Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; Rural Education Achievement Program: Small, Rural School Achievement Program and Rural and Low-Income School Program Application

AGENCY:

Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), Department of Education (ED).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is proposing a revision of a currently approved collection.

DATES:

Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before July 11, 2022.

ADDRESSES:

To access and review all the documents related to the information collection listed in this notice, please use http://www.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2022-SCC-0064. Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting the Docket ID number or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. If the regulations.gov site is not available to the public for any reason, ED will temporarily accept comments at ICDocketMgr@ed.gov. Please include the docket ID number and the title of the information collection request when requesting documents or submitting comments. Please note that comments submitted by fax or email and those submitted after the comment period will not be accepted. Written requests for information or comments submitted by postal mail or delivery should be addressed to the PRA Coordinator of the Strategic Collections and Clearance Governance and Strategy Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, LBJ, Room 6W208D, Washington, DC 20202-8240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For specific questions related to collection activities, please contact Staci Cummins, (202) 453-6504.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Department of Education (ED), in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's information collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The Department of Education is especially interested in public comment addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to the proper functions of the Department; (2) will this information be processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden accurate; (4) how might the Department enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the Department minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, including through the use of information technology. Please note that written comments received in response to this notice will be considered public records.

Title of Collection: Rural Education Achievement Program: Small, Rural School Achievement Program and Rural and Low-Income School Program Application.

OMB Control Number: 1810-0646.

Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.

Respondents/Affected Public: State, Local, and Tribal Governments.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 4,565.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 4,120.

Abstract: The U.S. Department of Education (the Department) administers two grant programs under Title V, Part B (Rural Education Achievement Program (REAP) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA): The Small, Rural School Achievement (SRSA) program (administered by the Department, which makes awards directly to local educational agencies (LEAs)) and the Rural and Low-Income School (RLIS) program (awarded by the Department to SEAs, which then make awards to and administer the program for LEAs, except that the Department may also make RLIS awards directly to LEAs in States that do not submit an approvable RLIS application to the Department. The LEAs that apply directly to the Department under RLIS are known as Specially Qualified Agencies (SQAs)).

The information shared with the Department enables the Department to make eligibility determinations for LEAs and to calculate formula allocations for each eligible LEA. Form 1 consists of the REAP Eligibility Spreadsheet through which SEAs provide to the Department eligibility and allocation data for both the RLIS and SRSA programs. Form 2 consists of the application package for LEAs under the SRSA program. Form 3 consists of the application package for SQAs under the RLIS program. This proposed application package is a revision of current information collection package (OMB #1810-0646), updated to include process improvements and enhance consistency across Forms 1,2, and 3. Updates include clarifications to data collection processes ( e.g., which year data is requested), improved question structure, and process improvements related to LEA eligibility ( e.g., clarifying virtual and operational status).