Proposed Priority-Rehabilitation Training: Rehabilitation Long-Term Training Program-Rehabilitation Specialty Areas, 27236-27240 [2014-10958]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 92 (Tuesday, May 13, 2014)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 27236-27240]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-10958]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Chapter III

[Docket ID ED-2014-OSERS-0068]


Proposed Priority--Rehabilitation Training: Rehabilitation Long-
Term Training Program--Rehabilitation Specialty Areas

[CFDA Number: 84.129C, E, F, H, J, P, Q, R, and W.]

AGENCY: Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, 
Department of Education.

ACTION: Proposed priority.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and 
Rehabilitative Services proposes a priority under the Rehabilitation 
Training: Rehabilitation Long-Term Training program. The Assistant 
Secretary may use this priority for competitions in fiscal year (FY) 
2014 and later years. This priority is designed to ensure that the 
Department funds high-quality rehabilitation programs in the following 
nine rehabilitation specialty areas of national need: (1) 
Rehabilitation Administration (84.129C); (2) Rehabilitation Technology 
(84.129E); (3) Vocational Evaluation and Work Adjustment (84.129F); (4) 
Rehabilitation of Individuals Who Are Mentally Ill (84.129H); (5) 
Rehabilitation Psychology (84.129J); (6) Rehabilitation of Individuals 
Who are Blind or Have Vision Impairments (84.129P); (7) Rehabilitation 
of Individuals Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (84.129Q); (8) Job 
Development and Job Placement Services (84.129R); and (9) Comprehensive 
System of Personnel Development (84.129W). These programs must meet 
rigorous standards in order to provide scholars with the training 
necessary to become qualified rehabilitation professionals who are 
capable of meeting the current challenges facing State vocational 
rehabilitation (VR) agencies and related agencies and who can assist 
individuals with disabilities in achieving high-quality employment 
outcomes.

DATES: We must receive your comments on or before June 12, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal 
or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. We will not 
accept comments submitted by fax or by email or those submitted after 
the comment period. To ensure that we do not receive duplicate copies, 
please submit your comments only once. In addition, please include the 
Docket ID at the top of your comments.
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov to 
submit your comments electronically. Information on using 
Regulations.gov, including instructions for accessing agency documents, 
submitting comments, and viewing the docket, is available on the site 
under ``Are you new to the site?''
     Postal Mail, Commercial Delivery, or Hand Delivery: If you 
mail or deliver your comments about these proposed regulations, address 
them to RoseAnn Ashby, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland 
Avenue SW., Room 5055, Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Washington, DC 
20202-2800.
    Privacy Note: The Department's policy is to make all comments 
received from members of the public available for public viewing in 
their entirety on the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
www.regulations.gov. Therefore, commenters should be careful to include 
in their comments only

[[Page 27237]]

information that they wish to make publicly available.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: RoseAnn Ashby. Telephone: (202) 245-
7258 or by email: roseann.ashby@ed.gov.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) or a text 
telephone (TTY), call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free, at 1-
800-877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Invitation to Comment: We invite you to submit comments regarding 
this priority. To ensure that your comments have maximum effect in 
developing the final priority, we urge you to identify clearly the 
specific section of the proposed priority that each comment addresses.
    We invite you to assist us in complying with the specific 
requirements of Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 and their overall 
requirement of reducing regulatory burden that might result from this 
proposed priority. Please let us know of any further ways we could 
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 this notice in Room 5055, 550 12th Street SW., PCP, 
Washington, DC 20202-2800, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 
p.m., Washington, DC time, Monday through Friday of each week except 
Federal holidays.
    Assistance to Individuals with Disabilities in Reviewing the 
Rulemaking Record: On request we will provide an appropriate 
accommodation or auxiliary aid to an individual with a disability who 
needs assistance to review the comments or other documents in the 
public rulemaking record for this notice. If you want to schedule an 
appointment for this type of accommodation or auxiliary aid, please 
contact the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Purpose of Program: The Rehabilitation Long-Term Training program 
provides financial assistance for--
    (1) Projects that provide basic or advanced training leading to an 
academic degree in areas of personnel shortages in rehabilitation as 
identified by the Secretary;
    (2) Projects that provide a specified series of courses or program 
of study leading to the award of a certificate in areas of personnel 
shortages in rehabilitation as identified by the Secretary; and
    (3) Projects that provide support for medical residents enrolled in 
residency training programs in the specialty of physical medicine and 
rehabilitation.

    Program Authority:  29 U.S.C. 772(b).

    Applicable Program Regulations: 34 CFR parts 385 and 386.
    Proposed Priority:
    This notice contains one proposed priority.
    Rehabilitation Specialty Areas.
    Background:
    The Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) recently 
redesigned its funding priority for the Rehabilitation Long-Term 
Training program, Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling; the final 
priority was published in the Federal Register on November 5, 2013 (78 
FR 66271). The goal of this priority was to support high-quality 
master's level programs that would produce qualified and effective 
vocational rehabilitation (VR) counselors to meet the identified needs 
of State VR agencies and to assist individuals with disabilities in 
achieving high-quality employment outcomes.
    In redesigning that priority, the Department was particularly 
concerned with increasing the rigor of training programs for 
prospective VR counselors to ensure that they had the knowledge and 
skills necessary to provide effective services to consumers in State VR 
agencies. In particular, the revisions were designed to ensure that (1) 
program curricula are developed to prepare scholars to meet the needs 
of State VR agency consumers; (2) programs recruit high-quality 
scholars and support them through the program, including through the 
provision of career counseling to program graduates; (3) programs 
maintain strong relationships with State VR agencies to promote 
employment and internship opportunities for scholars; and (4) programs 
are continuously evaluated using feedback from State VR agencies and 
consumers of VR services.
    RSA has not yet made its first awards under the revised priority 
for Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. However, we believe it has 
the potential to dramatically improve the caliber of programs and 
scholars we support and, by extension, the employment outcomes for 
State VR agency consumers.
    Although scholars receiving support under the Vocational 
Rehabilitation Counseling priority are expected to develop the 
knowledge and skills to meet the needs of the majority of VR consumers, 
there will always be a need for counselors with specialized skills to 
meet the unique needs of individuals with specific disabilities, e.g., 
individuals who are blind or deaf or who have a serious mental illness. 
In fact, in response to a request for information (RFI) published in 
the Federal Register on November 8, 2012 (77 FR 66959), a number of 
commenters made exactly this case. Even in his Presidential Memorandum 
on Job-Driven Training for Workers, issued on January 30, 2014, the 
President noted that ``job seekers must have access to education and 
training that meets their unique needs and the requirements for good 
jobs and careers.''
    In response to these insights, the Department plans to make new 
awards in several specialty areas under the Long-Term Training program 
in FY 2014. However, in order to ensure the same level of rigor in 
specialty areas as we will require from our Vocational Rehabilitation 
Counseling grantees, we propose a new priority for specialty areas 
under the Long-Term Training program.\1\ Although the Department does 
not plan on making awards in all of these specialty areas in FY 2014, 
we are drafting this priority for all specialty areas to reduce the 
burden on the Department and commenters in future years should we opt 
to support projects under a different specialty area than those for 
which awards are made in FY 2014.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Specifically, the new priority is being proposed for the 
following specialty areas: (1) Rehabilitation Administration; (2) 
Rehabilitation Technology; (3) Vocational Evaluation and Work 
Adjustment; (4) Rehabilitation of Individuals Who Are Mentally Ill; 
(5) Rehabilitation Psychology; (6) Rehabilitation of Individuals Who 
are Blind or have Vision Impairments; (7) Rehabilitation of 
Individuals Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing; (8) Job Development and 
Job Placement Services; and (9) Comprehensive System of Personnel 
Development.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    In FY 2014, the Department plans to make new awards in the 
following specialty areas only:
    (1) Vocational Evaluation and Work Adjustment: Many who commented 
on the RFI and on the notice of proposed priority for Vocational 
Rehabilitation Counseling, published in the Federal Register on June 
14, 2013 (78 FR 35808), strongly urged RSA to continue support for 
vocational evaluation programs. They stressed the critical importance 
of VR professionals' understanding of the individual skills needed in 
today's labor market and how best to align those skills with the 
changing demands of the labor market so that consumers with 
disabilities can achieve high-quality employment outcomes.
    Vocational evaluators are trained to use labor market reviews, 
analyze job and training programs, assess work site accommodations, and 
conduct vocational profiles and reports. Evaluators examine the details 
of specific work opportunities for an

[[Page 27238]]

individual with a disability, including the physical, academic, social, 
and emotional demands of the work environment in order to maximize the 
potential for an individual's long-term career success.
    Although VR counselors receiving a master's degree in VR counseling 
may possess some of these specialized skills, they do not receive the 
breadth and depth of training in these skill sets that an individual 
receiving a specialized degree or certificate in vocational evaluation 
does.
    (2) Rehabilitation of Individuals Who Are Mentally Ill: Mental 
illness has a pronounced negative effect on employment. Both internal 
and external factors (e.g., stigma, discrimination, co-occurring 
conditions such as substance abuse, and medications used in treating 
mental health conditions) contribute to poor employment outcomes. Data 
from RSA's 2012 Case Service Report show that approximately 25 percent 
of the individuals whose case records were closed in that year had a 
primary disabling condition of mental illness (e.g., anxiety disorders, 
mood disorders, personality disorders, schizophrenia), with an 
additional 15 percent having a secondary co-occurring disabling 
condition of mental illness. Individuals with mental illness represent 
the largest disability group receiving public income support and they 
are the least likely to achieve successful employment outcomes after VR 
(Cook, 2006). For those individuals with mental illness who are 
employed, mental illness is associated with decreased productivity and 
job retention (Lerner, et al., 2012). State VR agency staff providing 
services to these consumers need specialized training in order to 
improve the likelihood that these consumers will achieve quality 
employment outcomes.
    (3) Rehabilitation of Individuals Who are Blind or Have Vision 
Impairments: There is a great need for more highly trained 
rehabilitation professionals who understand the specific needs of 
individuals who are blind or have vision impairments. Data from RSA's 
Case Service Report indicate that, from 2007 to 2012, the number of 
case records closed after receiving services with an employment outcome 
for individuals with visual disabilities decreased by 17 percent. This 
lack of success was particularly acute in General and Combined State VR 
agencies, which saw a 24 percent reduction in the number of records of 
individuals with visual disabilities closed with an employment outcome.
    We believe that increasing the number of training programs 
supported by the Long-Term Training program that are focused on the 
unique needs of individuals who are blind or have vision impairments 
can help to reverse this trend by ensuring that personnel have the 
specialized knowledge and skills to provide high-quality services to 
these VR consumers. Specifically, rehabilitation professionals are 
needed who can provide individuals with training necessary for 
adjustment to blindness or vision loss, including training in reading 
braille, orientation and mobility, independent/daily living, and use of 
assistive technology for both blindness and low vision-related 
applications (e.g., screen-reading speech software or large-print 
magnification devices).
    (4) Rehabilitation of Individuals Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing: 
There is also a need for more professionals trained in the needs of 
individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. According to the ACS 
(2012), approximately 2.1 percent (3.9 million) of American adults 
between the ages of 18-64 report hearing difficulty. Hearing loss can 
pose significant challenges to obtaining and retaining competitive 
employment, and individuals with these disabling conditions often need 
additional, specialized supports to be successful in the workforce.
    Rehabilitation professionals working with this population should 
have the following competencies: (1) knowledge of the medical, 
psychological, and social impact of hearing loss; (2) knowledge of VR 
counseling and assessment strategies appropriate for this population; 
(3) knowledge of sign language, communication strategies, hearing aids, 
cochlear implants, hearing rehabilitation, and assistive technologies 
(e.g., assistive listening devices, speech-to-text software and 
devices, telephone technologies, etc.); and (4) knowledge of education, 
career, and employment opportunities.
    References:

Cook, J. (2006). Employment Barriers for Persons with Psychiatric 
Disabilities: Update of a Report for the President's Commission. 
Psychiatric Services, 57(10), 1391-1405. Retrieved from https://ps.psychiatryonline.org/data/Journals/PSS/3777/06ps1391.pdf.
Lerner, D., Adler, D., Hermann, R. C., Chang, H., Ludman, E. J., 
Greenhill, A., Perch, K., McPeck, W. C., & Rogers, W. H. (2012). 
Impact of a Work-Focused Intervention on the Productivity and 
Symptoms of Employees with Depression. Journal of Occupational and 
Environmental Medicine, 54(2), 128.
Obama, B.H. Presidential Memorandum on Job-Driven Training for 
Workers. The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. 30 Jan. 
2014. Web. 8 April 2014.
Rehabilitation Services Administration. (2012). Case Service Report. 
RSA 911.
United States Census Bureau. (2012). S1819 Disability 
Characteristics, 2008-2012 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year 
Estimates. American Fact Finder. 2012. Web. Feb. 2014.

    Proposed Priority:
    The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services proposes a priority to fund programs leading to a master's 
degree or certificate in one of nine specialty areas: (1) 
Rehabilitation Administration; (2) Rehabilitation Technology; (3) 
Vocational Evaluation and Work Adjustment; (4) Rehabilitation of 
Individuals Who Are Mentally Ill; (5) Rehabilitation Psychology; (6) 
Specialized Personnel for Rehabilitation of Individuals Who Are Blind 
or Have Vision Impairments; (7) Rehabilitation of Individuals Who Are 
Deaf or Hard of Hearing; (8) Job Development and Job Placement 
Services; and (9) Comprehensive System of Personnel Development. The 
goal of this priority is to increase the skills of scholars in these 
rehabilitation specialty areas so that, upon successful completion of 
their master's degree or certificate programs, they are prepared to 
effectively meet the needs and demands of consumers with disabilities.
    Under this priority, applicants must:
    (a) Provide data on the current and projected employment needs and 
personnel shortages in the specialty area in State VR agencies and 
other related agencies as defined in 34 CFR 386.4 in their local area, 
region, and State, and describe how the proposed program will address 
those employment needs and personnel shortages.
    (b) Describe how the proposed program will provide rehabilitation 
professionals with the skills and knowledge that will help ensure that 
the individuals with disabilities whom they serve can meet current 
demands and emerging trends in the labor market, including how:
    (1) The curriculum provides a breadth of knowledge, experience, and 
rigor that will adequately prepare scholars to meet the employment 
needs and goals of VR consumers and aligns with evidence-based and 
competency-based practices in the rehabilitation specialty area;
    (2) The curriculum prepares scholars to meet all applicable 
certification standards;
    (3) The curriculum addresses new or emerging consumer needs or 
trends at the national, State, and regional levels in the 
rehabilitation specialty area;
    (4) The curriculum teaches scholars to address the needs of 
individuals with

[[Page 27239]]

disabilities who are from diverse cultural backgrounds;
    (5) The curriculum trains scholars to assess the assistive 
technology needs of consumers, identify the most appropriate assistive 
technology services and devices for assisting consumers to obtain and 
retain employment, and train consumers to use such technology;
    (6) The curriculum teaches scholars to work with employers 
effectively in today's economy, including by teaching strategies for 
developing relationships with employers in their State and local areas, 
identifying employer needs and skill demands, making initial employer 
contacts, presenting job-ready clients to potential employers, and 
conducting follow-up with employers; and
    (7) The latest technology is incorporated into the methods of 
instruction (e.g., the use of distance education to reach scholars who 
live far from the university and the use of technology to acquire labor 
market information).
    (c) Describe their methods to:
    (1) Recruit highly capable prospective scholars who have the 
potential to successfully complete the academic program, all required 
practicum and internship experiences, and the required service 
obligation;
    (2) Educate potential scholars about the terms and conditions of 
the service obligation under 34 CFR 386.4, 386.34, and 386.40 through 
386.43 so that they will be fully informed before accepting a 
scholarship;
    (3) Maintain a system that ensures that scholars sign a payback 
agreement and an exit form when they exit the program, regardless of 
whether they drop out, are removed, or successfully complete the 
program;
    (4) Provide academic support and counseling to scholars throughout 
the course of the academic program to ensure successful completion;
    (5) Ensure that all scholars complete an internship in a State VR 
agency or a related agency as a requirement for completion of a program 
leading to a master's degree. The internship must be in a State VR 
agency unless the VR agency does not directly perform work related to 
the scholar's course of study or an applicant can provide sufficient 
justification that it is not feasible for all students receiving 
scholarships to complete an internship in a State VR agency. In such 
cases, the applicant may require scholars to complete an internship in 
a related agency, as defined in 34 CFR 386.4. Circumstances that would 
constitute sufficient justification may include, but are not limited 
to, a lack of capacity at the State VR agency to provide adequate 
supervision of scholars during their internship experience and the 
physical distance between scholars and the nearest office of the State 
VR agency (e.g., for scholars enrolled in distance-learning programs or 
at rural institutions). Applicants should include a written 
justification in the application or provide it to RSA for review and 
approval by the appropriate RSA Project Officer no later than 30 days 
prior to a scholar beginning an internship in a related agency. For 
applicants proposing a certificate program, the requirement for an 
internship in a State VR agency or a related agency is waived unless 
the certificate program has an internship requirement.
    (6) Provide career counseling, including informing scholars of 
professional contacts and networks, job leads, and other necessary 
resources and information to support scholars in successfully obtaining 
and retaining qualifying employment;
    (7) Maintain regular contact with scholars upon successful program 
completion to ensure that they have support during their search for 
qualifying employment as well as support during the initial months of 
their employment (e.g., by matching scholars with mentors in the 
field);
    (8) Maintain regular communication with scholars after program exit 
to ensure that their contact information is current and that 
documentation of employment is accurate and meets the regulatory 
requirements for qualifying employment; and
    (9) Maintain accurate information on, while safeguarding the 
privacy of, current and former scholars from the time they are enrolled 
in the program until they successfully meet their service obligation.
    (d) Describe a plan for developing and maintaining partnerships 
with State VR agencies and community-based rehabilitation service 
providers that includes:
    (1) Coordination between the grantee and the State VR agencies and 
community-based rehabilitation service providers that will promote 
qualifying employment opportunities for scholars and formalized on-
boarding and induction experiences for new hires;
    (2) Formal opportunities for scholars to obtain work experiences 
through internships, practicum agreements, job shadowing, and mentoring 
opportunities; and
    (3) When applicable, a scholar internship assessment tool that is 
developed to ensure a consistent approach to the evaluation of scholars 
in a particular program. The tool should reflect the specific 
responsibilities of the scholar during the internship. The grantee and 
worksite supervisor are encouraged to work together as they see fit to 
develop the assessment tool. Supervisors at the internship site will 
complete the assessment detailing the scholar's strengths and areas for 
improvement that must be addressed and provide the results of the 
assessment to the grantee. The grantee should ensure that (i) scholars 
are provided with a copy of the assessment and all relevant rubrics 
prior to beginning their internship, (ii) supervisors have sufficient 
technical support to accurately complete the assessment, and (iii) 
scholars receive a copy of the results of the assessment within 90 days 
of the end of their internship.
    (e) Describe how scholars will be evaluated throughout the entire 
program to ensure that they are proficient in meeting the needs and 
demands of today's consumers and employers, including the steps that 
will be taken to provide assistance to a scholar who is not meeting 
academic standards or who is performing poorly in a practicum or 
internship setting.
    (f) Describe how the program will be evaluated. Such a description 
must include:
    (1) How the program will determine its effect over a period of time 
on filling vacancies in the State VR agency with qualified 
rehabilitation professionals capable of providing quality services to 
consumers;
    (2) How input from State VR agencies and community-based 
rehabilitation service providers will be included in the evaluation;
    (3) How feedback from consumers of VR services and employers 
(including the assessments described in paragraph (d)(3)) will be 
included in the evaluation;
    (4) How data from other sources, such as those from the Department 
on the State VR program, will be included in the evaluation; and
    (5) How the data and results from the evaluation will be used to 
make necessary adjustments and improvements to the program.
    Types of Priorities:
    When inviting applications for a competition using one or more 
priorities, we designate the type of each priority as absolute, 
competitive preference, or invitational through a notice in the Federal 
Register. 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)).

[[Page 27240]]

    Competitive preference priority: Under a competitive preference 
priority, we give competitive preference to an application by (1) 
awarding additional points, depending on the extent to which the 
application meets the priority (34 CFR 75.105(c)(2)(i)); or (2) 
selecting an application that meets the 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 priority. 
However, we do not give an application that meets the priority a 
preference over other applications (34 CFR 75.105(c)(1)).
    Final Priority:
    We will announce the final priority in a notice in the Federal 
Register. We will determine the final priority after considering 
responses to this notice and other information available to the 
Department. This notice does not preclude us from proposing additional 
priorities, requirements, definitions, or selection criteria, subject 
to meeting applicable rulemaking requirements.

    Note:  This notice does not solicit applications. In any year in 
which we choose to use this priority, we invite applications through 
a notice in the Federal Register.

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563

Regulatory Impact Analysis

    Under Executive Order 12866, the Secretary must determine whether 
this regulatory action is ``significant'' and, therefore, subject to 
the requirements of the Executive order and subject to review by the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Section 3(f) of Executive Order 
12866 defines a ``significant regulatory action'' as an action likely 
to result in a rule that may--
    (1) Have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more, 
or adversely affect a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, 
jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or State, local, or 
tribal governments or communities in a material way (also referred to 
as an ``economically significant'' rule);
    (2) Create serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an 
action taken or planned by another agency;
    (3) Materially alter the budgetary impacts of entitlement grants, 
user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients 
thereof; or
    (4) Raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal 
mandates, the President's priorities, or the principles stated in the 
Executive order.
    This proposed regulatory action is not a significant regulatory 
action subject to review by OMB under section 3(f) of Executive Order 
12866.
    We have also reviewed this proposed regulatory action under 
Executive Order 13563, which supplements and explicitly reaffirms the 
principles, structures, and definitions governing regulatory review 
established in Executive Order 12866. To the extent permitted by law, 
Executive Order 13563 requires that an agency--
    (1) Propose or adopt regulations only on a reasoned determination 
that their benefits justify their costs (recognizing that some benefits 
and costs are difficult to quantify);
    (2) Tailor its regulations to impose the least burden on society, 
consistent with obtaining regulatory objectives and taking into 
account--among other things and to the extent practicable--the costs of 
cumulative regulations;
    (3) In choosing among alternative regulatory approaches, select 
those approaches that would maximize net benefits (including potential 
economic, environmental, public health and safety, and other 
advantages; distributive impacts; and equity);
    (4) To the extent feasible, specify performance objectives, rather 
than the behavior or manner of compliance a regulated entity must 
adopt; and
    (5) Identify and assess available alternatives to direct 
regulation, including economic incentives--such as user fees or 
marketable permits--to encourage the desired behavior, or provide 
information that enables the public to make choices.
    Executive Order 13563 also requires an agency ``to use the best 
available techniques to quantify anticipated present and future 
benefits and costs as accurately as possible.'' The Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB has emphasized that these 
techniques may include ``identifying changing future compliance costs 
that might result from technological innovation or anticipated 
behavioral changes.''
    We are issuing this proposed priority only on a reasoned 
determination that its benefits would justify its costs. In choosing 
among alternative regulatory approaches, we selected those approaches 
that maximize net benefits. Based on the analysis that follows, the 
Department believes that this regulatory action is consistent with the 
principles in Executive Order 13563.
    We also have determined that this regulatory action would not 
unduly interfere with State, local, and tribal governments in the 
exercise of their governmental functions.
    In accordance with both Executive orders, the Department has 
assessed the potential costs and benefits, both quantitative and 
qualitative, of this regulatory action. The potential costs are those 
resulting from statutory requirements and those we have determined as 
necessary for administering the Department's programs and activities.
    The benefits of the Rehabilitation Long-Term Training program have 
been well established over the years through the successful completion 
of similar projects. This proposed priority would promote 
rehabilitation programs that will better prepare scholars to assist 
individuals with disabilities achieve employment in today's challenging 
economy.
    Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive 
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. One of the 
objectives of the Executive order is to foster an intergovernmental 
partnership and a strengthened federalism. The Executive order relies 
on processes developed by State and local governments for coordination 
and review of proposed Federal financial assistance.
    This document provides early notification of our specific plans and 
actions for this program.
    Accessible Format: Individuals with disabilities can obtain this 
document in an accessible format (e.g., braille, large print, 
audiotape, or compact disc) on request to the program contact person 
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Electronic Access to This Document: 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 via the Federal Digital System 
at: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can 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). To use PDF 
you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the 
site.
    You may also access documents of the Department published in the 
Federal Register by using the article search feature at: 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

    Dated: May 7, 2014.
Michael K. Yudin,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services.
[FR Doc. 2014-10958 Filed 5-12-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P