[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 175 (Monday, September 9, 1996)] [Notices] [Pages 47652-47655] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 96-22811] [[Page 47651]] _______________________________________________________________________ Part IV Department of Education _______________________________________________________________________ Federal Pell Grant Program; Notice Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 175 / Monday, September 9, 1996 / Notices [[Page 47652]] ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Federal Pell Grant Program AGENCY: Department of Education. ACTION: Notice; deadline dates for receipt of applications, reports, and other documents for the 1996-97 award year. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Secretary announces the deadline dates for receiving documents from persons applying for grants under, and from institutions participating in, the Federal Pell Grant Program in the 1996-97 award year. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jacquelyn C. Butler, Program Specialist, Pell and State Grant Section, Grants Branch, Policy Development Division, Policy, Training, and Analysis Service, Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W. (ROB-3, Room 3045), Washington, DC 20202-5447. Telephone: (202) 708-4607. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the deaf may call the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-800-730-8913 between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Federal Pell Grant Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Education (Department), provides grants to students attending eligible institutions of higher education to help them pay for their educational costs. The program supports Goals 2000, the President's strategy for moving the Nation toward the National Education Goals, by enhancing opportunities for postsecondary education. The National Education Goals call for increasing the rate at which students graduate from high school and pursue high quality postsecondary education and for supporting life-long learning. Authority for the Federal Pell Grant Program is contained in section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. 1070a. Deadline Dates The following tables provide the deadline dates for the Federal Pell Grant Program for the 1996-97 award year. BILLING CODE 4000-01-P [[Page 47653]] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN09SE96.024 [[Page 47654]] [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TN09SE96.025 BILLING CODE 4000-01-C [[Page 47655]] Deadline for Reporting Federal Pell Grant Student Payment Data In the 1995-96 award year, institutions were required to report student ``Payment Data'' to the Department by fixed reporting periods. (Student Payment Data include both the Federal Pell Grant payment that an institution makes to a student and the Federal Pell Grant payment it expects to make to that student for an award year.) Thus, for example, an institution was required to report student Payment Data to the Department by October 15, 1995 if it paid a Federal Pell Grant to a student at any time during the period of July 1, 1995 through October 15, 1995. For the 1996-97 award year, the Secretary has changed the period for reporting student Payment Data to the Department. Reporting periods are not fixed but are based on the date an institution pays a Federal Pell Grant to a student. Under this reporting requirement, an institution must submit to the Department Payment Data for a student not later than 30 calendar days after the institution makes a payment to the student. In addition, if the institution becomes aware that previously reported payments or expected payments, i.e., Payment Data, for a student are no longer accurate, the institution must submit accurate Payment Data for that student to the Department not later than 30 calendar days after becoming aware of the change. The following two examples illustrate the new reporting requirement. As a first example, a student enrolls for the fall 1996 semester at an institution. The institution pays that student his Federal Pell Grant award for that semester on September 5, 1996. The institution must submit that student's Payment Data to the Department not later October 5, 1996. As a second example, a student enrolls for the fall 1996 semester as a full-time student, and the institution expects the student to enroll as a full-time student for the spring 1997 semester. The institution pays that student his Federal Pell Grant award for the fall 1996 semester on September 5, 1996. The institution submits that student's Payment Data to the Department on October 1, 1996. On January 15, 1997 the student enrolls in the spring 1997 semester as a half-time student. The institution must submit to the Department revised Payment Data for that student not later February 14, 1997. Because some institutions have not yet received computer software necessary to submit student Payment Data to the Department and this notice is being published after the beginning of the 1996-97 award year, the Secretary understands that not all institutions will initially report student Payment Data within the 30-day reporting period. Therefore, the Secretary will not take adverse actions against an institution that does not initially submit student Payment Data within the 30-day reporting period during the first three months of the 1996-97 award year. Proof of Delivery The Department accepts as proof, if the documents were submitted by mail or by non-U.S. Postal Service courier, one of the following: (1) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the U.S. Postal Service. (2) A legibly-dated U.S. Postal Service postmark. Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated postmark. Before relying on this method of proof of mailing, an institution should check with the post office at which it mails its submission. An institution is strongly encouraged to use First Class Mail. (3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial courier. (4) Other proof of mailing or delivery acceptable to the Secretary. The Department accepts hand deliveries at the address stated in the previous chart between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time on days other than Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holidays. An institution that transmits its student Payment Data information via the EDE Electronic Payments service must ensure that its transmission is completed before midnight (local time at the institution's EDE destination point) on September 30, 1997. Other Sources for Detailed Information on the Application and Automated Processes A more detailed discussion of the student application process for the Federal Pell Grant Program is contained in the 1996-97 Student Guide, Funding Your Education, the 1996-97 Counselor's Handbook for High Schools, the 1996-97 Counselor's Handbook for Postsecondary Schools, A Guide to 1996-97 SARs and ISIRs (Action Letter #8 March 1996), and the 1996-97 Federal Student Financial Aid Handbook. A more detailed discussion of the institutional reporting requirement for student Payment Data for the Federal Pell Grant Program is contained in the 1996-97 Federal Student Financial Aid Handbook. Applicable Regulations The regulations applicable to this program are the Federal Pell Grant Program regulations in 34 CFR part 690, the Student Assistance General Provisions regulations in 34 CFR part 668, and the Institutional Eligibility regulations in 34 CFR part 600. (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance No. 84.063, Federal Pell Grant Program) (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1070a) Dated: August 23, 1996. David A. Longanecker, Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education. [FR Doc. 96-22811 Filed 9-6-96; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4000-01-P