information and Program 

Requirements 

1. Eligible Applicants: Individuals 

who at the time of application: (1) Are 

enrolled in an associate’s degree 

program, or are enrolled in a bachelor’s 

degree program or a graduate program 

and are within two years of completing 

a degree at the bachelor’s or graduate 

level; (2) are eligible to receive a Federal 

grant, loan, or work assistance pursuant 

to section 484 of the Higher Education 

Act of 1965, as amended (HEA); and (3) 

are pursuing an associate’s, bachelor’s 

or graduate degree in an eligible field of 

study under the Erma Byrd Scholarship 

Program, at an accredited institution of 

higher education in the United States. In 

addition, to receive an Erma Byrd 

Scholarship, an individual must be a 

citizen, national, or permanent resident 

of the United States. 

2. Program Requirements: 

(a) Satisfactory academic progress. 

Scholarship recipients must maintain 

satisfactory academic progress in 

accordance with 34 CFR 668.34 

throughout the period of funding and 

must submit a Student Activities Report 

to the Secretary at the end of each year 

of funding with a certification from an 

authorized representative of the 

institution that the student is 

maintaining satisfactory academic 

progress. If an Erma Byrd Scholarship 

recipient does not maintain satisfactory 

academic progress throughout the 

period of funding or does not submit a 

Student Activities Report to the 

Secretary at the end of each year of 

funding, the recipient is not eligible for 

any additional funding and must repay 

the scholarship amount as a Direct 

Unsubsidized Student Loan with all the 

associated repayment conditions, 

including interest payments and fees as 

provided under title IV, part D of the 

HEA. 

(b) Service obligation. The program 

has a service obligation component. 

Scholarship recipients must be 

employed in a career position related to 

industrial health and safety, including 

mine safety, for a period of one year 

following the completion of their degree 

program. Scholarship recipients must 

begin such employment no more than 

six months after the completion of their 

degree program. Scholarship recipients 

must submit a verification of 

employment report to the Secretary no 

more than six months immediately after 

completion of his or her degree 

program, reporting on post-graduation 

activities, including changes in their 

permanent address, e-mail, phone 

number, and employment status. 

Additionally, scholarship recipients 

must submit a final employment report 

to the Secretary at the end of the one 

year service obligation period. 

If an Erma Byrd Scholarship recipient 

does not fulfill the complete service 

obligation within eighteen months after 

completion of his or her degree 

program, the scholarship amount must 

be repaid as a Direct Unsubsidized 

Student Loan with all the associated 

repayment conditions, including 

interest payments and fees as provided 

under Title I, Part D of the HEA. 

3. Cost Sharing or Matching: This 

program does not require cost sharing or 

matching. 

4. Applicability of Rulemaking 

Requirements. Under the 

Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 

553) and section 437 of the General 

Education Provisions Act (GEPA), 20 

U.S.C. 1232(d)(1), the Department 

generally offers interested parties the 

opportunity to comment on proposed 

eligibility and other program 

requirements. Title III of the Omnibus 

Appropriations Act, 2009, Public Law 

111–8, provides, however, that the 

provisions of section 553 of the APA 

and section 437 of GEPA do not apply 

to this program. 

IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

1. Address to Request Application 

Package: You can obtain an application 

package via the Internet or from the 

Department. To obtain a copy via the 

Internet, use the following address for 

the Erma Byrd Scholarship Program 

Web site: http://www.ed.gov/programs/ 

ermabyrd/index.html 

To obtain a copy from the 

Department, write, fax, or call the 

following: Lauren Kennedy, Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program, U.S. Department 

of Education, Teacher and Student 

Development Programs Service, 1990 K 

St., NW., Room 6121, Washington, DC 

20006–8524. Telephone: (202) 502– 

7630; Fax: (202) 502–7852; or, by email: ermabyrdprogram@ed.gov. 

If you use a telecommunications 

device for the deaf (TDD), call the 

Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 

1–800–877–8339. 

Individuals with disabilities can 

obtain a copy of the application package 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 125 / Wednesday, July 1, 2009 / Notices 31419 

in an accessible format (e.g. Braille, 

large print, audiotape, or computer 

diskette) by contacting the person listed 

in this section. 

2. Content and Form of Application 

Submission: Requirements concerning 

the content of an application, together 

with the forms you must submit, are in 

the application package for this 

program. 

3. Submission Dates and Times: 

Applications Available: July 1, 2009. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: July 31, 2009. 

4. Intergovernmental Review: This 

program is not subject to Executive 

Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 

CFR part 79. 

5. Funding Restrictions: We reference 

regulations outlining funding 

restrictions in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

6. Other Submission Requirements: 

All applications must be submitted 

electronically by e-mailing the 

application in the form of a Microsoft 

Word (.DOC) document to 

ermabyrdprogram@ed.gov. 

If you are unable to submit your 

application by e-mail and wish to 

submit your application by mail, you 

must submit a request for permission to 

submit it by mail 10 days prior to the 

application deadline date to Lauren 

Kennedy at ermabyrdprogram@ed.gov. 

In your request, you must include the 

reason why you are unable to submit the 

application electronically. Please note 

that electronic applications will not be 

accepted if the application is presented 

in a format other than Microsoft Word. 

Individuals with disabilities who 

need an accommodation or auxiliary aid 

in connection with the application 

process should contact the person listed 

under For Further Information Contact 

in section VII of this notice. If the 

Department provides an accommodation 

or auxiliary aid to an individual with a 

disability in connection with the 

application process, the individual’s 

application remains subject to all other 

requirements and limitations in this 

notice. 

V. Application Review Information 

1. Selection Criteria: 

All applicants are required to 

complete and submit the Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program Applicant 

Information Form, which will be used to 

determine the applicant’s eligibility for 

the scholarship. 

2. Review and Selection Process: 

(a) Undergraduate applicants. In 

selecting undergraduate students to 

receive a scholarship, the Secretary will 

award scholarships to students in the 

order that the applications are received. 

Priority will be given first to students 

who have demonstrated financial need 

and are eligible to receive a Federal Pell 

Grant. 

Qualified undergraduate applicants 

who wish to have their Federal Pell 

Grant eligibility considered as part of 

their application must demonstrate 

financial need by submitting a Free 

Application for Federal Student Aid 

(FAFSA), which may be obtained at 

www.fafsa.ed.gov or from their 

institution’s financial aid office, and by 

submitting their Social Security Number 

using the Pell Grant Eligibility 

Certification Sheet contained in the 

Erma Byrd Scholarship Program 

Application Information Form. 

Applicants who have already submitted 

their FAFSA for the 2009–2010 award 

year do not need to resubmit the 

FAFSA. 

The Secretary will award scholarships 

to applicants who are eligible for 

Federal Pell Grants and who are 

enrolled in eligible fields of study in the 

order that the applications are received. 

If additional funds are available after 

awards are made to undergraduate 

students who are eligible for a Federal 

Pell Grant, scholarships will be awarded 

to qualified undergraduate students who 

are not eligible for a Federal Pell Grant 

in the order that their applications are 

received. 

(b) Graduate applicants. In selecting 

graduate students to receive a 

scholarship, the Secretary will award 

scholarships to qualified students in the 

order that the applications are received. 

VI. Award Administration Information 

1. Award Notices: If your application 

is successful, we notify you and your 

U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators 

and send a Grant Award Notification 

(GAN) directly to the institution you 

will be attending. The institution will 

disburse funds to scholarship recipients 

in accordance with its regular payment 

schedule. 

If your application is not evaluated or 

not selected for funding, we notify you. 

2. Administrative and National Policy 

Requirements: We identify 

administrative and national policy 

requirements in the application package 

and reference these and other 

requirements in the Applicable 

Regulations section of this notice. 

We reference the regulations outlining 

the terms and conditions of an award in 

the Applicable Regulations section of 

this notice and include these and other 

specific conditions in the GAN. The 

GAN also incorporates your approved 

application as part of your binding 

commitments under the grant. 

3. Reporting: Scholarship recipients 

must submit a Student Activities Report 

to the Secretary at the end of each year 

of funding, which includes a 

certification from an authorized 

representative of the institution that the 

student is maintaining satisfactory 

academic progress. In addition, 

scholarship recipients must submit a 

verification of employment report to the 

Secretary no more than six months 

immediately after completion of his or 

her degree program, reporting on postgraduation activities, including changes 

in their permanent address, e-mail, 

phone number, and employment status. 

Finally, scholarship recipients must 

submit a final employment report to the 

Secretary at the end of the service 

obligation period. 

At the request of the student, an 

institution of higher education in which 

a scholarship recipient is enrolled must 

provide the student with a written 

certification from an authorized 

representative of the institution that the 

student is maintaining satisfactory 

academic progress. 

4. Performance Measures: The 

effectiveness of the Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program will be measured 

by graduation completion rates, time-todegree completion rates, and the 

percentage of students fulfilling the oneyear service obligation within eighteen 

months of graduation. The Department 

will use the verification of employment 

and final employment reports to assess 

the program’s success in assisting 

scholarship recipients in completing 

their course of study and receiving their 

degree, and entering the specified fields. 

VII. Agency Contacts 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Lauren Kennedy, Erma Byrd 

Scholarship Program, U.S. Department 

of Education, Teacher and Student 

Development Programs Service, 1990 K 

St., NW., Room 6121, Washington, DC 

20006–8524. Telephone: (202) 502–7630 

or e-mail: ermabyrdprogram@ed.gov. 

If you use a TDD, call the FRS, toll 

free, at 1–800–877–8339. 

VIII. Other Information 

Accessible Format: Individuals with 

disabilities can obtain this document 

and a copy of the application package in 

an accessible format (e.g. braille, large 

print, audiotape, or computer diskette) 

on request to the program contact 

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT in section VII of 

this notice. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

You can view this document, as well as 

all other documents of this Department 

published in the Federal Register, in 

31420 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 125 / Wednesday, July 1, 2009 / Notices 

text or Adobe Portable Document 

Format (PDF), on the Internet at the 

following site: www.ed.gov/news/ 

fedregister. 

To use PDF, you must have Adobe 

Acrobat Reader, which is available free 

at this site. If you have questions about 

using PDF, call the U.S. Government 

Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1– 

888–293–6498; or in the Washington, 

DC, area at (202) 512–1530. 

Note: The official version of this document 

is the document published in the Federal 

Register. Free Internet access to the official 

edition of the Federal Register and the Code 

of Federal Regulations is available on GPO 

Access at: www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/ 

index.html. 

Delegation of Authority: The Secretary 

of Education has delegated authority to 

Daniel T. Madzelan, Director, 

Forecasting and Policy Analysis for the 

Office of Postsecondary Education, to 

perform the functions of the Assistant 

Secretary for Postsecondary Education. 

Dated: June 26, 2009. 

Daniel T. Madzelan, 

Director, Forecasting and Policy Analysis. 

[FR Doc. E9–15567 Filed 6–30–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

Finding of No Significant Impact: 

Disposition of DOE Excess Depleted 

Uranium, Natural Uranium, and LowEnriched Uranium 

AGENCY: Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Finding of No Significant 

Impact. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Energy (DOE, the Department) has 

completed an Environmental 

Assessment (EA) for the Disposition of 

DOE Excess Depleted Uranium (DU), 

Natural Uranium (NU), and LowEnriched Uranium (LEU) (DOE/EA– 

1607). Based on the analysis in the EA, 

the Department has determined that the 

proposed action, DOE dispositioning its 

excess uranium inventory using one or 

a combination of two methods—(1) 

enrichment to either NU or LEU product 

and subsequent storage or sale of the 

resultant NU or LEU product 

(Enrichment Alternative), and (2) direct 

sale to appropriately licensed entities 

(Direct Sale Alternative)—does not 

constitute a major Federal action 

significantly affecting the quality of the 

human environment within the context 

of the National Environmental Policy 

Act of 1969 (NEPA). Therefore, the 

preparation of an Environmental Impact 

Statement (EIS) is not required and the 

Department is issuing this Finding of No 

Significant Impact (FONSI). 

ADDRESSES: Single copies of the EA and 

FONSI may be obtained from: 

Mr. Ronald Hagen, NEPA Document 

Manager, NE–6, Forrestal Building, 

U.S. Department of Energy, 1000 

Independence Ave., SW., Washington, 

DC 20585–0113, Phone: (202) 586– 

1381, Facsimile: (202) 287–3701, 

Electronic mail: 

Ronald.Hagen@nuclear.energy.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Mr. Ronald Hagen, Phone: (202) 586– 

1381, Electronic mail: 

Ronald.Hagen@nuclear.energy.gov. 

For information on DOE’s NEPA 

process: 

Ms. Carol Borgstrom, Director, NEPA 

Policy and Compliance, GC–20, 

Forrestal Building, U.S. Department of 

Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Washington, DC 20585–0113, 

Phone: (202) 586–4600, Facsimile: 

(202) 586–7031. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background: DOE owns and manages an 

inventory of excess DU, NU, and LEU. 

This inventory is currently stored in 

large cylinders as depleted uranium 

hexafluoride (DUF6), natural uranium 

hexafluoride (NUF6), and low-enriched 

uranium hexafluoride (LEUF6) at the 

DOE Paducah site in western Kentucky 

(DOE Paducah) and the DOE 

Portsmouth site near Piketon in southcentral Ohio (DOE Portsmouth). This 

inventory exceeds DOE’s current and 

projected energy and defense program 

needs. The Secretary of Energy policy 

statement on the management of DOE 

excess uranium inventory issued on 

March 11, 2008, commits DOE to 

managing all of its excess uranium 

inventory in a manner that (1) is 

consistent with all applicable legal 

requirements; (2) maintains sufficient 

uranium inventory at all times to meet 

the current and reasonably foreseeable 

needs of Departmental missions; (3) 

undertakes transactions involving nonU.S. Government entities in a 

transparent and competitive manner, 

unless the Secretary determines in 

writing that overriding Departmental 

mission needs dictate otherwise; and (4) 

is consistent with and supportive of the 

maintenance of a strong domestic 

nuclear industry. 

In conformance with the requirements 

of the Council on Environmental 

Quality Regulations for Implementing 

the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 

CFR Parts 1500–1508) and the DOE 

NEPA Implementing Procedures (10 

CFR Part 1021), the Department 

prepared a draft EA which was issued 

for public review on December 24, 2008. 

Comments were received from 

potentially affected states, the Nuclear 

Regulatory Commission, and uranium 

industry organizations. The draft EA 

was revised in response to the 

comments, as appropriate. 

Alternatives and Environmental 

Impacts: The potential environmental 

impacts associated with the proposed 

disposition of excess uranium inventory 

were analyzed for the following 

alternatives: 

No Action Alternative: DOE would 

continue with existing plans to convert 

DU to a more stable chemical form at 

the two new conversion facilities and 

would not enrich or sell any of its 

excess DU inventory as proposed in this 

EA. DOE would also continue to store 

excess NU and LEU in their current 

configurations at Portsmouth and 

Paducah. 

Alternative 1—Enrichment: DOE 

would contract for enrichment of excess 

DU, NU, and LEU and subsequent 

storage or sale of the resultant NU or 

LEU product. DOE would ship by 

commercial carriers (truck, rail, barge, 

and/or ship) excess DU, NU, and LEU to 

one or more of four enrichment facilities 

(three domestic and one foreign). LEU 

product could be stored at up to three 

U.S. commercial nuclear fuel fabrication 

facilities in North Carolina, South 

Carolina, and/or Washington State, and/ 

or at DOE’s Portsmouth or Paducah 

sites. NU product could be stored at 

enrichment facilities in Kentucky, New 

Mexico, and/or Ohio, and/or at DOE’s 

Portsmouth or Paducah sites. DOE 

would contract with the enrichment 

facility to store and/or dispose of the DU 

tails or, in the case of domestic 

enrichment facilities, to ship the DU 

tails to DOE Paducah and/or DOE 

Portsmouth for storage. 

Alternative 2—Direct Sale: DOE 

would introduce excess DU, NU, and 

LEU into the commercial market 

through direct sales to appropriately 

licensed entities. The licensed 

purchasers would take delivery, 

transport and enrich the excess 

inventory, and transport and store the 

NU or LEU product in essentially the 

same manner and using essentially the 

same facilities as would DOE under the 

Enrichment Alternative. 

The potential environmental impacts 

of all aspects of enrichment operations 

and the conversion of DU tails have 

been previously analyzed in existing 

NEPA documents and have been 

summarized and incorporated by 

reference in the EA. In addition, the EA 

analyzed (1) previously unanalyzed 

impacts on health and safety from 

transportation of the excess inventory, 

LEU product, NU, and DU tails, (2)