[Federal Register: August 29, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 169)]
[Notices]
[Page 50928-50929]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr29au08-26]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service
Solicitation of Input From Stakeholders Regarding Implementation
of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP)
AGENCY: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service,
USDA.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for stakeholder input.
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SUMMARY: The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension
Service (CSREES) is soliciting stakeholder input on the implementation
of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP), which is
authorized under section 1415A of the National Agricultural Research,
Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3151a). The
purpose of this program is for the U.S. Department of Agriculture
(USDA) to enter into agreements with veterinarians under which the
veterinarians agree to provide, for a specific period of time as
identified in the agreement, veterinary services in veterinarian
shortage situations. As part of the stakeholder input process, CSREES
is conducting a public meeting to solicit comments regarding the
implementing regulations to be developed for this program.
DATES: The meeting will be held on Monday, September 15, 2008, from 9
a.m. to 3:30 p.m. All comments must be received by close of business
Tuesday, September 30, 2008, to be considered.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held in room 1410B-C-D of the Waterfront
Centre Building, Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension
Service, United States Department of Agriculture, 800 9th St., SW.,
Washington, DC 20024. Meeting participants will need to provide photo
identification to be admitted to the building. Please allow sufficient
time to go through security. You may submit comments, identified by
CSREES-2008-0001, by any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: vmlrp@csrees.usda.gov. Include CSREES-2008-0001 in the
subject line of the message.
Fax: 202-401-6156.
Mail: Paper, disk or CD-ROM submissions should be submitted to
VMLRP, Plant and Animal Systems (PAS) Unit, Cooperative State Research,
Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; STOP
2220, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-2220.
Hand Delivery/Courier: VMLRP; Plant and Animal Systems (PAS) Unit,
Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, Room 3153, Waterfront Centre, 800 9th
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20024.
Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name
and CSREES-2008-0001. All comments received will be posted to http://
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Lisa Stephens, (202) 401-6438, or
lstephens@csrees.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Additional Meeting and Comment Procedures
Because of the diversity of subjects, and to aid participants in
scheduling their attendance, the following schedule is anticipated for
the September 15, 2008, meeting:
9-9:30 a.m.--Introduction to VMLRP.
9:30-12 p.m.--Identification and prioritization of veterinarian
shortage situations (e.g., geographically and by expertise).
1-3:30 p.m.--Administration of the VMLRP including eligible
applicant criteria; number, size, and length of VMLRP agreements;
solicitation for VMLRP applications; application prioritization and
review; execution of VMLRP agreements, including service to the Federal
government in emergency situations; agreement terms and conditions;
reimbursement for tax liability; and monitoring and oversight of VMLRP
agreements.
Persons wishing to present oral comments at this meeting are
requested to pre-register by contacting Ms. Lisa Stephens at (202) 401-
6438, by fax at (202) 401-6156 or by e-mail to
lstephens@csrees.usda.gov. Participants may reserve one 5-minute
comment period per topic area, and should indicate the topic area(s)
for which they are registering (i.e., identification of veterinarian
shortage situations and/or administration of the VMLRP). For any
participant who may require only one 5-minute period to fully present
testimony regarding both topic areas, the participant should indicate
this intention and may reserve their 5-minute comment period under one
of the two topic areas. More time may be available, depending on the
number of people wishing to make a presentation and the time needed for
questions following presentations. Reservations will be confirmed on a
first-come, first-served basis. All other attendees may register at the
meeting. Written comments may also be submitted for the record at the
meeting. All comments must be received by close of business Tuesday,
September 30, 2008, to be considered. All comments and the official
transcript of the meeting, when they become available, may be reviewed
on the CSREES Web page for six months. Participants who require a sign
language interpreter or other special accommodations should contact Ms.
Stephens as directed above.
Background and Purpose
In December, 2003, the National Veterinary Medical Service Act
(NVMSA) was passed into law adding section 1415a to the National
Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977
(NARETPA). This law established a new Veterinary Medicine Loan
Repayment Program (7 U.S.C. 3151a) authorizing the Secretary of
Agriculture (secretary) to carry out a program of entering into
agreements with veterinarians under which they agree to provide
veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations. In November
2005, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration,
and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 (Pub. L. 109-97),
appropriated $495,000 (after the 1 percent rescission) for CSREES to
implement the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program and
represented the first time funds had been appropriated for this
program. In February 2007, the Revised Continuing Appropriations
Resolution, 2007 (Pub. L. 110-5), appropriated an additional $495,000
to CSREES for support of the program, and in December 2007, the
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 (Pub. L. 110-161), appropriated
an additional $868,875 (after the .7 percent rescission) to CSREES for
support of this program. Consequently, there is approximately $1.8
million available for CSREES to administer this program.
As enacted on June 18, 2008, section 7105 of the Food,
Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA) amended section 1415A to
revise the determination of veterinarian shortage situations to
consider (1) geographical areas that the Secretary determines have
[[Page 50929]]
a shortage of veterinarians; and (2) areas of veterinary practice that
the Secretary determines have a shortage of veterinarians, such as food
animal medicine, public health, epidemiology, and food safety. This
section also added that priority should be given to agreements with
veterinarians for the practice of food animal medicine in veterinarian
shortage situations.
Section 1415A of the NARETPA requires the Secretary, when
determining the amount of repayment for a year of service by a
veterinarian, to consider the extent to which such determination
affects the ability of USDA to maximize the number of agreements from
the amounts appropriated and provides an incentive to serve in
veterinary service shortage areas with the greatest need. This section
also provides that loan repayments may consist of payments of the
principal and interest on government and commercial loans received by
the individual for the attendance of the individual at an accredited
college of veterinary medicine resulting in a degree of Doctor of
Veterinary Medicine or the equivalent. Loans eligible for repayment
include loans for tuition expenses; other reasonable educational
expenses, including fees, books, and laboratory expenses, incurred by
the individual; or reasonable living expenses as determined by the
Secretary. In addition, the Secretary is directed to make such
additional payments to participants as the Secretary determines
appropriate for the purpose of providing reimbursements to participants
for individual tax liability resulting from participation in this
program. Finally, this section requires USDA to promulgate regulations
within 270 days of the enactment of FCEA. The Secretary delegated the
authority to carry out this program to CSREES.
CSREES is holding a public meeting to obtain comments to use in
developing the proposed regulations for the VMLRP. The meeting is open
to the public. Written comments and suggestions on issues that may be
considered during the meeting may be submitted to the CSREES Docket
Clerk at the address above.
Implementation Plans
To meet the legislatively-mandated date to promulgate regulations
(i.e., within 270 days of enactment or March 14, 2009), CSREES plans to
promulgate two regulations: Determination of Veterinary Shortage
Situations for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program; and
Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP)--Administrative
Provisions. CSREES plans to release a Solicitation for VMLRP
Applications by May 31, 2009.
Done at Washington, DC, this 26th day of August 2008.
Colien Hefferan,
Administrator, Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension
Service.
[FR Doc. E8-20144 Filed 8-28-08; 8:45 am]
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