E7-1982. Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools Overview Information; Grants To Reduce Alcohol Abuse Notice Inviting Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2007

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.184A.

DATES:

Applications Available: February 9, 2007.

Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: March 26, 2007.

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: May 25, 2007.

Eligible Applicants: Local educational agencies (LEAs).

The Secretary limits eligibility under this discretionary grant program competition to applicants that do not currently have an active grant under the Grants to Reduce Alcohol Abuse (CFDA No. 84.184A) Program. For the purpose of this eligibility requirement, a grant is considered active until the end of the grant's project or funding period, including any extensions of those periods that extend the grantee's authority to obligate funds.

Estimated Available Funds: The Administration's budget request for FY 2007 does not include funds for this program. However, we are inviting applications to allow enough time to complete the grant process if Congress appropriates funds for this program.

Note:

The Secretary may reserve up to 25 percent of these funds to award grants to low-income and rural LEAs.

Contingent upon the availability of funds, we may make additional awards in FY 2008 from the list of un-funded applications from this competition.

Estimated Range of Awards: $200,000-$400,000.

Estimated Average Size of Awards: $300,000.

Estimated Number of Awards: 20.

Note:

The Department is not bound by any estimates in this notice.

Project Period: Up to 36 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

Purpose of Program: This program provides grants to LEAs to develop and implement innovative and effective programs to reduce alcohol abuse in secondary schools.

Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv), this priority is from section 4129 of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act, 20 U.S.C. 7139.

Absolute Priority: For FY 2007 and any subsequent year in which we make awards on the basis of the list of un-funded applications from this competition, this priority is an absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only applications that meet this priority.

This priority is:

Alcohol Abuse Reduction

A project must develop and implement innovative and effective programs to reduce alcohol abuse in secondary schools.

Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 7139.

Applicable Regulations: (a) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 75, 77, 79, 80, 81, 82, 84, 85, 97, 98, 99, and 299. (b) The notice of eligibility requirement for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools discretionary grant programs published in the Federal Register on December 4, 2006 (71 FR 70369).

II. Award Information

Type of Award: Discretionary grants.

Estimated Available Funds: The Administration's budget request for FY 2007 does not include funds for this program. However, we are inviting applications to allow enough time to complete the grant process if Congress appropriates funds for this program.

Note:

The Secretary may reserve up to 25 percent of funds for grants to low-income and rural LEAs.

Contingent upon the availability of funds, we may make additional awards in FY 2008 from the list of non-funded applications from this competition.

Estimated Range of Awards: $200,000-$400,000.

Estimated Average Size of Awards: $300,000.

Estimated Number of Awards: 20.

Note:

The Department is not bound by any estimates in this notice.

Project Period: Up to 36 months.

III. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants: LEAs.

Eligible Applicants: Local educational agencies (LEAs). The Secretary limits eligibility under this discretionary grant program competition to applicants that do not currently have an active grant under the Grants to Reduce Alcohol Abuse (CFDA No. 84.184A) Program. For the purpose of this eligibility requirement, a grant is considered active until the end of the grant's project or funding period, including any extensions of those periods that extend the grantee's authority to obligate funds.

2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This competition does not involve cost sharing or matching.

3. Other: To be eligible to receive a grant under this competition, an LEA's application must include—

a. A description of the activities to be carried out under the grant;

b. An assurance that such activities will include one or more of the proven strategies for reducing underage alcohol abuse as determined by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services;

c. An explanation of how other activities to be carried out under the grant that are not part of a SAMHSA model program will be effective in reducing underage alcohol abuse, including references to the past effectiveness of such activities; and

d. An assurance that the applicant will submit to the Secretary an annual report concerning the effectiveness of the programs and activities funded under the grant.

IV. Application and 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: [phone]. 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: [e-mail].

If you request an application from ED Pubs be sure to identify this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.184A.

Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on request to the program contact persons listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT elsewhere in this notice.

You may also obtain the application package electronically by downloading it from the following Web site: http://www.ed.gov/​programs/​dvalcoholabuse/​index.html.

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 competition.

3. Submission Dates and Times:

Applications Available: February 9, 2007. Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: March 26, 2007.

Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov), 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.

Individuals with disabilities who need an accommodation or auxiliary aid in connection with the application process should contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in section VII of this notice.

We do not consider an application that does not comply with the deadline requirements.

Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: May 25, 2007.

4. Intergovernmental Review: This competition 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 competition.

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

To comply with the President's management Agenda, we are participating as a partner in the Government wide Grants.gov Apply site. The Grants to Reduce Alcohol Abuse (CFDA) number: 84.184A, is included in this project. We request your participation in Grants.gov.

If you choose to submit your application electronically, you must use the Government wide Grants.gov Apply site at http://www.grants.gov. Through this site, you will be able to download a copy of the application package, complete it offline, and then upload and submit your application. You may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us.

You may access the electronic grant application for the Grants to Reduce Alcohol Abuse at http://www.grants.gov. You must search for the downloadable application package for this competition by the CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your search (e.g., search for 84.184, not 84.184A).

Please note the following:

• Your participation in Grants.gov is voluntary.
• When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find information about submitting an application electronically through the site, as well as the hours of operation.
• Applications received by Grants.gov are date and time stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted and must be date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as otherwise noted in this section, we will not consider your application if it is date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system later than 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. When we retrieve your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are rejecting your application because it was date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date.
• The amount of time it can take to upload an application will vary depending on a variety of factors, including the size of the application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline date to begin the submission process through Grants.gov.
• You should review and follow the Education Submission Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are included in the application package for this competition to ensure that you submit your application in a timely manner to the Grants.gov system. You can also find the Education Submission Procedures pertaining to Grants.gov at http://e-Grants.ed.gov/​help/​GrantsgovSubmissionProcedures.pdf.
• To submit your application via Grants.gov, you must complete all steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see http://www.grants.gov/​applicants/​get_​registered.jsp). These steps include (1) registering your organization, a multi-part process that includes registration with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR); (2) registering yourself as an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR); and (3) getting authorized as an AOR by your organization. Details on these steps are outlined in the Grants.gov 3-Step Registration Guide (see http://www.grants.gov/​section910/​Grants.govRegistrationBrochure.pdf). You also must provide on your application the same D-U-N-S Number used with this registration. Please note that the registration process may take five or more business days to complete, and you must have completed all registration steps to allow you to submit successfully an application via Grants.gov. In addition you will need to update your CCR registration on an annual basis. This may take three or more business days to complete.
• 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.
• If you submit your application electronically, you must submit all documents electronically, including all information you typically provide on the following forms: Application for Federal Assistance (SF 424), the Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF 424, Budget Information-Non-Construction Programs (ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. Please note that two of these forms—the SF 424 and the Department of Education Supplemental Information for SF 42—have replaced the ED 424 (Application for Federal Education Assistance).
• If you submit your application electronically, you must attach any narrative sections of your application as files in a .DOC (document), .RTF (rich text), or .PDF (Portable Document) format. If you upload a file type other than the three file types specified in this paragraph or submit a password-protected file, we will not review that material.
• Your electronic application must comply with any page-limit requirements described in this notice.
• After you electronically submit your application, you will receive from Grants.gov an automatic notification of receipt that contains a Grants.gov tracking number. (This notification indicates receipt by Grants.gov only, not receipt by the Department). The Department then will retrieve your application from Grants.gov and send a second notification to you by e-mail. This second notification indicates that the Department has received your application and has assigned your application a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying number unique to your application).
• We may request that you provide us original signatures on forms at a later date.

Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of Technical Issues With the Grants.gov System: If you are experiencing problems submitting your application through Grants.gov, please contact the Grants.gov Support Desk at 1-800-518-4726. You must obtain a Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number and must keep a record of it.

If you are prevented from electronically submitting your application on the application deadline date because of technical problems with the Grants.gov system, we will grant you an extension until 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, the following business day to enable you to transmit your application electronically or by hand delivery. You also may mail your application by following the mailing instructions described elsewhere in this notice.

If you submit an application after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date, please contact the person listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT and provide an explanation of the technical problem you experienced with Grants.gov, along with the Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number. We will accept your application if we can confirm that a technical problem occurred with the Grants.gov system and that that problem affected your ability to submit your application by 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. The Department will contact you after a determination is made on whether your application will be accepted.

Note:

The extensions to which we refer in this section apply only to the unavailability of, or technical problems with, the Grants.gov system. We will not grant you an extension if you failed to fully register to submit your application to Grants.gov before the application deadline date and time or if the technical problem you experienced is unrelated to the Grants.gov system.

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 84.184A),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 84.184A),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 by hand delivery, 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 84.184A),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 the Application for Federal Education Assistance (ED 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 acknowledgment 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 [phone].

V. Application Review Information

1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this program are in 34 CFR 75.210 and in the application package for this competition.

2. Review and Selection Process: An additional factor we consider in selecting an application for an award is rural and low-income status.

Applications from rural and low-income applicants will be read and scored separately and up to 25 percent of the available funds will be reserved for awards to these LEAs. The following is the suggested definition of rural and low-income that has been used by this program in previous competitions; however, LEAs that want to be considered as rural and low-income applicants may provide other supporting evidence of their status as rural and low-income.

A rural and low-income LEA is one (a) that is designated with a locale code of 6, 7, or 8, as determined by the Department's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES); and (b) in which 20 percent or more of the children ages 5 through 17 years served by the LEA are from families with incomes below the poverty line.

Note:

Applicants wishing to be considered under this factor must be both rural and low-income.

VI. Award Administration Information

1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we will notify your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award Notice (GAN). We may also notify you informally.

If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, we will 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 75.718.

4. Performance Measures: Under the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), three measures have been developed for evaluating the overall effectiveness of the Grants to Reduce Alcohol Abuse Program: (1) The percentage of grantees whose target students show a measurable decrease in binge drinking; (2) the percentage of grantees that show a measurable increase in the percentage of target students who believe that alcohol abuse is harmful to their health; and (3) the percentage of grantees that show a measurable increase in the percentage of target students who disapprove of alcohol abuse. These three measures constitute the Department's indicators of success for this program. Consequently, applicants for a grant under this program are advised to give careful consideration to these three measures in conceptualizing the design, implementation, and evaluation of their proposed project. If funded, applicants will be asked to collect and report data in their annual performance reports about progress toward these goals.

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amalia Cuervo, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., SW., Room 3E342, Washington, DC 20202-6450. Telephone: [phone] or by e-mail: [e-mail] or Phyllis Scattergood, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave., SW., room 3E212, Washington DC, 20202-6450. Telephone: [phone], or by e-mail: [e-mail].

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 format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on request to one of the program contact persons 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 [phone].

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: February 1, 2007.

Deborah A. Price,

Assistant Deputy Secretary for Safe and Drug-Free Schools.