Notice2021-19017
Notice To Announce Request for Information for the Modification of the Eligibility Requirements for the Native American Library Services Enhancement Grants Program
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 2, 2021
Issuing agencies
National Foundation on the Arts and the HumanitiesInstitute of Museum and Library Services
Abstract
This Request for Information (RFI) is intended to gather broad input to assist the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) in making a determination whether or not to modify the eligibility requirements for the Native American Library Services Enhancement Grants program (Enhancement Grant). Currently, to be eligible for Enhancement Grant funding, an applicant is required to first submit a Native American Library Services Basic Grant (Basic Grant) application in the same year. IMLS is considering the elimination of this specific eligibility requirement to reduce application and administrative burdens for applicants and awardees and to allow applicants to choose the grant program(s) best suited to their needs.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 168 (Thursday, September 2, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 168 (Thursday, September 2, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49356-49357]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19017]
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NATIONAL FOUNDATION ON THE ARTS AND THE HUMANITIES
Institute of Museum and Library Services
Notice To Announce Request for Information for the Modification
of the Eligibility Requirements for the Native American Library
Services Enhancement Grants Program
AGENCY: Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Foundation
on the Arts and the Humanities .
ACTION: Request for information.
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SUMMARY: This Request for Information (RFI) is intended to gather broad
input to assist the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) in
making a determination whether or not to modify the eligibility
requirements for the Native American Library Services Enhancement
Grants program (Enhancement Grant). Currently, to be eligible for
Enhancement Grant funding, an applicant is required to first submit a
Native American Library Services Basic Grant (Basic Grant) application
in the same year. IMLS is considering the elimination of this specific
eligibility requirement to reduce application and administrative
burdens for applicants and awardees and to allow applicants to choose
the grant program(s) best suited to their needs.
DATES: Submit comments on or before Friday, October 29, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Comments must be submitted to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0c6561607f2160656e7e6d7e756b7e6d62787f4c6561607f226b637a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="21484c4d520c4d4843534053584653404f555261484c4d520f464e57">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Both the Enhancement Grants program and the
Basic Grants program are designed to assist federally recognized Indian
tribes in improving core library services for their communities. See
<a href="https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/native-american-library-services-enhancement-grants">https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/native-american-library-services-enhancement-grants</a> and <a href="https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/native-american-library-services-basic-grants">https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/native-american-library-services-basic-grants</a> for details. IMLS is committed
to the continuous improvement of all its grant programs and to
minimizing grant-related application and administrative burdens for its
applicants and awardees. The current structure requires every applicant
for an Enhancement Grant program to also apply for a Basic Grant in the
same year.
The Basic Grant program is designed to support library operations
and core services, including library workforce training. The
Enhancement Grant program is designed to support larger and more
complex library projects, including preservation. For the Basic Grant
program in Fiscal Year 2021, IMLS expects to award a total of
$1,900,000, consisting of 192 individual awards ranging from $6,000 to
$10,000. For the Enhancement Grant program, IMLS expects to award a
total of $1,200,000, consisting of 20 individual awards ranging from
$10,000 to $150,000.
The Basic Grant program is less competitive than the Enhancement
Grant program because essentially every eligible Basic Grant applicant
receives a grant; whereas Enhancement Grant applications compete
against each other and not all applications receive an award. The two
programs are also financially interdependent: Funding that is not
awarded from the Basic Program pool is then added to the funding
available for the Enhancement Program pool. For example, if not all of
the FY21 $1,900,000 funding is awarded because IMLS receives fewer
Basic Grant applications than anticipated, the balance of unawarded
Basic Grant funds will then be made available to the Enhancement Grant
funding pool (i.e., whatever is not awarded from the $1,900,000 Basic
Grants pool is added to the $1,200,000 Enhancement Grant pool).
The original reason to have a Basic Grant before applying for an
Enhancement Grant was to help ensure that all Tribes received at least
a basic level of funding before larger, more complex projects were
supported.
[[Page 49357]]
However, this may place unnecessary application and grant
administration burdens on applicants who wish to apply for, and carry
out, only an Enhancement Grant. For example, such applicants may not
want to apply for and administer a Basic Grant but are simply looking
for a grant to support a larger project.
Eliminating the requirement to first apply for a Basic Grant would
make it possible for Tribes to apply for an Enhancement Grant only and
still allow them to apply for both an Enhancement Grant and a Basic
Grant if they wish. This change is intended to give applicants the
flexibility to apply for the grant(s) that best suit their needs.
Information Requested
IMLS invites input from all Tribal communities, including but not
limited to individuals, Tribal governments, libraries, archives,
museums, institutions of higher education, and cultural heritage
centers.
Organizations are strongly encouraged to submit a single response
that reflects the views of their organization and membership as a
whole.
IMLS asks you to consider the following when reflecting on the
proposed elimination of the requirement that Indian tribes wishing to
apply for an Enhancement Grant apply first for a Basic Grant in the
same year:
<bullet> How might the elimination of this requirement benefit the
Tribe(s) with which you have close relationships?
<bullet> How might the elimination of this requirement harm or
result in an unexpected negative consequence for the Tribe(s) with
which you have close relationships?
<bullet> Taking the potential benefits and negative consequences
into account, do you recommend we eliminate or keep the requirement as
is?
<bullet> What other suggestions do you have for improving these two
grant programs?
<bullet> What else would you like to see IMLS do to minimize the
grant-related administrative burden for its applicants and awardees?
Responses
Responses to this RFI are voluntary. Please do not include any
personally identifiable information or any information that you do not
wish to make public. Proprietary, classified, confidential, or
sensitive information should not be included in your response. The
Government will use the information submitted in response to this RFI
at its discretion. The Government reserves the right to use any
submitted information on public websites, in reports, in any possible
resultant solicitation(s), grant(s), or cooperative agreement(s), or in
the development of future funding opportunity announcements.
This request is for information and planning purposes only and
should not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the
part of the United States Government. IMLS will not make any awards
based on responses to this RFI or pay for the preparation of any
information submitted or for the Government's use of such information.
Dated: August 30, 2021.
Kim Miller,
Senior Grants Management Specialist, Institute of Museum and Library
Services.
[FR Doc. 2021-19017 Filed 9-1-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7036-01-P
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