2015-06290. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Predominantly Black Institutions Application

AGENCY:

Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Department of Education (ED).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 3501 et seq.), ED is proposing a reinstatement of a previously approved information collection.

DATES:

Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before April 20, 2015.

ADDRESSES:

Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting Docket ID number ED-2015-ICCD-0030 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 [e-mail]. Please note that comments submitted by fax or email and those submitted after the comment period will not be accepted; ED will ONLY accept comments during the comment period in this mailbox when the regulations.gov site is not available. Written requests for information or comments submitted by postal mail or delivery should be addressed to the Director of the Information Collection Clearance Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, Mailstop L-OM-2-2E319, Room 2E103, Washington, DC 20202.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For specific questions related to collection activities, please contact Bernadette Miles, 202-502-7616.

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: Predominantly Black Institutions Application.

OMB Control Number: 1840-0797.

Type of Review: A reinstatement of a previously approved information collection.

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

Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 130.

Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 4,550.

Abstract: The Predominantly Black Institutions (PBI) Program is authorized under title III, part F of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). The PBI Program makes grant awards to eligible colleges and universities to support the strengthening of PBIs to carry out programs in the following areas: science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; health education; internationalization or globalization; teacher preparation; or improving the educational outcomes of African American males. Grants support the establishment or strengthening of such programs that are designed to increase the institutions capacity to prepare students for instruction in the above noted fields. Grants are awarded competitively. This information collection is necessary to comply with title III, part F of the HEA.

Dated: March 16, 2015.

Kate Mullan,

Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Privacy, Information and Records Management Services, Office of Management.