Consolidated State Plans Under Section 14302 of Title I of the Improving America's Schools Act

SUMMARY: The Department of Education proposes criteria for optional

State consolidated plans submitted under section 14302 of the

Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as recently

reauthorized by the Improving America's Schools Act, Pub. L. 103-382

(IASA). Submitting a consolidated plan will allow a State to obtain

funds under many Federal programs through a single plan, rather than

through separate and detailed program funding plans or applications.

The consolidated plan would explain how all of the resources of Federal

programs included in the plan would work together to promote the

State's educational goals for all students while effectively meeting

the needs of the programs' intended beneficiaries. To receive fiscal

year (FY) 1995 program funds, a State educational agency (SEA) would

need only to describe how it would develop its final plan over the

following year, and to submit basic information needed to ensure fiscal

accountability.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before February 13,

1995.

ADDRESSES: All comments should be addressed to Thomas W. Payzant,

Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education, U.S.

Department of Education, 600 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC

20202-6100. The Internet address for submitting comments is:

[email protected]. The fax number is (202) 205-0303.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William Wooten, Office of Elementary

and Secondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 600 Independence

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20202-6100. Telephone: (202) 260-1922. The

Internet address is: [email protected]. The fax number is

(202) 205-0303. Individuals who use a telecommunications device for the

deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-

800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through

Friday.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 14302 of the ESEA, as reauthorized

by Title I of the IASA, permits the Secretary to establish criteria

under which any SEA may obtain certain Federal program funds through a

single consolidated plan rather than through separate funding

applications or plans. As explained in section 14301, this consolidated

plan would enhance cross-program coordination, planning and service

delivery, and the integration of Federal program services with services

offered by States and localities as keys to increased student

achievement.

So that the development and use of consolidated plans can achieve

their maximum potential, the Secretary proposes to offer States a two-

phase process for completing their consolidated plans: (1) Submission

in the spring of 1995 of a relatively simple preliminary plan, followed

by (2) the State's development and submission the next year of a final

consolidated plan. This final plan would focus specifically on how the

Federal programs included in the plan, while still serving their

intended beneficiaries, would support State goals and education reform

strategies. In developing its consolidated plan, a State is encouraged

to consider the relationship of this plan to the State's overall reform

efforts, including efforts under the Goals 2000: Educate America Act or

the School-to-Work Opportunities Act. A State also is encouraged to

consider what waivers it may need to carry out its reforms effectively.

Finally, each State is encouraged to consider how its local educational

agencies (LEAs) and schools can tap the full potential of consolidated

plans at the local level through the authority offered to them under

section 14305 of the ESEA.

These provisions for development of consolidated State plans--

particularly when coupled with the Secretary's new waiver authority,

contained in section 14401 of the ESEA (as well as in the Goals 2000

and School-to-Work statutes) and other provisions of the IASA that

offer new opportunities for flexibility--also enable the Department to

refocus its administration of programs in ways that can better assist a

State in meeting its education goals and objectives. Indeed, the

information contained in a consolidated plan may help to clarify why an

SEA or LEA needs a waiver of certain program requirements in order to

improve student achievement. The Department will soon issue separate

guidance describing the process for obtaining waivers of programmatic

requirements under section 14401.

Development of a consolidated State plan, either in preliminary or

final form, is voluntary. It is the State's decision whether to submit

a consolidated plan, which of the eligible programs to include in it if

one is submitted, and whether to add to a final consolidated plan

programs that were not included in a preliminary plan. Moreover, an SEA

that submits a preliminary plan for FY 1995 could choose to forgo

development of the final consolidated plan during the following year,

and instead submit individual program plans or applications. Likewise,

an SEA that chooses for FY 1995 to submit individual program plans or

applications could, in any subsequent fiscal year, submit a final

consolidated plan.

Approval of a consolidated plan, whether in preliminary or final

form, permits the Secretary to award funds under the programs included

in the plan. Approval of a consolidated plan also eliminates the need

for an SEA, under those included programs, to submit separate program

applications or develop separate program planning documents that

otherwise would be required by the program statutes. Moreover, approval

of a consolidated plan establishes a different context for any

Departmental review of an SEA's administration of the included

programs.

The Secretary stresses that approval of a consolidated plan does

not alter the obligation of an SEA and its grantees to continue to

comply with all requirements of each program, including those that

would have been described in plan or application descriptions or

assurances under the statute. (See further discussion and examples

under ``Assurances'' to be submitted as part of the first-year

(preliminary) consolidated plan.) In addition, while an SEA that meets

the conditions of section 14201 of the ESEA may consolidate

administrative funds under specified programs, approval of a

consolidated State plan does not authorize commingling of program

funds. However, the Secretary is authorized to waive certain program

requirements under waiver provisions contained in the IASA, the Goals

2000: Educate America Act, and the School-to-Work Opportunities Act.

The remainder of this notice identifies the programs that might be

included in a consolidated plan, and proposed questions that a State

might address in both the preliminary and final consolidated plans.

Appendix A to this document contains the Department's preliminary

guidance on the consolidated plan; this guidance was provided to

members of the public who attended a Federal program conference

[[Page 3307]] in Baltimore, Maryland, on December 2, 1994. Subject to

review of the comments received on this proposal, the Secretary plans

to announce final criteria for consolidated State plans in February,

1995.

Programs That a State May Include in a Consolidated Plan

Section 14302 permits an SEA to include any of the following State-

administered programs in its consolidated State plan:

(1) Title I, Part A of the ESEA (LEA Program).

(2) Title I, Part B of the ESEA (Even Start Program).

(3) Title I, Part C of the ESEA (Migrant Education).

(4) Title I, Part D of the ESEA (Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk

Children).

(5) Title II of the ESEA (State and local programs) (Professional

Development).

(6) Title III, Part A, subpart 2 of the ESEA (Technology for

Education).

(7) Title IV, Part A (other than the Governor's Programs in section

4114) of the ESEA (Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities).

(8) Title VI of the ESEA (Innovative Education Program Strategies

(formerly Chapter 2)).

(9) State leadership programs under Title II of the Carl D. Perkins

Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act (Perkins Act).

(10) Programs under the Goals 2000: Educate America Act.

(11) Programs under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act.

In addition, under section 14302(a)(2)(F) of the ESEA, the

Secretary proposes to designate the following additional programs that

a State may include in a consolidated plan:

(12) Subtitle B of Title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless

Assistance Act (the Education for Homeless Children and Youth program)

(enacted in Title III, Part B of the IASA).

(13) All other State formula grant programs under the Perkins Act.

The Secretary is considering whether to designate Title VII, Part C

of the ESEA (the Emergency Immigrant Education Program) for possible

inclusion in the consolidated State plan, but is not proposing to do so

at this time in view of the significant relationship of this program to

other Federal initiatives for addressing immigration-related issues.

Certain programs that the statute specifically identifies for

possible inclusion in a consolidated State plan, such as the Technology

for Education program in Title III, Part A, subpart 2 of the ESEA, are

competitive, rather than formula, grant programs. These competitive

programs (and others that the Secretary later may designate) can

promote innovation in specific aspects of a State's reform effort, and

so can play an important role in a consolidated State plan for the

overall use of Federal program funds. On the other hand, competitive

grant programs present special challenges for consolidated plans; not

only must their applications be reviewed against competitive selection

criteria and processed on a longer time-line than is needed for formula

grant programs, but the programs often fund projects with a National

purpose. Until these competing principles can be better resolved, the

Secretary proposes that an SEA that includes a competitive grant

program in its consolidated State plan still will need to meet the

application content, selection criteria, and closing dates established

for that program.

As stated in the ``Invitation to Comment'' section of this notice,

the public is invited to suggest other grant programs, both formula and

discretionary, that should be available for inclusion in a consolidated

State plan, and how that plan can best accommodate these other

programs.

The Preliminary (First-Year) Consolidated Plan Descriptions

The preliminary consolidated plan for FY 1995 program funds would

identify the Federal programs that the plan covers, and address the

following three areas with respect to the programs included in it:

1. Goals or Objectives

What are the goals and objectives that the SEA hopes to achieve

through the development and use of a consolidated program plan, and how

do they relate to the needs of the intended beneficiaries of programs

included in the plan? In answering these questions, include:

Ways in which consolidated plans for use of Federal

program funds are already being developed and used, and the impediments

to success that are now most evident.

2. Process for Developing the Final Consolidated Plan

What process and timelines will the SEA use during the following

year to develop its final consolidated plan? Include the State's

strategies for--

Coordinating the planning for the use of Federal program

funds with the State's overall education reform efforts (including

planning under Goals 2000 and School-to-Work for participating States).

Bringing together all key individuals--Governors, State

program officials, LEA and school administrators, teachers, adult

education administrators, parents, and others who can play a key role

in coordinating and integrating each program included in the plan with

State and locally funded activities--in the development and review of

the final consolidated State plan.

3. Fiscal Accountability

To ensure fiscal accountability and the availability of information

that the Secretary needs to distribute program funds, provide for each

included program, where applicable--

The amount of funds provided under each program that will

be used to carry out State-level activities (whether or not those

activities are performed by the SEA), and a general description of how

these funds will be used.

The procedures and criteria that the SEA will use to

distribute program funds within the State where the program statute

provides no in-State funding formula. (Programs that the Secretary thus

far has identified as having no statutory in-State funding formula are

the following: Even Start, Migrant Education, Neglected, Delinquent, or

At-Risk Children (the local agency program in Part D, Subpart 2), Safe

and Drug-Free Schools and Communities, Innovative Education, McKinney

Homeless Assistance, and the Perkins Act, Title III.)

The amount of funds, if any, provided under each program

that the State would consolidate for State administration under section

14201 of the ESEA, along with a statement confirming that the SEA has

determined that a majority of its resources come from non-Federal

sources.

Assurances

In addition, an SEA also would provide in its preliminary plan a

set of assurances that include the following:

Those required by section 14306 of the ESEA, which are

repeated in Appendix B.

A general assurance that, unless and until these

requirements are waived, the SEA and its subgrantees will continue to

comply with all operational requirements of each program, including

those that the program statute may express in terms of application or

plan descriptions or assurances.

Example 1: An SEA includes the Migrant Education Program (MEP)

(Title I, Part C of the ESEA) in its preliminary

[[Page 3308]] consolidated plan. The SEA does not need to submit a

State application, or any of the descriptions described in section 1304

of Title I, Part C. It also does not need to prepare the separate

comprehensive service-delivery plan, as otherwise required for the MEP

under section 1306(a) of the ESEA; that MEP plan is not required

because it is addressed within the consolidated State plan. However,

the SEA's receipt of MEP funds under an approved, preliminary

consolidated plan still would require the SEA to develop and carry out

activities for migratory children as identified in the comprehensive

plan requirements of section 1306(a).

Example 2: An SEA includes the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and

Communities program (Title IV, Part A, of the ESEA) in its preliminary

consolidated plan. The SEA does not need to submit the State

application under section 4112 of Title IV, Part A, or any of the

application descriptions, such as the description contained in section

4112(b)(4) of how the SEA will coordinate its program activities with

the Governor's drug and violence prevention programs funded under

section 4114, and prevention efforts of other State agencies. However,

the SEA's receipt of Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities program

funds under an approved, preliminary consolidated plan still would

require the SEA to meet all applicable program requirements, including

coordinating its program with relevant programs and activities of the

Governor and other State agencies.

Example 3: An SEA includes the Title I, Part A (ESEA) program in

its preliminary consolidated plan. The SEA does not need to submit the

State plan, or any of the State plan descriptions described in section

1111 of Title I, Part A.

However, the SEA's receipt of Title I, Part A program funds under

an approved, preliminary consolidated plan still would require the SEA

to carry out all of the requirements contained in section 1111 with

regard to standards and assessments and other provisions to support

teaching and learning.

The Secretary is considering whether the final instructions for the

preliminary consolidated plan should include a list, program-by-

program, of all application and plan descriptions and assurances that

the SEA's general assurance would cover in the absence of a waiver.

Relationship to the Goals 2000 and School-to-Work Initiatives

The Goals 2000 statute provides States and communities with an

opportunity to strengthen and broaden their education reform efforts by

developing comprehensive plans to enable all children to learn to

challenging academic standards. The School-to-Work Opportunities

initiative may also play a significant role in a State's education

reform efforts by helping to establish transition systems for youth

that integrate challenging academic content with high quality work-

based learning experience leading to postsecondary education and

career-oriented entry into the workforce. A State's participation in

these initiatives is voluntary, as it is with all Federal programs.

States that choose to participate in Goals 2000 and School-to-Work are

encouraged to integrate their development of consolidated State plans

under section 14302 of the ESEA with their Goals 2000 and School-to-

Work plans and activities. However, since these initiatives are

designed as possible frameworks for the use of local, State and Federal

resources to support a State's overall education reform strategy, the

Secretary is not proposing that submission of a consolidated State

plan, in either preliminary or final form, would alter application or

planning requirements under Goals 2000 or School-to-Work.

The Final (Second-Year) Consolidated State Plan

The final consolidated plan will provide an opportunity for SEAs to

consider how the resources of those Federal programs included in the

plan can be used directly to support their States' overall improvement

strategies. The following proposal for the content of this final plan

reflects the Department's current thinking on what issues and questions

a State might address in a final, second-year plan. After reviewing

comment on this notice, the Department intends to continue

collaboration with the public on modifications that may be needed, as

well as on the formulation of additional examples that can better

illustrate how States might address the questions presented.

Possible Issues To Be Addressed in a Final (Second-Year) Consolidated

Plan

1. What is the SEA's vision (including specific goals) for

improving its educational system throughout the State? How do these

goals relate directly to raising student academic achievement, geared

to challenging academic standards, of all children who benefit from

Federal programs included in the consolidated plan? In answering these

questions, the State must address the following:

How the State will meet the standards and assessment

requirements of Title 1, Part A, section 1111(b) of the ESEA to ensure

the use of challenging academic content standards and high-quality

assessments aligned with the standards.

What goals and performance indicators will the State

establish to determine the effectiveness of programs included in the

plan (e.g., improved professional development based upon realigned

teacher certification requirements under the Eisenhower Professional

Development program (Title II, Part B of the ESEA), or additional

performance indicators for safe and drug-free schools under the Safe

and Drug-Free Schools and Communities program (Title IV, Part A of the

ESEA).

2. How will the Federal resources of those programs support, on the

basis of identified needs, State and local efforts to reach the State's

specific goals and enable intended program beneficiaries to reach the

challenging academic standards established in the State? (The Secretary

recognizes that, given varying SEA responsibilities for the programs

that a State might include in its consolidated plan, not all of the

issues raised by this question may be equally relevant to individual

programs.)

Example 1: If a State determines that one of its goals to improve

education is increasing the percentage of youth who complete high

school, the State might describe how Federal program funds fit into

State efforts to reach that goal.

Example 2: If the State has established overall goals for

professional development, it should describe how it will use resources

(not limited to Title II, ESEA) to reach these goals.

In answering Question 2, a State should consider addressing such

critical areas as the following:

How the needs of children served by the program are

identified.

The most significant barriers to more effective use of

Federal funds, and how the State and individual programs will work

together to overcome these barriers.

Any waivers of Federal statutes or regulations the State

may need to support its consolidated plan.

How program administrators in the State will maintain the

kind of communication and coordination needed to draw effectively on

all Federal resources as outlined in the plan.

How program administrators throughout the State will make

the strategies outlined in the consolidated plan part of their daily

work. [[Page 3309]]

If a State chooses to consolidate its use of State

administration funds (under section 14201 of the ESEA), how the

consolidation of these funds relates to the consolidated State plan

under section 14302.

Any critical timelines and benchmarks that will guide

related and ongoing activities.

3. How will the State enable interested local educational agencies,

in accordance with section 14305 of the ESEA, to develop their own

consolidated plans for the use of Federal funds, and help to develop

the capacity of LEAs and schools to use all of their funds to support

high academic achievement for all intended program beneficiaries?

4. For an individual school whose activities are supported with

Federal funds, how can the needs of its students be better met through

implementation of the consolidated plan? The answer to this question

might illustrate how a State's thinking about the usefulness of a

consolidated plan is rooted in the daily activities of schools and

students.

An SEA also would provide an update on any significant changes in

the procedures for distribution of funds, as well as in the amounts and

general uses of funds reserved for administrative and State-level

activities, from those described in the preliminary consolidated plan.

Review of Consolidated Plans

The Secretary proposes that the State's preliminary consolidated

plan be approved without peer review, but is strongly considering using

a peer review process that involves the assistance and advice of State

officials, and others with relevant expertise, for approving the final

State consolidated plan.

Public Participation Requirements

Section 14303(7) of the ESEA requires, as one of the SEA's general

assurances, that ``before the [consolidated plan] was submitted to the

Secretary, the State has afforded a reasonable opportunity for public

comment on the plan * * * and has considered such comment.'' (This

assurance applies both to consolidated State plans under section 14302

and to all individual State plans or applications submitted under

individual programs.)

Invitation to Comment

The Secretary invites comments from all interested members of the

public on this proposal for the content of the consolidated State plan.

The Secretary is particularly interested in receiving comments on

whether--

There are additional grant programs, either formula or

discretionary, that the Secretary should consider designating for

possible inclusion in a consolidated State plan, and how that plan can

best accommodate these programs.

The proposed contents of the preliminary (first-year)

consolidated plan are reasonable and whether they need to be modified

or clarified.

The issues proposed to be addressed in the final, (second-

year) consolidated plan are clearly expressed and properly formulated,

and what additional examples, if any, should be included to clarify the

kind of information that the State would need to provide.

All comments submitted in response to this notice will be available

for public inspection, during and after the comment period, in room

4000, Portals Building, 1250 Maryland Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20202.

Dated: January 6, 1995.

Thomas W. Payzant,

Assistant Secretary for Elementary and Secondary Education.

Appendix A--Department of Education Preliminary Guidance Document: The

IASA Consolidated Plan (December 1, 1994)

(Note: This document was distributed to those who attended the

Office of Elementary and Secondary Education/Office of Bilingual

Education and Minority Languages Affairs conference in Baltimore,

Maryland, on December 2, 1994. It is intended to provide useful

background information.)

A New Approach

The recently enacted Improving America's Schools Act

(IASA) stresses, in a variety of ways, the need to rethink how

Federal, State and local education programs can fit together into a

unified system that focuses on one principal goal: Enabling all

students to achieve to challenging standards. The Act reinforces the

Federal government's limited supporting role in this effort. At the

same time, it encourages the Secretary of Education to remove

barriers to State and local efforts to meet student educational

needs. Indeed, the IASA permits the Secretary to take steps to

ensure that the way in which the Department administers its programs

is itself a part of, rather than a hindrance to, educational reform.

The IASA authorizes the Secretary to waive statutes or

regulations that impede efforts to increase the quality of student

instruction or improve student academic performance. It also permits

the Secretary to eliminate the need for States to submit to the

Department a myriad of different program funding applications.

Instead, the IASA authorizes submission of a single consolidated

plan that, for the programs that it covers, focuses on cross-program

coordination, integration of services and improved service delivery

as keys to student achievement. This authority extends to State

formula grant programs in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act

(ESEA),\1\ as well as to the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, the

School-to-Work Opportunities Act, and State leadership programs

under the Perkins Vocational Education Act.

\1\The ESEA was reauthorized in Title I of the Improving

America's Schools Act.

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

To make educational reform truly comprehensive, its

reach must extend beyond challenging content standards and new

teaching methods to the very way in which we administer our many

programs. A consolidated plan can become a driving force for

thinking about how all Federal, State and local activities might

work together in a common and coherent effort. Indeed, this

consolidated plan, when used along with other means of promoting

State systemic reform under the IASA, Goals 2000 and the School-to-

Work Act, can go a long way toward helping all of us change the way

in which we do business, so that student academic achievement,

rather than individual program administration, truly is the focus of

our work.

The Department's Strategy

General Approach to Consolidated Planning. The new authority

that the IASA gives to the Secretary to approve a consolidated

program plan offers an unprecedented opportunity to tap the full

potential of Federal programs. This authority can convert the

current program-by-program application process into a process for

renewed thinking about how these programs collectively can fit

together, notwithstanding their distinct purposes and different

beneficiaries, to increase the quality of student instruction and

the level of student academic performance.\2\ A truly consolidated

application--one that is more than a repackaged compilation of even

the best individual program applications--can reflect the kind of

broad, creative planning effort that is needed to complement other

educational reform efforts and strategies.

\2\Congress expressed the purpose of consolidating existing

program applications into a single plan in section 14301 of the

ESEA: ``To improve teaching and learning by encouraging greater

cross-program coordination, planning, and service delivery under

this Act and enhanced integration of programs under this Act with

educational activities carried out with State and local funds.''

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

The Department is working hard to develop criteria for a State's

consolidated plan that can help State and local officials, teachers

and other school staff, and parents begin to take advantage of the

opportunities that a consolidated plan presents. Because the law was

only recently passed, because the issues are complex, and because

extensive collaboration with stakeholders is required, any decisions

thus far are preliminary. However, knowing the substantial interest

that the prospect of a consolidated plan has generated, and the

reality that State planning under the IASA already has begun, the

Department wants to offer whatever guidance that it currently can

provide about what a plan might contain and how it might be

developed. The Department expects to provide more information in

coming weeks.

[[Page 3310]]

Because a spring 1995 deadline for plan submission and review

would not permit full public discussion of how to achieve the

maximum potential of consolidated planning, the Department intends

to implement the IASA's consolidated plan provision in two stages.

States choosing to submit a consolidated plan as the basis for its

FY 1995 program funding will only have to prepare a first year

``preliminary'' plan. During the following year, these States would

develop and submit a final, comprehensive, consolidated plan that

will be the basis for program funding for FY 1996 and beyond. Each

State that submits a consolidated plan under this process may choose

among the programs that are eligible for inclusion under the Act.

Submitting individual program applications for FY 1995 does not

preclude a State from submitting a full comprehensive plan the

following year.

The First Year Consolidated Plan. The preliminary consolidated

plan for FY 1995 funding would describe--for programs that the State

expects the final plan to cover--how the State will develop a

specific and comprehensive plan to support the kinds of cross-

program coordination, program integration and effective modes of

service delivery that will better enable all children to achieve to

challenging standards. This preliminary plan also would address

certain program-by-program application requirements that the

Secretary determines must be reviewed before FY 1995 grant awards

are made. The Secretary intends to keep the number of these

additional requirements that must be addressed in the preliminary

plan to the minimum needed for basic accountability. The Secretary

plans to announce these minimum-content requirements by mid-

February, 1995.

State Planning Activities During the First Year. During the

first year after the preliminary plan is approved, States would have

the opportunity to continue their consolidated planning process. In

doing so, States would be able, among other things, to: (1) engage

in consolidated planning that is integrated with other broad-ranging

and systemic efforts such as those under Goals 2000 and the School-

to-Work Acts; and (2) request from the Department--as they can do at

any time--waivers of program requirements that they may need to

implement their consolidated plans effectively.

During this planning period, States also would be responsible

for implementing the requirements of their individual programs

whether or not those requirements were addressed in the preliminary

consolidated plan.

The Final Consolidated Plan. On the basis of their comprehensive

planning, States would develop and submit to the Secretary their

final, comprehensive, consolidated plans. The Department soon will

begin working with interested States and others to develop guidance

on how consolidated State planning can support an integrated,

Statewide service delivery system that promotes higher student

achievement. These plans also might need to include some minimum

program-specific information that will be determined by the

Secretary in close consultation with the field. Approval of this

comprehensive plan--along with any waivers that may be needed to

implement it--would be the basis on which funds for covered programs

would be awarded for FY 1996 and beyond.

Questions and Answers

The following information tries to address significant questions

about the Department's strategy for implementing the consolidated

plan provisions in the IASA.

Q1. What programs may a State include in its consolidated plan?

(Note: The following answer contains both a limited number of

minor clarifications to the list of programs that the statute

specifically identifies for possible inclusion in a consolidated

State plan, and those additional programs that the Secretary is

proposing to designate for possible inclusion in the plan. These

clarifications and additions, which are reflected in the foregoing

notice, were made after release of the guidance document.)

A1. ESEA programs may include: Title I, Part A (LEA Program);

Title I, Part B (Even Start); Title I, Part C (Migrant Education);

Title I, Part D (Neglected, Delinquent, or At-Risk Children); Title

II (State and local programs) (Professional Development); Title III,

Part A, subpart 2 (Technology for Education); Title IV, Part A

(other than the Governor's Programs in section 4114) (Safe and Drug-

Free Schools and Communities); and Title VI (Innovative Education

Program Strategies (formerly Chapter 2)). A State also may include

the following non-ESEA programs: State leadership programs under

Title II of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology

Education Act; Programs under the Goals 2000: Educate America Act;

and Programs under the School-to-Work Opportunities Act. (See

section 14302, and the definition of ``covered program'' in section

14101 of the ESEA.)

The IASA authorizes the Secretary to designate other programs

that may be included as well. The Secretary proposes to designate

Subtitle B of Title VII of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless

Assistance Act (the Education for Homeless Children and Youth

program) (enacted in Title III, Part B of the IASA), and all other

State formula grant programs under the Perkins Act. The Secretary

plans to provide a final list of designated programs by mid-

February.

Q2. Will States that submit a consolidated plan to the

Department have the option of choosing which among these programs to

include?

A2. Yes, selection of programs to include in a consolidated

plan, like the decision to submit a consolidated plan at all, is

entirely at the discretion of the State.

Q3. Will a State have to submit any other funding application

for programs that are included in its consolidated plan?

A3. No. For programs that a State includes in its consolidated

plan, that plan will substitute for any application requirements

that are contained in the individual program statutes.

Q4. Since the ESEA authorizes the Secretary to approve many

individual program applications for the duration of the Act, why

would review and approval of the consolidated plan be performed in

two stages?

A4. Section 14301 of the ESEA, unlike many of the application

requirements for individual programs, does not require the Secretary

to approve a consolidated plan for any particular period of time.

Rather, it gives the Secretary broad authority to ``establish

procedures and criteria'' that will govern the process for

submitting the consolidated plan. The Secretary believes that a two-

stage process, with submission of an initial plan in the spring of

calendar year 1995, followed later by submission of a more

comprehensive plan, is the best and most practical way to promote

the broad and critical thinking at all levels that is needed to

develop a strong consolidated plan.

Q5. Could funds awarded under a consolidated plan be co-mingled

and treated as if they were from one funding source?

A5. No, unless the State receives a waiver of existing

requirements that govern the way it accounts for funds--perhaps as

part of the State's overall reform strategy under Goals 2000.

Otherwise, while the Secretary's approval of a consolidated plan

permits the Department to award funds under each program that the

plan covers, it does not change the existing responsibility of

States to account for those funds separately.

Q6. Would the Secretary's approval of a consolidated plan in any

way change the basic purposes or beneficiaries of programs that the

plan covers?

A6. No.

Q7. For those programs that a State includes in its consolidated

plan, would the State be expected to address any application

requirements that are contained in individual program statutes?

A7. Yes. In order to administer programs properly, a State's

consolidated plan also would need to address certain application

requirements under individual program statutes that the Secretary

determines must be reviewed before program grant awards are made.

Q8. If program application requirements are not addressed in the

consolidated plan, do these requirements still have to be met?

A8. Yes. Unless a State receives a waiver of a requirement under

the applicable authority in the IASA, Goals 2000, or School-to-Work

Acts, the Secretary's approval of a consolidated plan eliminates the

need to provide further application information, but does not affect

the State's responsibility to meet requirements identified in

program statutes.

Q9. Can a State that already has an approved plan under Goals

2000 use the plan as the basis of its IASA consolidated plan?

A9. Yes. In fact, the Department would encourage it to do so.

Q10. Will there be discussion with the public about the specific

content and program-by-program information required to be included

in the consolidated plan?

A10. Yes. Section 14302(b) of the Act requires the Secretary to

collaborate with SEAs, and, as appropriate, with other State

agencies, LEAs, public and nonprofit organizations and institutions,

private [[Page 3311]] schools, and representatives of parents,

students and teachers in implementing consolidated plans. Many

officials, agencies and organizations at all levels are interested

in the potential benefits of developing consolidated plans, and the

Department strongly desires to include all those interested in the

discussion of what plans should contain. The Department likely will

use a range of direct and indirect means of conveying information

and soliciting reaction.

Q11. When does the Department anticipate that State and local

officials and others will receive specific instructions about what

to include in the first-year consolidated plan, and the time-line

for submission and review?

A11. The Department is aware that early and careful planning

about the content of good first-year consolidated plans will require

early notice about their expected content. The Department intends to

distribute more information on the content of consolidated plans

during January, so that States have sufficient time to (1) think

carefully about how a consolidated plan can propel new dynamic

thinking about real program coordination (2) how [sic] their

consolidated planning supports reform strategies that they may be

developing under Goals 2000, and (3) prepare a proposed plan and

solicit and review public comment on its content if they choose to

submit a consolidated plan.

The Department expects to issue final guidance on the content

and format of the preliminary consolidated plan by mid-February, as

well to announce any other programs that may be included in it.

While no schedule for submission and review of preliminary plans has

yet been developed, the Department would like that schedule to be

the same as schedules established for submission and approval of

individual FY 1995 program applications.

Q12. Does the IASA contain any requirement that a State discuss

the content of a preliminary consolidated plan with the public

before submitting it to the Secretary?

A12. Yes. The Act requires a State to offer a reasonable

opportunity for the public to comment on its consolidated plan, and

to consider that comment, before submitting the plan to the

Secretary. This requirement would apply both to the preliminary

consolidated plans and to the final consolidated plans. Public

comment on a consolidated plan does not necessarily, by itself, meet

any other individual program requirements for public comment.

Appendix B--General Assurances Applicable to Each Program Covered by

the Preliminary (First Year) Consolidated Plan

Each program will be administered in accordance with

all applicable statutes, regulations, program plans, and

applications.

The control of funds provided under each program and

title to property acquired with program funds will be in a public

agency, in a nonprofit private agency, institution, or organization,

or in an Indian tribe if the law authorizing the program provides

for assistance to these entities.

The public agency, nonprofit private agency,

institution, or organization, or Indian tribe will administer the

funds and property to the extent required by the authorizing law.

The State will adopt and use proper methods of

administering each program, including--

(A) The enforcement of any obligations imposed by law on

agencies, institutions, organizations, and other recipients

responsible for carrying out each program;

(B) The correction of deficiencies in program operations that

are identified through audits, monitoring, or evaluation; and

(C) The adoption of written procedures for the receipt and

resolution of complaints alleging violations of law in the

administration of each program.

The State will cooperate in carrying out any evaluation

of each program conducted by or for the Secretary or other Federal

officials.

The State will use fiscal control and fund

accountability procedures that will ensure proper disbursement of,

and accounting for, Federal funds paid to the State under each

program.

The State will--

(A) Make reports to the Secretary as may be necessary to enable

the Secretary to perform the Secretary's duties under each program;

and

(B) Maintain records, provide information to the Secretary, and

afford access to the records as the Secretary may find necessary to

carry out the Secretary's duties.

The State has afforded a reasonable opportunity for

public comment on the plan and has considered this comment.

[FR Doc. 95-868 Filed 1-12-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4000-01-P