FR Doc 05-8012 [Federal Register: April 20, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 75)] [Notices] [Page 20535-20538] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr20ap05-51] Download: ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, Overview Information, The Challenge Newsletter Grant Competition; Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2005 Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.184P. Dates: Applications Available: April 20, 2005. Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 20, 2005. Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 19, 2005. Eligible Applicants: Public and private entities and individuals. Estimated Available Funds: $300,000. Estimated Size of Award: $300,000. Number of Awards: 1. Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this notice. Project Period: Up to 60 months. Full Text of Announcement I. Funding Opportunity Description Purpose of Program: The Challenge Newsletter grant competition funds one cooperative agreement for the development and dissemination of The Challenge newsletter to provide information about effective strategies to prevent drug use and violent behavior among youth. Priority: We are establishing this priority for this competition only, in accordance with section 437(d)(1) of the General Education Provisions Act (GEPA) (20 U.S.C. 1232(d)(1)). Absolute Priority: For FY 2005, this priority is an absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only applications that meet this priority. This priority is: (1) Design, write, publish, and disseminate The Challenge, a newsletter for educators, prevention specialists, and other professionals in fields related to drug abuse and violence prevention and education. The Challenge newsletter communicates information on current and future program directions, research-based activities, and other information related to effective strategies to prevent drug use and violent behavior among youth. (2) Create or maintain and expand a subscriber database for the U.S. Department of Education (ED). (3) Post each issue of The Challenge newsletter to a Web site for public access. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to comment on a proposed priority. Section 437(d)(1) of GEPA, however, allows the Secretary to exempt from rulemaking requirements regulations governing the first grant competition under a new or substantially revised program authority. This is the first The Challenge Newsletter grant competition under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and therefore qualifies for this exemption. In order to ensure timely grant awards, the Secretary has decided to forgo public comment on the priority under section 437(d)(1). This priority [[Page 20536]] will apply to this grant competition only. Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7131. Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, 99, and 299. II. Award Information Type of Award: Cooperative agreement. Estimated Available Funds: $300,000. Estimated Size of Award: $300,000. Number of Awards: 1. Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this notice. Project Period: Up to 60 months. III. Eligibility Information 1. Eligible Applicants: Public and private entities and individuals. 2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This program does not involve cost sharing or matching. IV. Application Submission Information 1. Address to Request Application Package: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll-free): 1-877-433-7827. Fax: (301) 470-1244. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free): 1-877-576-7734. You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address: edpubs@inet.ed.gov. If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify this competition as follows: CFDA Number 84.184P. You also may access the electronic version of the application at either of the following Web sites: http://www.ed.gov/programs/thechallenge/index.html or http://e-grants.ed.gov. Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the program contact person listed in section VII. Agency Contact elsewhere in this notice. 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. Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application) is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that reviewers use to evaluate your application. You should limit Part III to the equivalent of no more than 25 double-spaced typewritten pages on 8.5'' x 11'' paper, using a standard font no smaller than 12-point type with 1-inch margins on all sides. The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II, the budget section, including the narrative budget justification, Part IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, resumes, or bibliography. However, you must include all of the application narrative in Section III. 3. Submission Dates and Times: Applications Available: April 20, 2005. Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 20, 2005. Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted electronically using the Electronic Grant Application System (e- Application) accessible through the Department's e-Grants system, or in paper format by mail or hand delivery. For information (including dates and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or by mail or hand delivery, please refer to section IV. 6. Other Submission Requirements in this notice. We do not consider an application that does not comply with the deadline requirements. Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 19, 2005. 4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR Part 79. Information about Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 12372 is in the application package for this program. 5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice. 6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted electronically or in paper format by mail or hand delivery. a. Electronic Submission of Applications. If you choose to submit your application to us electronically, you must use e-Application available through the Department's e-Grants system, accessible through the e-Grants portal page at: http://e-grants.ed.gov. While completing your electronic application, you will be entering data online that will be saved into a database. You may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us. Please note the following: Your participation in e-Application is voluntary. You must complete the electronic submission of your grant application by 4:30 p.m. (Washington, DC time) on the application deadline date. The e-Application system will not accept an application for this competition after 4:30 p.m. (Washington, DC time) on the application deadline date. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to begin the application process. The regular hours of operation of the e-Grants Web site are 6 a.m. Monday until 7 p.m. Wednesday; and 6 a.m. Thursday until midnight Saturday (Washington, DC time). Please note that the system is unavailable on Sundays, and between 7 p.m. on Wednesdays and 6:00 a.m. on Thursdays (Washington, DC time), for maintenance. Any modifications to these hours are posted on the e-Grants Web site. You will not receive additional point value because you submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you if you submit your application in paper format. You must submit all documents electronically, including the Application for Federal Education Assistance (ED 424), Budget Information-Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. Any narrative sections of your application should be attached as files in a .DOC (document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF (Portable Document) format. Your electronic application must comply with any page limit requirements described in this notice. Prior to submitting your electronic application, you may wish to print a copy of it for your records. After you electronically submit your application, you will receive an automatic acknowledgement that will include a PR/Award Number (an identifying number unique to your application). Within three working days after submitting your electronic application, fax a signed copy of the ED 424 to the Application Control Center after following these steps: 1. Print ED 424 from e-Application. 2. The applicant's Authorizing Representative must sign this form. 3. Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of the hard-copy signature page of the ED 424. 4. Fax the signed ED 424 to the Application Control Center at (202) 245-6272. We may request that you provide us original signatures on other forms at a later date. [[Page 20537]] Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of e-Application System Unavailability: If you are prevented from electronically submitting your application on the application deadline date because the e- Application system is unavailable, we will grant you an extension of one business day in order to transmit your application electronically, by mail, or by hand delivery. We will grant this extension if: (1) You are a registered user of e-Application, and you have initiated an electronic application for this competition; and (2) (a) The e-Application system is unavailable for 60 minutes or more between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. (Washington, DC time), on the application deadline date; or (b) The e-Application system is unavailable for any period of time between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. (Washington, DC time) on the application deadline date. We must acknowledge and confirm these periods of unavailability before granting you an extension. To request this extension or to confirm our acknowledgement of any system unavailability, you may contact either (1) the person listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT (see VII. Agency Contact) or (2) the e- Grants help desk at 1-888-336-8930. If the system is down and therefore the application deadline is extended, an e-mail message will be sent to all registered users who have initiated an e-Application. Extensions referred to in this section apply only to the unavailability of the Department's e-Application system. If the e- Application system is available, and, for any reason, you are unable to submit your application electronically or you do not receive an automatic acknowledgement of your submission, you may submit your application in paper format by mail or hand delivery in accordance with the instructions in this section. b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail. If you submit your application in paper format by mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier), you must mail the original and two copies of your application, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the applicable following address: By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, Attention: CFDA Number 84.184P, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260; or By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: CFDA Number 84.184P, 7100 Old Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506. Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing consisting of one of the following: 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; or 4. Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education. If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do not accept either of the following as proof of mailing: 1. A private metered postmark, or 2. A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service. If your application is postmarked after the application deadline date, we will not consider your application. Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your local post office. c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery. If you submit your application in paper format, you (or a courier service) must deliver the original and two copies of your application by hand, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department at the following address: U.S. Department of Education, Application Control Center, Attention: CFDA Number 84.184P, 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-4260. The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. (Washington, DC time) except Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays. Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail or hand deliver your application to the Department: 1. You must indicate on the envelope and, if not provided by the Department, in Item 4 of ED Form 424, the CFDA number, and suffix letter, if any, of the competition under which you are submitting your application. 2. The Application Control Center will mail a grant application receipt acknowledgement to you. If you do not receive the grant application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288. V. Application Review Information Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this competition are from Sec. 75.210 of EDGAR and are listed in the application package. VI. Award Administration Information 1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally. 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: At the end of your project period, you must submit a final performance report, including financial information, as directed by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an annual performance report that provides the most current performance and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in 34 CFR 75.118. We also may require more frequent performance reports. 4. Performance Measure: We have identified the following key GPRA performance measure for assessing the effectiveness of this program: The Challenge Newsletter will receive an overall rating of satisfactory or better from at least 80 percent of subscribers surveyed by the grantee in any given year of the grant. VII. Agency Contacts FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Lucey, Jr., U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 3E335, Washington, DC 20202-6450. Telephone: (202) 205-5471. E-mail address: richard.lucey@ed.gov. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339. Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternative [[Page 20538]] format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on request to the contact person listed in this section. VIII. Other Information Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: http://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. You may also view this document in text or PDF at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/programs/thechallenge/applicant.html. 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: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html. Dated: April 18, 2005. Deborah A. Price, Assistant Deputy Secretary for Safe and Drug-Free Schools. [FR Doc. 05-8012 Filed 4-19-05; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4000-01-P