Federal Register: December 26, 2007

Volume 72, Number 246

[Notices]

[Page 72947-72948]

[PDF version of document]

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Parts 668, 674, 682, and 685


Federal Student Aid Programs (Student Assistance General
Provisions, Federal Perkins Loan Program, Federal Direct Loan Program,
Federal Family Education Loan Program)

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice extending the waivers and modifications of statutory and
regulatory provisions pursuant to the Higher Education Relief
Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act of 2003, Public Law 108-76.

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SUMMARY: We are extending the actions taken by the Secretary pursuant
to the HEROES Act of 2003, as announced in a notice published in the
Federal Register on December 12, 2003 (68 FR 69312), and extended in a
notice published in the Federal Register on October 20, 2005 (70 FR
61037).

DATES: Effective Date: December 26, 2007. Applicability Date: The
actions announced in the December 12, 2003, Federal Register notice and
extended in the October 20, 2005, Federal Register notice are
applicable from September 30, 2007, until September 30, 2012.

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wendy Macias, Office of Postsecondary
Education, U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street, NW., room 8017,
Washington, DC 20006-8544. Telephone: (202) 502-7526. E-mail:
Wendy.Macias@ed.gov.

    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you can
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS), toll free at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) by contacting the contact person listed in this section.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In a notice published in the Federal
Register on December 12, 2003 (68 FR 69312), the Secretary exercised
the authority granted to her by the HEROES Act of 2003 and announced
the waivers and modifications of statutory or regulatory provisions
that were appropriate to assist individuals who are applicants and
recipients of student financial assistance under Title IV of the Higher
Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and who--
     Are serving on active military duty during a war or other
military operation or national emergency;
     Are performing qualifying National Guard duty during a war
or other military operation or national emergency;
     Reside or are employed in an area that is declared a
disaster area by any Federal, State, or local official in connection
with a national emergency; or
     Suffered direct economic hardship as a direct result of a
war or other military operation or national emergency, as determined by
the Secretary.
    Under the terms of the HEROES Act of 2003, the Secretary's
authority to provide the waivers and modifications would expire on
September 30, 2005. On September 30, 2005, Pub. L. 109-78 extended the
expiration date of the Secretary's authority to September 30, 2007.
Accordingly, the Secretary extended the expiration of the waivers and
modifications published on December 12, 2003, in a notice in the
Federal Register published on October 20, 2005 (70 FR 61037).
    On September 30, 2007, the President signed into law Public Law
110-93, which eliminated the September 30, 2007, expiration date of the
HEROES Act of 2003, thereby making permanent the Secretary's authority
to issue waivers and modifications of statutory and regulatory
provisions under the HEROES Act of 2003. As a result, we are extending
the waivers and modifications announced by the Secretary in the notice
published in the Federal Register on December 12, 2003. The actions
will remain in effect until September 30, 2012, unless the Secretary
issues a notice in the Federal Register terminating or changing those
actions before September 30, 2012.
    The Secretary intends to review the waivers and modifications
published on December 12, 2003, in light of recent statutory and
regulatory changes. After completing that review, the Secretary will
consider whether to change some or all of the published waivers and
modifications. Any changes to these waivers and modifications will be
published in a notice in the Federal Register as required by the HEROES
Act of 2003.

Electronic Access to This Document

    You can view this document, as well as other documents of this
Department published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable
Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the

[[Page 72948]]

following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.

    To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S.
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in
the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.

    Note: 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 on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.



Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Numbers: 84.007 Federal
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program; 84.032 Federal
Family Education Loan Program; 84.032 Federal PLUS Program; 84.033
Federal Work Study Program; 84.038 Federal Perkins Loan Program; and
84.268 William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program.

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1071, 1082, 1087a, 1087aa, Pub. L.
108-76, Pub. L. 109-78, Pub. L. 110-93.

    Dated: December 19, 2007.
Diane Auer Jones,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. E7-24947 Filed 12-21-07; 8:45 am]

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