[Proposed Rules]
[Page 59922-59923]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr06no98-19]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
34 CFR Ch. VI
Office of Postsecondary Education, Student Assistance
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Request for advice and recommendations on regulatory issues
under Title IV of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998, ``Student
Assistance.''
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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Education (Secretary) solicits advice and
recommendations from the public prior to publishing proposed
regulations to implement student assistance programs under Title IV of
the Higher Education Act of 1965, as recently amended by the Higher
Education Amendments of 1998.
DATES: We request that you send written comments by December 15, 1998.
You may also submit comments at regional hearings to be held on
December 4-12, 1998. (See dates, times and locations of regional
hearings under the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this notice.)
ADDRESSES: Please send your comments to Brian Kerrigan, U.S. Department
of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, ROB-3, Washington D.C. 20202-
5257, or fax them to Brian Kerrigan at (202) 205-0786. You may also E-
mail your comments to:
hea98negotiated__rulemaking@ed.gov
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian Kerrigan, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW, Rob-3, Washington, DC 20202-5257.
Telephone: (202) 708-5217. If you use a telecommunications device for
the deaf (TDD) you 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.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternate format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact person listed in the preceding
paragraph.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On October 7, President Clinton signed into law Public
Law 105-244, the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 (Amendments),
amending the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA). Section 492 of the
HEA, as amended, requires that, before publishing any proposed
regulations to implement programs under Title IV, the Secretary obtain
public involvement in the development of the proposed regulations. The
Secretary must obtain advice and recommendations from individuals and
groups involved in student financial assistance, such as students,
legal assistance organizations that represent students, institutions of
higher education, guaranty agencies, lenders, secondary markets, loan
servicers, guaranty agency servicers, and collection agencies, and must
provide for a comprehensive discussion and exchange of information
concerning the implementation of Title IV of the HEA. After obtaining
advice and recommendations, the Secretary will conduct a negotiated
rulemaking process to develop proposed regulations. All published
proposed regulations must conform to any agreements resulting from the
negotiated rulemaking process unless the Secretary reopens the
negotiated rulemaking process, or provides a written explanation to the
participants in that process why the Secretary has decided to depart
from the agreements.
Participants in the negotiation process will be selected by the
Secretary from individuals nominated by the groups mentioned above, and
will include both representatives of those groups from Washington,
D.C., and industry participants. To the extent possible, the Secretary
will select individuals reflecting the diversity in the industry,
representing both large and small participants, and serving both local
areas and national markets. The Secretary intends to include in the
negotiation sessions those groups that participated in the 1992 and
1994 higher education negotiation sessions. Any additional groups that
did not
[[Page 59923]]
participate in the 1992 and 1994 negotiation sessions that would like
to participate in these negotiation sessions should inform the
Department of their interest in participating, either by submitting a
written comment, or by attending one of the regional hearings.
The negotiation process must be conducted in a timely manner so
that the Secretary can issue the final regulations within 360 days of
the date of enactment of the Amendments. Additionally, the Secretary
must publish any final regulations under Title IV by November 1, 1999,
as any final regulations not published by that date would not take
effect until July 1, 2001, at the earliest. As a result of these time
constraints, the Secretary anticipates a highly expedited process in
the development of any proposed regulations.
The Secretary therefore invites advice and recommendations from
interested parties concerning what regulations may be necessary to
implement Title IV of the HEA. The Secretary also invites advice and
recommendations concerning which regulated issues should be subjected
to a negotiated rulemaking process. The Secretary further requests
advice and recommendations concerning ways to prioritize the numerous
issues in Title IV, in order to meet the statutory deadlines mentioned
above. Additionally, the Secretary would like advice and
recommendations concerning how the negotiated rulemaking process should
be conducted, given the time available and the number of regulations
that may need to be developed.
Under its principles for regulating, the Department of Education
(Department) will regulate only when it improves the quality and
equality of services to its customers--learners of all ages. The
Department will regulate only when absolutely necessary, and then in
the most flexible, most equitable, and least burdensome way possible.
The Department will regulate if a demonstrated problem exists and
cannot be resolved without regulation or if necessary to provide
legally binding interpretation to resolve an ambiguity. The Department
will not regulate if entities or situations to be regulated are so
diverse that a uniform approach does more harm than good.
Regional Hearings
Participants are welcome to address issues relating to the
implementation of Title IV of the HEA, either by attending the regional
hearings or submitting written comments. Comments will be used to help
develop any proposed regulations, and will not result in any statutory
changes. Individuals desiring to present comments at the hearings are
encouraged to do so. It is likely that each participant choosing to
make a statement will be limited to five minutes. Individuals
interested in making oral statements will be able to sign up to make a
statement beginning at 8:30 a.m. on the day of the hearing at the
Department's regional hearing on-site registration table on a first-
come, first-served basis. If additional time slots remain, individuals
may be given additional time to speak. If no time slots remain, the
Department has reserved one additional hour at the end of the first
day, and one-half hour at the end of the second day for people who were
not able to register to speak. The amount of time available will depend
upon the number of individuals who request reservations. Speakers may
also submit written comments. The dates, times, and locations of the
regional hearings are listed below.
In addition, for anyone unable to attend any of the regional
hearings, the Department will also accept, and strongly encourages,
written comments. You should send your comments to Brian Kerrigan at
the above address by December 15, 1998. If possible, please try to
provide a copy of any written comments on a disk.
The Department has reserved a limited number of rooms at each of
the following hotels at a special government per diem room rate. To
reserve these rates, be certain to inform the hotel that you are
attending the regional hearings with the Department of Education.
The hearing sites are accessible to individuals with disabilities.
The Department will provide a sign language interpreter at each of the
scheduled hearings. An individual with a disability who will need an
auxiliary aid or service other than an interpreter to participate in
the meeting (e.g., assistive listening device, or materials in an
alternate format) should notify the contact person listed in this
notice at least two weeks before the scheduled meeting date. Although
the Department will attempt to meet a request received after that date,
the requested auxiliary aid or service may not be available because of
insufficient time to arrange it.
Dates, Times, and Locations of Regional Hearings
1. December 4, 1998, 9:00-5:00 p.m., December 5, 1998, 9:00 a.m.-
12:00 p.m., Holiday Inn on the Hill, 415 New Jersey Ave., N.W.,
Washington, D.C.; 1-202-638-1616, and ask for reservations. Sleeping
Room rate: $126.00 (inclusive of all taxes). Reservations must be made
by November 13.
2. December 8, 1998, 9:00-5:00 p.m., December 9, 1998, 9:00 a.m.-
12:00 p.m., The Regal Knickerbocker, Walton Place at North Michigan
Avenue, Chicago, Illinois; 1-312-751-8100, and ask for reservations.
Sleeping room rate: $120.00 (inclusive of all taxes). Reservations must
be made by November 16.
3. December 11, 1998, 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., December 12, 1998, 9:00
a.m.-12:00 p.m., Hyatt Regency Los Angeles, 711 South Hope Street, Los
Angeles, California; 1-213-683-1234, and ask for reservations. Sleeping
room rate: $124.26 (inclusive of all taxes). Reservations must be made
by November 27.
Electronic Access to This Document
Anyone may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in Text or
portable document format (pdf) on the World Wide Web at either of the
following sites:
http://ocfo.ed.gov/fedreg/htm
http://www.ed.gov/news.html
To use the pdf you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader Program with
Search, which is available free at either of the previous sites. If you
have questions about using the pdf, call the U.S. Government Printing
Office toll free at 1-888-293-6498.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1090a.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number does not apply.)
Dated: November 4, 1998.
Richard W. Riley,
Secretary of Education.
[FR Doc. 98-30004 Filed 11-5-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P