Competitive Grants Technical Amendments

NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS AND HUMANITIES

Institute of Museum Services

45 CFR Part 1180

Competitive Grants Technical Amendments

AGENCY: Institute of Museum Services, NFAH.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: The Institute of Museum Services issues proposed amendments to

regulations relating to its General Operating Support and Conservation

Project Support grant programs. The regulations as amended implement

the Museum Services Act. The amendments make technical and other

changes in the eligibility conditions, use of funds, audit

requirements, amount of awards, and remove unneeded provisions.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 1, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be addressed to Mamie Bittner, Public

Information Officer, Institute of Museum Services, Room 510, 1100

Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20506.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rebecca Danvers, Program Director, Telephone: (202) 606-8539.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

General Background

The Museum Services Act (``the Act'' which is Title II of the Arts,

Humanities and Cultural Affairs Act of 1976, was enacted on October 8,

1976 and amended in 1980, 1982, 1984, 1985, and 1990). The purpose of

the Act is stated in section 202 as follows:

It is the purpose of the Museum Services Act to encourage and

assist museums in their educational role in conjunction with formal

systems of elementary, secondary, and post secondary education and with

programs of non-formal education for all age groups: to assist museums

in modernizing their methods and facilities so that they may be better

able to conserve our cultural, historic, and scientific heritage and to

ease the financial burden borne by museums as [[Page 12187]] a result

of their increasing use by the public.

The Act establishes an Institute of Museum Services (IMS)

consisting of a National Museums Services Board and Director.

The Act provides that the National Museum Services Board shall

consist of fifteen members appointed for fixed terms by the President

with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Chairman of the Board is

designated by the President from the appointed members. Members are

broadly representative of various museum disciplines, including those

relating to science, history, technology, art, zoos, and botanical

gardens; of the curatorial, educational, and cultural resources of the

United States; and of the general public. The Board has the

responsibility for establishing the general policies of the Institute.

The Director is authorized, subject to the policy direction of the

Board, to make grants under the Act to museums.

IMS is an independent agency placed in the National Foundation on

the Arts and the Humanities (National Foundation). Pub. L. 101-512 Nov.

5, 1990. The Act lists a number of illustrative activities for which

grants may be made, including assisting museums to improve their

operations.

The Need for the Amendment

The proposed amendment to the regulations are intended to simplify

application requirements and make the programs more accessible to the

applicants by making audit requirements apply evenly to all applicants,

to make awards more responsive to the needs of applicants by increasing

the maximum amount of conservation awards by distributing general

operating awards more broadly across high quality museums and by

assisting in program evaluation.

Amendment by Amendment Analysis

1. Eligibility for applying for General Operating Support (GOS)

grants.

Amendment 1 amends Sec. 1180.5 which states the eligibility

requirements that a museum must meet in order to be considered for a

grant from the Institute. The Institute proposes an additional criteria

for applicants to the General Operating Support program which would

prohibit a museum from applying if it had two consecutive awards in the

immediately preceding 2-year cycles, effective 1996. For example, if a

museum applied for and received a two-year GOS award in 1996 and

applied for and received a two-year GOS award in 1998, it would not be

eligible to apply for a third award in 2000, but would be eligible to

apply in 2001. However, if a museum applied for and received a two-year

GOS award in 1996, and either did not apply in 1998 or applied for but

did not receive an award in 1998, it would be eligible to apply for an

award in 1999. The result of this change will allow a higher number of

museums operating at high levels to benefit from the GOS program

awards, and therefore provide greater benefit. The criteria would apply

to applicants to the General Operating Support program only. The year

2000 would be the first deadline affected by this proposed rule.

2. Maximum awards for Conservation Project Support grants.

Amendment 2 revises Sec. 1180.20(f)(1) which states that IMS

normally makes a conservation award of no more than $25,000. The

Institute proposes to raise the amount to $50,000. This increase will

provide for the needs of museums to pursue more expensive projects to

implement the recommendations of general conservation surveys and of

institutional long range conservation plans.

3. Deleting ``Special Project'' from regulatory language.

Amendments 4 through 9 amend several regulations to remove

references to a category of assistance no longer available. The

Institute proposes to remove the term ``Special Project'' from the

sections of the regulations provided below. The ``Special Project''

grant program has not been offered by the Institute since 1984. These

changes have no impact on any other program and are made solely for

clarification. The following sections will have references to ``Special

Project'' removed: Secs. 1180.17, 1180.35, 1180.40 (reserved), 1180.41,

1180.45, 1180.48 through 1180.50, 1180.58 and 1180.59.

4. Requiring final reports from recipients of assessment grants.

Amendment 10 revises Sec. 1180.75(d) which states that a museum

receiving a grant for an assessment need not submit a financial report

or a performance report. The Institute intends to require reports from

grantees for assessments so that the Institute will be better able to

evaluate the effectiveness of assessment programs. The final reporting

period would be extended beyond the normal deadline of 90 days after

the close of the grant period to allow the museum to report on actions

taken as a result of the assessment.

Invitation to Comment

Interested persons are invited to submit comments and

recommendations regarding these proposed regulations. Written comments

and recommendations may be sent to the address given at the beginning

of this document. All comments submitted on or before May 5, 1995, will

be considered before the Director issues final regulations.

All comments submitted in response to these proposed regulations

will be available for public inspection, during and after the comment

period, at the Institute of Museum Services, room 510, 1100

Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC between the hours of 8:30 a.m.

and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday of each week except Federal

holidays.

Executive Order 12291

These proposed amendments have been reviewed in accordance with

Executive Order 12291. They are classified as non-major because they do

not meet the criteria for major regulations established in the Order.

List of Subjects in 45 CFR Part 1180

Grant programs, Museums, National Boards.

Dated: February 28, 1995.

Diane B. Frankel,

Director, Institute of Museum Services.

The Institute of Museum Services proposes to amend part 1180,

subchapter E of chapter XI of title 45 of the Code of Federal

Regulations as set forth below:

SUBCHAPTER E--INSTITUTE OF MUSEUM SERVICES

PART 1180--GRANTS REGULATIONS

1. The authority citation for part 1180 is revised to read as

follows:

Authority: 20 U.S.C. 961-969; Pub. L. 97-100, 95 Stat. 1414;

Pub. L. 97-394, 96 Stat. 1994; 29 U.S.C. 794.

1a. Section 1180.5 is amended by adding paragraph (f) to read as

follows:

Sec. 1180.5 Eligibility and burden of proof--Who may apply.

* * * * *

(f) In a given year, a museum that has not received two consecutive

General Operating Support awards in the immediately preceding two-year

cycles is eligible to apply to General Operating Support.

2. Section 1180.20 is amended by revising paragraph (f)(1) to read

as follows:

Sec. 1180.20 Guidelines and standards for conservation projects.

* * * * *

(f) Limits for Federal funding. (1) The normal maximum amount of a

Conservation Project Support grant will [[Page 12188]] be established

through a notice published in the Federal Register. Beginning in FY

1996, the normal maximum amount is $50,000. Unless otherwise provided

by law, if the Director determines that exceptional circumstance

warrant, the Director, consistent with the policy direction of the

Board, may award a conservation grant which obligates an amount in

Federal funds in excess of the normal maximum award. IMS may establish

a maximum award level for exceptional project grants for a particular

fiscal year through information made available in guidelines or other

material distributed to all applicants.

* * * * *

3. Section 1180.17 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 1180.17 Reports.

In its final reports a grantee shall briefly detail how the

expenditure of the grant funds has satisfied the proposed use of the

funds as stated in its General Operating Support application or has

accomplished the proposal as set forth in its application and has

served the purpose of the Act as reflected in the applicable evaluation

criteria in Sec. 1180.14.

Section 1180.35 is amended by revising paragraphs (a) and (b) to

read as follows:

Sec. 1180.35 Group applications.

(a) Eligible museums may apply as a group for a project grant.

(b) If a group of museums applies for a grant, the members of the

group shall either:

(1) Designate one member of the group to apply for the grant; or

(2) Establish a separate, eligible legal entity, consisting solely

of the museum group, to apply for the grant.

* * * * *

Sec. 1180.40 [Reserved]

5. Section 1180.40 is removed and reserved.

6. Section 1180.41 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as

follows:

Sec. 1180.41 The cost analysis; basis for grant amount.

(a) Before the Director sets the amount of a grant, a cost analysis

of the project is made which involves an examination of:

(1) The cost data in the detailed budget for the project;

(2) Specific elements of cost; and

(3) The necessity, reasonableness, and allowability under

applicable statutes and regulations.

* * * * *

7. Section 1180.45 is amended by revising the heading and paragraph

(a) to read as follows:

Sec. 1180.45 Use of consultants.

(a) Subject to Federal statutes and regulations, a grantee shall

adhere to its general policies and practices when it hires, uses, and

pays a consultant as part of the staff.

* * * * *

8. Sections 1180.48 through 1180.50 and 1180.58 are revised to read

as follows:

Sec. 1180.48 General conditions on publications.

(a) Content of materials. Subject to any specific requirements that

apply to its grant, a grantee may decide the format and content of

materials that it publishes or arranges to have published.

(b) Required Statement. The grantee shall ensure that any

publication that contains materials also contains the following

statement:

The contents of this (insert type of publication, e.g., book,

report, film) were developed in whole or in part under a grant from

the Institute of Museum Services. However, the contents do not

necessarily represent the policy of the Institute, and endorsement

by the Federal Government should not be assumed.

Sec. 1180.49 Copyright policy for grantees.

A grantee may copyright materials in accordance with government-

wide policy applicable to copyright of publications developed under

Federal grants.

Sec. 1180.50 Definition of ``materials.''

As used in Secs. 1180.48 through 1180.49, materials means a

copyrightable work developed in whole or in part with funds from a

grant from the Institute.

Sec. 1180.58 Records related to performance.

(a) A grantee shall keep records revealing progress and results

under the grant.

(b) The grantee shall use the records under paragraph (a) of this

section to:

(1) Determine progress in accomplishing objectives; and

(2) Revise those objectives, if necessary, and authorized under the

grant.

9. Section 1180.59 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as

follows:

Sec. 1180.59 Applicability.

(a) Subparts B and C (Secs. 1180.30 through 1180.58) apply to

General Operating Support assistance, except as otherwise provided in

these regulations.

* * * * *

10. Section 1180.75 is amended by revising paragraph (d) to read as

follows:

Sec. 1180.75 Funding and award procedures.

* * * * *

(d) A museum receiving assistance under this subpart must submit a

final financial and narrative report that evaluates the success of the

assessment and actions taken by the museum as a result of the

assessment. IMS may request the report be submitted up to 12 months

after the close of the grant period.

(20 U.S.C. 96-969)

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 95-5341 Filed 3-3-95; 8:45 am]

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