AmeriCorps, $272,752,000 total funding

Purpose of this program:

AmeriCorps is the cornerstone of the Corporation's national service programs. AmeriCorps addresses pressing education, public safety, human, and environmental needs of our Nation's communities by encouraging Americans to serve either part or full-time. AmeriCorps programs have four goals: 1) Getting things done by providing services with direct and demonstrable results; 2) strengthen communities and uniting individuals of different backgrounds in a common effort to improve their communities); 3) encourage responsibility through service and civic education (AmeriCorps enables members to see themselves as leaders and problem solvers and fulfill their responsibilities to their communities); and 4) expand opportunities in return for devoting a year of their lives to national service. AmeriCorps members may receive education awards for qualified postsecondary education expenses or to pay off qualified student loans.

94.006 AMERICORPS

FEDERAL AGENCY
CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE

AUTHORIZATION
National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended.

OBJECTIVES
AmeriCorps is the cornerstone of the Corporation's national service programs. AmeriCorps addresses pressing education, public safety, human, and environmental needs of our Nation's communities by encouraging Americans to serve either part or full-time. AmeriCorps programs have four goals: 1) Getting things done by providing services with direct and demonstrable results; 2) strengthen communities and uniting individuals of different backgrounds in a common effort to improve their communities); 3) encourage responsibility through service and civic education (AmeriCorps enables members to see themselves as leaders and problem solvers and fulfill their responsibilities to their communities); and 4) expand opportunities in return for devoting a year of their lives to national service. AmeriCorps members may receive education awards for qualified postsecondary education expenses or to pay off qualified student loans.

TYPES OF ASSISTANCE
Project Grants.

USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS
Funds must be used to operate or plan national and community service programs.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applicant Eligibility
States, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Tribes, Territories, national nonprofit organizations, professional corps, and multi-State organizations may apply.

Beneficiary Eligibility
States, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Tribes, Territories, national nonprofit organizations, professional corps, and multi-State organizations will benefit.

Credentials/Documentation
None.

APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS

Preapplication Coordination
This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.

Application Procedure
Contact the Corporation for specific information.

Award Procedure
Contact the Corporation for specific award information.

Deadlines
Contact the Corporation for deadline dates.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
The time ranges from 2 to 3 months.

Appeals
None.

Renewals
None.

ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS

Formula and Matching Requirements
Fifteen percent living allowances for AmeriCorps members; 33 percent operating and support expenses must be matched. (The funds are allocated as follows: 1) State formula programs. One-third of the fiscal year AmeriCorps funds will be allocated to States according to a population based formula; 2) State competitive programs. At least one-third of the fiscal year AmeriCorps funds will be distributed to programs that are first selected by the States and then submitted to the Corporation for competitive consideration; 3) National direct. Remaining fiscal year funds will be distributed directly to programs operated by national nonprofit organizations, professional corps and programs operating in more than one State; and 4) Set-asides are estimated at two percent of the fiscal year AmeriCorps funds. Set-aside for Indian Tribes and Territories, one percent each.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
A time frame has not been established.

POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS

Reports
As required by the Law.

Audits
Audits must be performed as required by the Law.

Records
All records necessary to perform a proper audit must be retained.

FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Account Identification
95-2720-0-1-506.

Obligations
(Grants) FY 05 $287,680,000; FY 06 est $264,830,000; and FY 07 est $258,960,000.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance
The anticipated program grant sizes (excluding planning grants) will range from approximately $200,000 for State formula programs to $3,000,000 for National Directs.

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS
In the 2006-2007 program year, about 67,350 Americans of all ages will serve in AmeriCorps projects. The Corporation has identified four issue areas: education, public safety, human needs and environment. The vast majority of AmeriCorps projects funded will work within these priority areas with a special emphasis on children and youth.

REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE
As described in the Law. Contact the Corporation's headquarters office for further details.

INFORMATION CONTACTS

Regional or Local Office
A list has been included in Appendix IV of the Catalog. State commissions should also be contacted.

Headquarters Office
Corporation for National and Community Service, 1201 New York Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20525. Telephone: (202) 606-6715.

Web Site Address
http://www.nationalservice.org

RELATED PROGRAMS
None.

EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS
AmeriCorps members serve in area elementary schools as teaching assistants, tutors, mentors, and role models. AmeriCorps members develop and lead after school programs, work with community volunteers to develop community service projects, assist in immunization projects, renovate housing in low-income areas, tutor elementary children, and staff a crisis help-line for parents of at-risk children; work to improve relationships between community youth and local law enforcement officials by performing outreach, developing public safety instructional materials, conducting conflict resolution classes, and developing crime watch programs. AmeriCorps members have worked to transform a city sludge farm into a nature preserve, restore a polluted swamp to a thriving natural lake, test area drinking water, and create environmental public service announcements.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS
Criteria are contained in the application guidelines.

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Americans With Disabilities Act Technical Assistance Program, $16,077,000 total funding

Purpose of this program:

To ensure that public accommodations and commercial facilities and State and local governments learn of the requirements of Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and acquire the knowledge needed to comply voluntarily with these requirements.


16.108 AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

(ADA)

FEDERAL AGENCY
CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

AUTHORIZATION
Americans with Disabilities Act, Public Law 101-336, Section 506.

OBJECTIVES
To ensure that public accommodations and commercial facilities and State and local governments learn of the requirements of Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and acquire the knowledge needed to comply voluntarily with these requirements.

TYPES OF ASSISTANCE
Dissemination of Technical Information; Training; Investigation of Complaints; Project Grants.

USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS
Grants limited to the provision of technical assistance and educational activities that have a wide impact, including the development and dissemination of materials, the conduct of seminars, conferences, and training, and the provision of technical assistance on a state, regional or national basis depending on the funding priorities announced each year. Because the grant program is educational in nature, the Department does not fund projects to research or resolve issues that are outside the scope of the Department's current ADA regulations and court interpretations. The program is not intended to fund or support site- specific compliance implementation (e.g., funding to make specific facilities more accessible), or to fund or support inspections, reviews, or tests to determine whether an entity is meeting its compliance obligations. The program does not provide funding to help people with disabilities become more productive or acquire services they need because of their disability.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applicant Eligibility
Nonprofit organizations, including trade and professional associations or their subsidiaries, organizations representing State and local governments or their employees, other organizations representing entities covered by the ADA, State and local governments agencies, national and State-based organizations representing persons with disabilities, and individuals.

Beneficiary Eligibility
The target audiences of funded grants will include State and local governments, businesses and nonprofit organizations that operate public accommodations and commercial facilities, and individuals who want information about their rights or responsibilities under the ADA.

Credentials/Documentation
Not applicable.

APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS

Preapplication Coordination
None. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.

Application Procedure
When funds are available, a notice of solicitation of grant applications is published in Federal Register. Applications are typically submitted in 45 to 60 days prior to award. Solicitation requires that the following forms be submitted with the application: SF 424 and 424A Application for Federal Assistance; Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Form 4000-3 (attached to SF 424); OJP Form 4061/6 (3-91); certifications regarding lobbying, debarment, suspension, and other responsibility matters; and Drug-Free Workplace Requirement; OJP Form 7120/1 (1/85), Accounting System and Financial Capability Questionnaire.

Award Procedure
Final award decisions are made by the Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division. Civil Rights Division Program personnel receive and review proposals and make recommendations to the Assistant Attorney General. All grants are made directly to applicants. No State Plan required.

Deadlines
Variable. Announced in the solicitation published in the Federal Register.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
The range is 60-120 days.

Appeals
None.

Renewals
None.

ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS

Formula and Matching Requirements
Not applicable.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
Normally 12 months. Release by Letter of Credit and as required.

POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS

Reports
Quarterly financial (SF 269A (Rev. 4/88)) and program (OJP 4587/1 (Rev. 2/90)) reports.

Audits
Grants may be audited by the Office of Justice Programs using standard audit procedure mandated by GAO.

Records
Organization financial audits for each calendar year in which grant was effective.

FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Account Identification
15-0128-0-1-752.

Obligations
(Grants) FY 06 $0; FY 07 $0; and FY 08 est $0. (Salaries and Expenses) FY 06 est $16,626,000; FY 07 est $17,400,000; and FY 08 est $17,973,000.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance
Not available.

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS
In FY 2006, DRS entered a consent decree to improve the accessibility of Detroit's fixed route public bus systems and negotiated nationwide consent decrees with the country's largest movie theater chains to provide comparable lines of sight for patrons who use wheelchairs in stadium style movie theaters. DRS joined a settlement agreement with Washington Hospital Center and private plaintiffs to provide accessible hospital rooms and equipment to individuals with disabilities. It resolved by consent decree a lawsuit alleging that Royal Oak, Michigan, violated the ADA by denying Easter Seals a land use permit needed to relocate a day facility, Dreams Unlimited Clubhouse, that provides support services for adults with severe and persistent mental illness. DOJ entered into an agreement with Ticketmaster, Inc., to make its ticketing services more accessible for people with disabilities; required a Missouri nursing home, by consent decree, to pay damages to a nurses aide allegedly fired because of HIV disease and to adopt policies to prevent HIV discrimination in its employment practices; entered a consent decree that resolves allegations that Town Sports International, Inc., excluded a child from one of its summer camps because of her diabetes in violation of the ADA. The Department reached two comprehensive settlement agreements with the University of Chicago and Colorado College, the first under an initiative to review private colleges and universities, including proprietary schools. Both agreements address a wide array of issues and require the schools to ensure increased access to their campuses for students, faculty, and visitors particularly those with mobility, hearing, and vision disabilities. The Department also entered into a settlement agreement with NPC International, Inc. which operates approximately 800 Pizza Hut restaurants in 25 states and is the largest single franchisee of Pizza Hut restaurants in the United States. Formal settlement agreements were secured under Project Civic Access to ensure that the local government programs of 139 communities were accessible to a broad range of people with disabilities, bringing the number of agreements reached under this initiative to 146 through FY 2006. Much of the Department's enforcement effort focuses on resolution without litigation or formal agreements. For example, under a contract the Department refers complaints to professional mediators who have been trained in the legal requirements of the ADA. This has resulted in many mediated agreements. The Department's successful enforcement and educational efforts are detailed in quarterly reports published by the Section and available online. The Technical Assistance Program, mandated under Section 506 of the ADA, provides answers to questions and free publications to businesses, state and local governments, people with disabilities, and the general public. In FY 2006, more than 46,000 calls to the ADA Information Line were answered by ADA Specialists who assisted callers in applying the ADA to their own unique situations. The Section develops and disseminates free ADA publications, provides training and information at meetings nationwide, and carries out a variety of outreach and educational initiatives to reach audiences affected by the ADA. The Section's technical assistance publications range from detailed technical assistance manuals to basic Question-and-Answer booklets and illustrated guides addressing specific topics. Publications can be obtained 24 hours a day through a free fax-on-demand service or through the Section's ADA Website. This web site, one of the top five in the Department, received more than 49 million visits to its pages and graphics in FY 2006. The Section also chairs an ADA Technical Assistance Coordinating Committee and works with other agencies to coordinate technical assistance activities nationwide.
In FY 2006, the Section Created Expanding Your Market, a new series of concise, reproducible documents offering resources for businesses working to improve access and everyday examples of how accessibility can serve diverse market segments. The first four publications in the series are titled Customers with Disabilities Mean Business, Tax Incentives for Businesses, Accessibility Benefits Older Adult Customers and Building a Diverse Customer Base. The Section participated in more than 70 speaking and outreach events reaching over 200,000 people in FY 2006, including sending staff to distribute information and answer questions at nine national conferences and one state fair to promote public awareness of the ADA. The Section also publishes annually an article about the ADA-related tax credits and deductions in an IRS newsletter that reached seven million businesses nationwide. In FY 2006, the ADA Business Connection conducted four Leadership meetings in Washington, D.C., Boca Raton, FL, Chicago, IL, and Albuquerque, NM. This initiative, headed by the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, seeks to improve access to goods and services and increase employment of people with disabilities by fostering increased understanding of ADA requirements within the business community and increased dialogue and cooperation between the business and disability communities.

REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE
Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 25980-25983, June 5, 1991. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 13797-13208, March 15, 1993, and Federal Register 15523, March 23, 1993. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 29160-29168, June 3, 1994. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 28484-28489, May 31, 1995. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 25744-25749, May 22, 1996.

INFORMATION CONTACTS

Regional or Local Office
None.

Headquarters Office
Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section, Washington, DC 20530. Telephone: (800) 514- 0301 (Voice) (800) 514-0383 (TDD). Contact: Office of Public Affairs, Telephone: (Voice) (202) 514-2007; (TDD) (202) 514-1888.

Web Site Address
www.ada.gov

RELATED PROGRAMS
None.

EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS
The Police Executive Research Forum was awarded funding to create a set of materials on protecting the rights of persons with seizure disorders, speech and hearing impairments, mental retardation, and mental illness, to be integrated into police academy training and others for use in on-the-job roll-call training. The Chief Officers of State Library Agencies was awarded funding to place a collection of ADA material in 15,000 local libraries nationwide. The National Association of Towns and Township was awarded funding to produce ADA training materials to assist regional and State ADA technical assistance providers in educating officials from small towns across the country on how to comply with the ADA. The American Association of Retired Persons was awarded funding to create materials and conduct training sessions throughout the country to educate older persons with disabilities about their rights under the ADA. In 1995 and 1996, the Program funded state based grant projects to increase knowledge about the requirements of the ADA and awareness of resources available locally and at the State, regional, and national levels.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS
Criteria for selection of projects published in the solicitation of application.

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American Overseas Research Centers, $1,000,000 total funding

OBJECTIVES
To enable American overseas research centers, that are consortia of higher education institutions, to promote postgraduate research, exchanges, and area studies.

TYPES OF ASSISTANCE
Project Grants.

USES AND USE RESTRICTIONS
Grants may be used to pay all or a portion of the cost of establishing or operating a center or program, including the cost of faculty and staff stipends and salaries, faculty, staff, and student travel, the operation and maintenance of overseas facilities, the cost of teaching and research materials, the cost of bringing visiting scholars and faculty to a center to teach or to conduct research, the cost of organizing and managing conferences, and the cost of publishing and disseminating materials for the scholarly and general public.
84.274 AMERICAN OVERSEAS RESEARCH CENTERS

FEDERAL AGENCY
OFFICE OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

AUTHORIZATION
Higher Education Act, Title VI, Part A, Section 610, as amended, Public Law 102-325, Section 601, 106 Stat. 728, 20 U.S.C. 1127.
Applicant Eligibility
The Secretary shall only award grants to centers that: (1) Receive more than 50 percent of their funding from public or private United States sources; (2) have a permanent presence in the country in which the center is located; and (3) are organizations described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 which are exempt from taxation under Section 501(a) of the Code.

Beneficiary Eligibility
Public and private agencies, organizations, institutions, and individuals will benefit.

Credentials/Documentation
None.

Preapplication Coordination
This program is eligible for coverage under E.O. 12372, "Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs." An applicant should consult the office or official designated as the single point of contact in his or her State for more information on the process the State requires to be followed in applying for assistance, if the State has selected the program for review.

Application Procedure
Eligible centers may submit an application for funding when a new competition is announced in the Federal Register. Application forms and guidelines for the submission of applications are available from the program.

Award Procedure
Final recommendations are made to the Secretary following advice from a panel of consultants.

Deadlines
Deadlines will be announced in the Federal Register.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
The range is approximately 90 days.

Appeals
None.

Renewals
Centers selected to receive funds for the three year program must submit performance reports for continuation of support. Renewals are subject to the availability of funds.

Formula and Matching Requirements
None.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
Grants are awarded for 12-month periods for a total project period of 36 months.

Reports
Funded projects must provide reports within 90 days of termination of each of the two twelve month grant periods and a final report within 90 days of termination of the last twelve month grant period.

Audits
All fiscal records will be subject to audit by the Department of Education any time within three years after expiration of the grant.

Records
All records supporting claims under grants or relating to accountability for awarded funds must be available on request: (1) For three years after the close of the fiscal year that the grant expired; or (2) until the grantee is notified that the fiscal audit has closed, whichever is later.

Account Identification
91-0201-0-1-502.

Obligations
(Grants) FY 06 $1,000,000; FY 07 est $1,000,000; and FY 08 est $1,000,000.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance
None.

PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS
None.

REGULATIONS, GUIDELINES, AND LITERATURE
This program is governed by the authorizing legislation and the Education Department General Administrative Regulations, 34 CFR 74 through 77, 79 through 82, 85, and 86. Application guidelines will be announced in the Federal Register. Contact the program office for more information.

Regional or Local Office
None.

Headquarters Office
International Education and Graduate Programs Service, Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC 20202-5331. Contact: Cheryl Gibbs, Email: Cheryl.Gibbs@ed.gov Telephone: (202) 502-7634.

Web Site Address
http://www.ed.gov/programs/iegpsaorc/

RELATED PROGRAMS
84.015, National Resource Centers and Fellowships Program for Language and Area or Language and International Studies; 84.016, Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language Programs; 84.017, International Research and Studies; 84.019, Overseas_Faculty Research Abroad; 84.022, Overseas_Doctoral Dissertation; 84.153, Business and International Education Projects; 84.220, Centers for International Business Education; 84.229, Language Resource Centers.

EXAMPLES OF FUNDED PROJECTS
American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS), founded in 1961, serves American scholars overseas, as a base for research and a liaison with scholars and research targets in India. Specific activities funded include library expansion, overseas director and staff salaries as well as operations and communications. American Research Institute in Turkey (ARIT) directly supports programs of fellowship for research and for language study in Turkey for American researchers and graduate students. Its programs, services, and facilities are available to all U.S. scholars at its Centers in Istanbul and Ankara. Specific activities funded include administrator and librarian salaries and overseas operations. American Center of Oriental Research ACOR serves American scholars of archaeology providing fellowship and publication programs, coordinating American archaeological work and interest in Jordon, and undertaking cooperative efforts on behalf of the Jordanian and American scholarly communities. Specific activities funded include administrative salaries, library acquisitions, and overseas operations.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTING PROPOSALS
The selection criteria are: Meeting the purposes of the authorizing statute (30 points); extent of need for the project (20 points); plan of operation (15 points); quality of key personnel (10 points); budget and cost-effectiveness (15 points); evaluation plan (5 points); and adequacy of resources (5 points). Criteria are subject to changes -- contact the program office for further information.

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