[Federal Register: February 29, 1996 (Volume 61, Number 41)]
[Notices]
[Page 7779-7780]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Submission of Data by State Educational Agencies
AGENCY: Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of dates for submission of State revenue and expenditure
reports for fiscal year 1995 and of revisions to those reports.
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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Education announces a date for the submission
by State educational agencies (SEAs) of preliminary expenditure and
revenue data and average daily attendance statistics for fiscal year
(FY) 1995 and establishes a deadline for any revisions to that
information. The Secretary sets these dates to ensure that data are
available to serve as the basis for timely distribution of Federal
funds. The U.S. Bureau of the Census is the data collection agent for
the Department's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The
data will be published by NCES and will be used by the Secretary in the
calculation of allocations for FY 1997 appropriated funds.
DATE: The suggested date for submission of preliminary data is March
15, 1996.
[[Page 7780]]
The mandatory deadline for submission of final data, including
revisions to preliminary data, is September 3, 1996.
ADDRESSES: SEAs are urged to mail or hand deliver ED Form 2447 (The
National Public Education Financial Survey--Fiscal Year 1995) by the
first date specified in this notice. SEAs must mail or hand deliver
final data and any revisions to preliminary data on or before the
mandatory deadline date to--Bureau of the Census, Attn: Governments
Division, Washington, DC 20233-0001.
An SEA may hand deliver any revisions to--Bureau of the Census,
Governments Division, Room 508, 8905 Presidential Parkway, Washington
Plaza II, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, 20772, by 4 p.m. (Washington, DC
time) on or before the mandatory deadline date.
If an SEA's submission is received by the Bureau of the Census
after the mandatory deadline date, in order for the submission to be
accepted, the SEA must show one of the following as proof that the
submission was mailed on or before the mandatory deadline date:
(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark.
(2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the
U.S. Postal Service.
(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial
carrier.
(4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary.
If the SEA mails ED Form 2447 through the U.S. Postal Service, the
Secretary does not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
(1) A private metered postmark.
(2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated
postmark. Before relying on this method, an SEA should check with
its local post office.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Lawrence R. MacDonald, Chief,
Governments Division, at the Maryland address specified above or by
telephone: (301) 457-1563. 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: Under the authority of section 404(a) of the
National Education Statistics Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 9003(a)), which
authorizes NCES to gather data on the financing of education, NCES
collects data annually from SEAs through ED Form 2447. The report from
SEAs includes attendance, revenue, and expenditure data from which NCES
determines the average State per pupil expenditure (SPPE) for
elementary and secondary education.
In addition to using SPPE data as useful information on the
financing of elementary and secondary education, the Secretary uses
these data directly in calculating allocations for certain formula
grant programs, including Title I of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965, as amended by the Improving America's Schools
Act of 1994 (Title I), Impact Aid, and Indian Education. Other programs
such as The Education for Homeless Children and Youth Program under
Title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, the
Dwight D. Eisenhower Professional Development Program, and the Safe and
Drug-Free Schools and Communities Program make use of SPPE data
indirectly because their formulas are based, in whole or in part, on
State Title I allocations.
In February 1996, the Bureau of the Census, acting as the data
collection agent for NCES, will mail to SEAs ED Form 2447 with
instructions and will request that SEAs submit initial data to the
Bureau of the Census by March 15, 1996. If an SEA does not submit
initial FY 1995 data on ED Form 2447 on or about March 15, 1996, it
should inform Census, in writing, of the delay and the date by which it
will submit FY 1995 data. Submissions by SEAs to the Bureau of the
Census are checked for accuracy and returned to each SEA for
verification. NCES recognizes that data submitted prior to September 3,
1996, may be preliminary. In any case, all data, including any
revisions to preliminary submissions, must be submitted to the Bureau
of the Census by an SEA not later than September 3, 1996.
To ensure timely distribution of Federal education funds based on
the best, most accurate data available, NCES establishes, for
allocation purposes, September 3, 1996 as the final date by which ED
Form 2447 must be submitted. However, if an SEA submits revised data
after the final deadline that results in a lower SPPE figure, its
allocations may be adjusted downward or the Department may request the
SEA to return funds. SEAs should be aware that all of these data are
subject to audit and that, if any inaccuracies are discovered in the
audit process, the Department may seek recovery of overpayments for the
applicable programs.
Authority: 20 U.S.C. 9003(a).
Dated: February 23, 1996.
Sharon P. Robinson,
Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement.
[FR Doc. 96-4609 Filed 2-28-96; 8:45 am]
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