[Federal Register: May 30, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 105)]
[Notices]
[Page 31078-31083]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30my08-38]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research--
Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects and Centers Program--
Disability Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRPs)
AGENCY: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services,
Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of proposed priorities.
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SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and
Rehabilitative Services proposes two funding priorities for the
Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects and Centers Program
administered by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation
Research (NIDRR). Specifically, this notice proposes a priority for a
DRRP for a Research and Technical Assistance Center on Vocational
Rehabilitation Program Management, and a priority for a DRRP entitled
Center on the Effective Delivery of Rehabilitation Technology by State
Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies To Improve Employment Outcomes. The
Assistant Secretary may use these priorities for competitions in fiscal
year (FY) 2008 and later years. We take this action to focus research
attention on areas of national need. We intend these priorities to
improve rehabilitation services and employment outcomes for individuals
with disabilities.
DATES: We must receive your comments on or before June 30, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Address all comments about these proposed priorities to
Donna Nangle, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW.,
Room 6029, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-2700. If you
prefer to send your comments through the Internet, use the following
address: donna.nangle@ed.gov.
You must include the priority title in the subject line of your
electronic message.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Donna Nangle. Telephone: (202) 245-
7462 or by e-mail: donna.nangle@ed.gov.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), call the
Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the contact person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice of proposed priorities (NPP) is
in concert with President George W. Bush's New Freedom Initiative (NFI)
and NIDRR's Final Long-Range Plan for FY 2005-2009 (Plan). Information
about the NFI can be accessed on the Internet at the following site:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/newfreedom.
The Plan, which was published in the Federal Register on February
15, 2006 (71 FR 8165), can be accessed on the Internet at the following
site: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/nidrr/policy.html.
Through the implementation of the NFI and the Plan, NIDRR seeks to:
(1) Improve the quality and utility of disability and rehabilitation
research; (2) foster an exchange of expertise, information, and
training to facilitate the advancement of knowledge and understanding
of the unique needs of traditionally underserved populations; (3)
determine best strategies and programs to improve rehabilitation
outcomes for underserved populations; (4) identify research gaps; (5)
identify mechanisms of integrating research and practice; and (6)
disseminate findings.
Invitation To Comment
We invite you to submit comments regarding these proposed
priorities. To ensure that your comments have maximum effect in
developing the notice of final priorities, we urge you to identify
clearly the specific proposed priority or topic that each comment
addresses.
We invite you to assist us in complying with the specific
requirements of Executive Order 12866 and its overall requirement of
reducing regulatory burden that might result from these proposed
priorities. Please let us know of any further opportunities we should
take to reduce potential costs or increase potential benefits while
preserving the effective and efficient administration of the program.
During and after the comment period, you may inspect all public
comments about these proposed priorities in Room
[[Page 31079]]
6029, 550 12th Street, SW., Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC,
between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through
Friday of each week except Federal holidays.
Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities in Reviewing the Rulemaking
Record
On request, we will supply an appropriate aid, such as a reader or
print magnifier, to an individual with a disability who needs
assistance to review the comments or other documents in the public
rulemaking record for these proposed priorities. If you want to
schedule an appointment for this type of aid, please contact the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
We will announce the final priorities in one or more notices in the
Federal Register. We will determine the final priorities after
considering responses to this notice and other information available to
the Department. This notice does not preclude us from proposing or
using additional priorities, subject to meeting applicable rulemaking
requirements.
Note: This notice does not solicit applications. In any year in
which we choose to use these proposed priorities, we invite
applications through a notice in the Federal Register. When inviting
applications we designate the priorities as absolute, competitive
preference, or invitational. The effect of each type of priority
follows:
Absolute priority: Under an absolute priority, we consider only
applications that meet the priority (34 CFR 75.105(c)(3)).
Competitive preference priority: Under a competitive preference
priority, we give competitive preference to an application by either
(1) awarding additional points, depending on how well or the extent
to which the application meets the competitive preference priority
(34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i)); or (2) selecting an application that meets
the competitive preference priority over an application of
comparable merit that does not meet the priority (34 CFR
75.105(c)(2)(ii)).
Invitational priority: Under an invitational priority, we are
particularly interested in applications that meet the invitational
priority. However, we do not give an application that meets the
invitational priority a competitive or absolute preference over
other applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).
Priorities
In this notice, we are proposing two priorities for DRRPs.
Priority 1--Research and Technical Assistance Center on
Vocational Rehabilitation Program Management.
Priority 2--Center on the Effective Delivery of
Rehabilitation Technology by State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies
to Improve Employment Outcomes.
Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRP) Program
The purpose of the DRRP program is to improve the effectiveness of
services authorized under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended
(the Act), by developing methods, procedures, and rehabilitation
technologies that advance a wide range of independent living and
employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities, especially
individuals with the most severe disabilities. DRRPs carry out one or
more of the following types of activities, as specified and defined in
34 CFR 350.13 through 350.19: research, development, demonstration,
training, dissemination, utilization, and technical assistance.
An applicant for assistance under this program must demonstrate in
its application how it will address, in whole or in part, the needs of
individuals with disabilities from minority backgrounds (34 CFR
350.40(a)). The approaches an applicant may take to meet this
requirement are found in 34 CFR 350.40(b). In addition, NIDRR intends
to require all DRRP applicants to meet the requirements of the General
Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRP) Requirements
priority that it published in a notice of final priorities in the
Federal Register on April 28, 2006 (71 FR 25472).
Additional information on the DRRP program can be found at: http://
www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/pubs/res-program.html#DRRP.
Proposed Priority 1--Research and Technical Assistance Center on
Vocational Rehabilitation Program Management.
Background
The State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Services program,
authorized by title I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended
(the Act), provides a wide range of services designed to help
individuals with disabilities prepare for and engage in gainful
employment. The program is carried out by VR agencies designated by
each State. There are currently a total of 80 State agencies. Thirty-
two States operate a ``combined'' agency serving individuals with
disabilities, without regard to their disability. Twenty-four States
operate a separate agency for individuals who are blind or visually
impaired, and a ``general'' agency for individuals with all other
disabilities.
State VR agencies face numerous challenges in their efforts to
assist individuals with disabilities, particularly individuals with
significant disabilities, to achieve employment outcomes.\1\ These
challenges include: Determining what criteria should be used to
categorize individuals' disabilities as ``most significant'' or
``significant'' when implementing an order of selection; \2\ attracting
and retaining qualified personnel; and evaluating the effectiveness of
services provided. These challenges affect the ability of State VR
agencies to pursue the overall goal of the VR Services program, which
is to help persons with disabilities prepare for and engage in gainful
employment.
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\1\ In the regulations for the Department's State VR program, an
employment outcome is defined as entering or retaining full-time or,
if appropriate, part-time competitive employment, as defined in 34
CFR 361.5(b)(11), in the integrated labor market, supported
employment, or any other type of employment in an integrated
setting, including self-employment, telecommunicating, or business
ownership, that is consistent with an individual's strengths,
resources, priorities, concerns, abilities, capabilities, interests,
and informed choice (see 34 CFR 361.5(b)(16)).
\2\ Federal law and regulations (section 101(a)(5) of the Act
and 34 CFR 361.36) stipulate that if a State VR agency does not have
the resources to serve all eligible VR consumers, it must serve
first those who have ``the most significant disabilities.''
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Preliminary FY 2007 data from the Rehabilitation Services
Administration's (RSA) Cumulative Caseload Report (RSA-113) show that
approximately 981,054 individuals received VR services, including
346,835 individuals whose cases were closed after receiving services.
Of individuals whose cases were closed, 205,448 (59.6 percent) achieved
an employment outcome after receiving services through the State VR
program.
It is important to note that, in FY 2006, 18 percent of State VR
agencies failed to achieve the minimum required employment outcome rate
of 55.8 percent among individuals served by the program, and there is
significant variation among State VR agencies in key programmatic
outcomes such as employment and cost per employment outcome. For
example, in FY 2006, while four State VR agencies succeeded in
obtaining employment outcomes for at least 70 percent of individuals
served, approximately seven State VR agencies failed to obtain
employment outcomes for half (50 percent) of the individuals served,
and several State VR agencies failed to obtain employment outcomes for
even 40 percent of the individuals served. Likewise, in FY 2006, the
average cost per employment outcome for general and combined State VR
agencies (excluding the outlying areas) ranged from approximately
$5,215 to $34,414.
RSA monitoring reviews and reviews of annual State plans suggest
that these differences in State outcomes may be
[[Page 31080]]
attributable to differences in State VR agency management practices,
particularly practices relating to planning, analysis, and use of data
for making management decisions. Persistent State VR agency management-
related needs include, at a minimum: Developing and implementing
effective quality assurance processes; conducting high quality
strategic planning; and improving the overall quality of human resource
development and retention strategies. We believe that promoting
improvement in these critical areas would enhance State agency
capacity, increase the cost-effectiveness of service delivery
mechanisms, and ultimately improve the ability of State VR agencies to
achieve high quality employment outcomes for individuals with
disabilities.
Section 101(a)(15) of the Act requires State VR agencies to engage
in a variety of planning activities, including, but not limited to:
Conducting a comprehensive statewide needs assessment every three
years; identifying goals and priorities that the State VR agency will
pursue in carrying out the program; describing strategies to address
the needs identified in the comprehensive statewide needs assessment;
and evaluating the effectiveness of the VR program, including whether
the program goals were achieved and the extent to which specific
strategies contributed to meeting these goals.
After reviewing FY 2007 and 2008 annual VR State plans, RSA
recommended that 25 State VR agencies improve one or more of the
following: The quality of their goals and strategies; the connection
between the results of their comprehensive needs assessment and their
goals and priorities; and the extent to which they evaluated the
effectiveness of their strategies. In addition, of the 23 State VR
agencies that RSA monitored in FY 2007, RSA determined that 17 (74
percent) need technical assistance (TA) in developing strategic goals.
Recent RSA monitoring also suggests that there is a great deal of
variability in the effectiveness of State VR agency quality assurance
(QA) systems, and that most State agency's QA systems need to be
improved in several critical ways. For example, while the QA mechanisms
in many State VR agencies examine documentation of services provided,
few State QA systems use data to evaluate the quality of other aspects
of service delivery and program performance.
In addition, section 101(a)(7) of the Act, containing the
Comprehensive System of Personnel Development (CSPD), in part, requires
State VR agencies to establish qualified personnel standards for
rehabilitation personnel, including VR counselors, that are consistent
with any national or State-approved or recognized certification,
licensing, or registration that apply to a particular profession.
For years, the demand for new State VR agency counselors has far
exceeded the supply. According to a study conducted in 2002 by the
American Institutes for Research, A Profile of the Demand for and
Supply of Qualified State Rehabilitation Counselors, (Chan & Ruedel,
2007), State VR agencies reported that they expected to lose
approximately 43 percent of VR counselors through attrition or
retirement by 2007. According to this same study, 27 percent of current
State VR agency staff do not meet their State's CSPD personnel
standards and require retraining, 88 percent of those who meet their
State's personnel standards require continuing education to maintain
their credentials, and rehabilitation training programs are producing
only enough graduates to meet 30 percent of the need for new
counselors.
During RSA's FY 2007 monitoring reviews, RSA identified needs in
the following areas related to human resource management: Implementing
the State's CSPD; developing training to improve staff skills in areas
such as job placement; developing and implementing effective
recruitment and retention strategies for qualified staff, including
staff with diverse backgrounds; maintaining efficient caseload
management strategies; and evaluating the relationship between staffing
patterns and program performance.
During FY 2007 monitoring, State VR agencies overwhelmingly
requested information regarding promising practices utilized by other
State VR agencies that could be replicated in their own agencies to
improve performance in human resource management. Among other things,
they requested information on successful recruitment and retention
strategies, and caseload management strategies.
NIDRR is proposing to establish a Research and Technical Assistance
Center on Vocational Rehabilitation Program Management that will help
State VR agencies improve their management in a number of areas,
including quality assurance, strategic planning, and human resource
development and retention.
References
Chan, T., & Ruedel, K. (2007). A Profile of the Demand for and
Supply of Qualified State Rehabilitation Counselors. Washington, DC:
U.S. Department of Education.
Proposed Priority
The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services proposes a priority to establish, under the Disability and
Rehabilitation Research Program (DRRP), a Research and Technical
Assistance Center on Vocational Rehabilitation Program Management
(Center). The Center must conduct research to develop a model of
vocational rehabilitation (VR) program management, which must include a
focus on quality assurance, strategic planning, and human resource
management. The Center must then develop and test this model, and use
it as the basis for training and technical assistance (TA) to improve
management practices within individual State VR agencies.
Under this priority, the Center must be designed to contribute to
the following outcomes:
(a) New knowledge of effective VR program management. The Center
must contribute to this outcome by identifying effective VR program
management practices, including at a minimum, practices in the areas of
quality assurance, strategic planning, and human resource management.
The Center's work in this area must be designed to result in knowledge
that could be used to assist State VR agencies to--
Develop agency goals and strategies, and evaluate progress
made toward achieving these goals;
Develop key performance measures and use performance data
for program improvement;
Develop methodologies to ensure that performance data are
accurate and analyses of the data are sound;
Implement effective quality assurance processes;
Implement effective fiscal planning and accountability
mechanisms;
Implement effective employee training, staff development,
and career development; and
Implement effective leadership development and succession
planning.
(b) A new evidence-based model of effective VR program management
(VR Program Management Model). The Center must contribute to this
outcome by partnering with approximately 5-10 State VR agencies to
develop a VR Program Management Model that, to the maximum extent
possible, is informed by evidence of the effectiveness of specific
management practices. Applicants must describe in their applications
the methods and criteria they will use to recruit and select State
[[Page 31081]]
VR agencies with which they will partner (Partner State VR Agencies)
for this activity. NIDRR will review and approve the final selection of
Partner State VR Agencies. The Center must work with the Partner State
VR Agencies to identify, describe, and document the components of the
VR Program Management Model, which must include, at a minimum, quality
assurance, strategic planning, and human resource management
components.
(c) Enhanced VR program management through Implementation of the VR
Program Management Model. The Center must contribute to this outcome by
developing exemplars, tools, and guidance that other State VR agencies
(i.e., State VR agencies that are not Partner State VR Agencies) can
use to implement the VR Program Management Model within their unique
contexts. The Center must provide training and TA to individual State
VR agencies to facilitate the implementation of some or all of the
components of the VR Program Management Model, depending on the unique
needs of the agency's VR program.
In addition, the Center must--
Disseminate TA materials that it has developed on program
management topics under paragraph (c) of this priority to other
projects that provide TA to State VR agencies (e.g., the Technical
Assistance and Continuing Education (TACE) projects that RSA intends to
fund in FY 2008).
Coordinate TA with all entities that comprise the national
VR TA network, including: the 10 regionally based TACE projects that
RSA intends to fund in FY 2008 under title III of the Act; the IL-Net
Training and Technical Assistance projects for centers for independent
living and statewide independent living councils funded by RSA under
title VII of the Act; the national VR TA center that RSA intends to
fund in FY 2008 under section 12 of the Act; and NIDRR's Rehabilitation
Research and Training Centers focused on employment. Coordination is
intended to ensure consistency of TA provided nationally on VR program
management.
Each year after year one of the project period, plan to
present findings at a three-day national conference of State VR
administrators to be held in Washington, DC.
Proposed Priority 2--Center on the Effective Delivery of
Rehabilitation Technology by State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies
To Improve Employment Outcomes.
Background
On February 1, 2001, President George W. Bush announced the New
Freedom Initiative (NFI), a comprehensive strategy for the full
integration of individuals with disabilities into all aspects of
American life. Two key goals of the NFI are the integration of
individuals with disabilities into the workplace, and the use of
technology to increase access to school, work, and community life for
individuals with disabilities. While many individuals with disabilities
could benefit from greater access to technology, particularly
rehabilitation technology (RT),\3\ for individuals with certain
disabilities such access is essential to achieving and maintaining
employment.
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\3\ Under 34 CFR 361.5(b)(45) of the regulations for the State
vocational rehabilitation (VR) program and consistent with section
7(30) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, 29 U.S.C.
705(30) (Act), RT means the systematic application of technologies,
engineering methodologies, or scientific principles to meet the
needs of and address the barriers confronted by individuals with
disabilities in areas which include education, rehabilitation,
employment, transportation, independent living, and recreation. The
term includes rehabilitation engineering, assistive technology
devices, and assistive technology services.
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Despite the importance of RT, there has been limited research on
its use in the workplace or its impact on employment outcomes (as the
term is defined in 34 CFR 361.5(b)(16)) (Loprest, 2007).
Title I of the Act authorizes State VR agencies to provide RT to
individuals who qualify for VR services. Specifically, when developing
an individualized plan for employment (IPE), a VR counselor must
consider an individual's need for RT. The Rehabilitation Services
Administration (RSA) collects data about individuals served by State VR
agencies and the RT services they receive. FY 2006 VR data from the RSA
Case Service Report (RSA-911) show that 75 percent of individuals with
disabilities who received RT achieved an employment outcome, while only
57 percent of individuals with disabilities who did not receive RT
achieved an employment outcome. While these data indicate that
individuals who receive RT as part of an IPE are more likely to achieve
employment outcomes than those who do not, further study is needed to
determine under what circumstances RT affects the achievement of
employment outcomes for individuals served by employment and training
programs.
Despite indications that RT services may play an important role in
achieving employment outcomes, provision of RT services by State VR
agencies varies significantly. In FY 2006, individual State VR agency
expenditures for RT ranged from 0 percent to 14 percent of total
expenditures; the median percentage of expenditures was 3.23 percent
(Annual Vocational Rehabilitation Program/Cost Report (RSA-2)).
Variations in the provision of RT services among VR agencies may
result from a number of factors. For example, there may be significant
differences in the attitude toward, awareness of, and approach to RT
among VR agency personnel; consumers who use RT consider such attitudes
to be critical to employment outcomes. Unfortunately, most VR
personnel's knowledge of RT is not as extensive as their knowledge of
other areas of rehabilitation; therefore, ensuring that personnel have
appropriate expertise in RT is an ongoing need for which employment and
training programs must plan and budget (Institute on Rehabilitation
Issues, 1998).
Similar to the lack of research on RT use in the workplace and its
impact on employment outcomes, there is little research on the factors
that create barriers to the successful provision of RT, or on
strategies used in employment programs to overcome those barriers.
NIDRR is proposing to establish a Center on the Effective Delivery
of Rehabilitation Technology by State Vocational Rehabilitation
Agencies to Improve Employment Outcomes. This center will conduct
research on the effective delivery of RT services in employment and
training programs and disseminate information about this research to
help State VR agencies improve their provision of effective RT
services.
References
Loprest, P. (2007). Strategic Assessment of the State of the
Science in Research on Employment for Individuals with Disabilities.
Final Report to the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation
Research, U.S. Department of Education.
Proceedings from the Twenty-fourth Institute on Rehabilitation
Issues. (May, 1998). Achieving Successful Employment Outcomes With the
Use of Assistive Technology. Menominee, WI: University of Wisconsin.
Proposed Priority
The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services proposes a priority for a Disability and Rehabilitation
Research Project (DRRP) to serve as the Center on the Effective
Delivery of Rehabilitation Technology
[[Page 31082]]
by State Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies to Improve Employment
Outcomes (Center). The Center must conduct research to identify the
policies, procedures, and practices that result in the effective
delivery of rehabilitation technology (RT), as defined in 34 CFR
361.5(b)(45), by employment and training programs to assist individuals
with disabilities to achieve employment outcomes, as defined in 34 CFR
361.5(b)(16). Under this priority, the Center must be designed to
contribute to the following outcomes:
(a) New knowledge regarding models of effective RT service
delivery. The Center must contribute to this outcome by identifying
existing employment and training programs, including programs
administered by State VR agencies, that effectively deliver RT services
to assist individuals with disabilities achieve employment outcomes.
Applicants must describe in their applications the methods and criteria
they will use to identify and select the model employment and training
programs. NIDRR will review and approve the final selection of the
employment and training programs. The Center must work with the
selected programs to identify, describe, and document the policies,
procedures, and practices that result in effective RT service delivery.
(b) New knowledge of the systemic supports necessary for the
effective delivery of RT services. The Center must contribute to this
outcome by conducting research to identify the policies and practices
of employment and training programs, including but not limited to those
operated by State VR agencies, that support the effective use of RT to
help individuals with disabilities achieve and maintain employment
outcomes. The Center's work in this area must be designed to result in
knowledge that assists employment and training programs to--
Identify and assess the quality and effectiveness of their
policies and practices related to the delivery of RT services;
Change existing policies or develop new policies that are
specifically designed to improve the delivery of RT services;
Implement effective strategies to improve practices to
support the delivery of RT services; and
Develop and implement methodologies to collect data on the
impact of RT services on employment outcomes.
(c) Enhanced knowledge of effective RT service delivery among
administrators of State VR agencies and other employment and training
programs for individuals with disabilities. The Center must contribute
to this outcome by using the knowledge gained from the activities
described in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this priority to develop
exemplars, tools, and guidance that State VR agencies can use to
implement changes to existing policies or develop new policies and
practices within their unique contexts. The Center must disseminate
these materials to State VR agencies and other employment and training
programs for individuals with disabilities.
In addition, the Center must--
In consultation with its NIDRR Project Officer, coordinate
the Center's dissemination and outreach efforts with relevant training
and technical assistance centers funded by OSERS. These training and
technical assistance centers include the Research and Technical
Assistance Center on Vocational Rehabilitation Program Management that
NIDRR intends to fund in FY 2008; the 10 regionally based Technical
Assistance and Continuing Education (TACE) projects that RSA intends to
fund in FY 2008 under title III of the Act; the IL-Net Training and
Technical Assistance projects for centers for independent living and
statewide independent living councils funded by RSA under title VII of
the Act; the national VR TA center that RSA intends to fund in FY 2008
under section 12 of the Act; NIDRR's Rehabilitation Research and
Training Centers (RRTCs) focused on employment; the NIDRR network of
Knowledge Translation grantees; the Department's Office of Special
Education Programs' Technical Assistance and Dissemination Network and
Technical Assistance Communities of Practice; the Department's Office
of Vocational and Adult Education's National Research Center for Career
and Technical Education; and programs sponsored through the U.S.
Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy. The
Center must coordinate with these entities, as appropriate, to
disseminate the exemplars, tools, guidance, and knowledge developed
through activities conducted under paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this
priority to State VR agencies, employers, individuals with
disabilities, and other entities that serve or employ individuals with
disabilities;
Share the exemplars, tools, guidance, and knowledge
developed through activities conducted under paragraphs (a), (b), and
(c) of this priority with appropriate RSA and NIDRR research and
dissemination centers, including the National Center for the
Dissemination of Disability Research, the Research Utilization Support
and Help Project, and the Center for International Rehabilitation
Research Information and Exchange; and
Establish an advisory committee comprised of individuals
who are knowledgeable about RT including researchers, State VR agency
representatives, VR providers, employers, transition planners,
secondary and postsecondary educators, individuals with disabilities,
and parents of individuals with disabilities. This advisory committee
must be designed to provide guidance to the Center on its research and
TA activities.
Each year after year one of the project period, plan to
present findings at a three-day national conference of State VR
administrators to be held in Washington, DC.
Executive Order 12866
This NPP has been reviewed in accordance with Executive Order
12866. Under the terms of the order, we have assessed the potential
costs and benefits of this regulatory action.
The potential costs associated with this NPP are those resulting
from statutory requirements and those we have determined as necessary
for administering this program effectively and efficiently.
In assessing the potential costs and benefits--both quantitative
and qualitative--of this NPP, we have determined that the benefits of
the proposed priorities justify the costs.
Summary of Potential Costs and Benefits
The benefits of the Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects
and Centers Programs have been well established over the years in that
similar projects have been completed successfully. These proposed
priorities will generate new knowledge and technologies through
research, development, dissemination, utilization, and technical
assistance projects.
Another benefit of these proposed priorities is that the
establishment of new DRRPs will support the President's NFI and will
improve the lives of individuals with disabilities. The new DRRPs will
generate, disseminate, and promote the use of new information that will
improve the options for individuals with disabilities to perform
regular activities in the community.
Intergovernmental Review
This program is not subject to Executive Order 12372 and the
regulations in 34 CFR part 79.
[[Page 31083]]
Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR part 350.
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents 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
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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.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers 84.133A Disability
Rehabilitation Research Projects)
Program Authority: 29 U.S.C. 762(g) and 764(a).
Dated: May 27, 2008.
William W. Knudsen,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services.
[FR Doc. E8-12121 Filed 5-29-08; 8:45 am]
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