Under Section 302 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), hereafter referred to as âThe Act,â the RSA provides Long-Term Training grants to academic institutions to support scholarship assistance to scholars. Scholars who receive scholarships under this program are required to work within the public rehabilitation program, such as with a State vocational rehabilitation agency, or an agency or organization that has a service arrangement with a State vocational rehabilitation agency, in qualified employment fields, which include rehabilitation counseling, administration, supervision, teaching or research in vocational rehabilitation, supported employment, or independent living rehabilitation of individuals with disabilities, especially individuals with significant disabilities. The scholar is required to work two years in such settings for every year of full-time scholarship support. The service obligation for the scholar who matriculated part time, is based on the equivalent total of actual academic years of training received. The program regulations at 34 CFR 386.33-386.36 and 386.40-386.43 detail the payback provisions and the RSA scholars' requirements to comply with them.
Section 302 (b)(2)(C) of the Act requires that data on the employment of scholars are accurate, including tracking of scholarsâ employment status and location of former scholars supported under the RLTT grants in order to ensure that scholars are meeting the payback requirements.
In addition to meeting the requirement that all scholars be tracked, the data collected will provide performance data relevant to the rehabilitation fields and degrees pursued by RSA scholars, as well as the funds owed and the rehabilitation work completed by them. These data are used to assess program effectiveness and efficiency, and to meet the reporting requirements of the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA).
RSA is requesting a revision of the currently approved collection for grantees (Institutions of Higher Education) to submit an Annual Payback Report through the online RSA Management Information System (MIS). To collect the needed data, RSA created the revised Payback Information Management System (PIMS). Through the PIMS grantees, scholars and employers report data electronically.
There is a program change increase of 4,508 annual burden hours and an increase of 11,440 respondents. This request is for a revision to an approved data collection; to collect more accurate and complete data and improve grant monitoring and performance reporting capabilities. As part of this revision we will collect data from grantees, scholars and employers; by also collecting data from scholars and employers, rather than just grantees.
$236,879
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Uncollected
Karen Holliday 202 245-7318
No
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.