Emergency Memo

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

April 26, 2021
MEMORANDUM
TO:

Lindsay Abate
Office of Management and Budget Desk Officer

FROM:

Beatriz Ceja
Senior Director, Institutional Service

RE:

Emergency request for Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) approval

Pursuant to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) procedures established at 5 CFR
1320, ED requests that the following collection of information, Voluntary Decline of
Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds Form, be processed in accordance with section
1320.13 Emergency Processing. ED has determined that this information must be
collected prior to the expiration of time periods established under Part 1320, and that this
information is essential to ED’s ability to effectively address the disruptions posed by the
Novel (new) Coronavirus (“2019-nCoV”).
Funding for HEERF is provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security
Act (CARES Act) (Pub. L. 116–136), the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental
Appropriations Act, 2021 (CRRSAA) (Pub. L. 116-260), and the American Rescue Plan
Act of 2021 (Pub. L. 117-2). Institutions eligible for funding under these statutes may
elect to voluntarily decline all or a portion of their HEERF grant awards, in which case the
U.S. Department of Education (the Department) will then deobligate the funds from the
institution’s G5 account and will later redistribute the funds to other institutions with
greater needs due to the coronavirus. In order to process the deobligation and
redistribution of these funds more efficiently, the Department is requesting approval of a
short form that will allow these institutions to provide the Department with information
regarding the funds being declined.
If this emergency collection is not approved, the Department will be unable to deobligate
and redistribute these funds in a timely manner. The Department is required by statute
under CRRSAA to reallocate any funding for which IHEs do not apply within 90 days of
publishing a notice inviting applications for funding under CRRSAA (a)(1), (a)(2) or
(a)(4). The Department’s intention is to conduct a single reallocation of CARES,
CRRSAA and ARP funds, as running multiple reallocations would create heavy
administrative burden for the agency. Furthermore, funding under the CARES Act will
lapse on September 30, 2021, making it essential for the Department to give grantees
400 MARYLAND AVE. SW, WASHINGTON, DC 20202
www.ed.gov
The Department of Education’s mission is to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by
fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.

ample opportunity to return unneeded CARES funds in order to reallocate these funds to
grantees with greater need, and the Department does believe that timely reallocation of
these funds is essential. Campus closures, staff layoffs, navigating the processes needed to
switch to online learning, and assistance with paying for new structural changes are just
several examples of the challenges and concerns that IHEs navigate on a continuous basis
and about which ED receives daily questions and concerns from IHEs concerning their use
of funds. These institutional changes also have a direct impact on students. The
redistribution of HEERF funds will greatly benefit those institutions that have faced the
most drastic economic difficulties as well as students with exceptional need.
Given the short timeframe, the Department is unable to consult with the public prior to
issuing the form. However, the Department has ample experience designing other similar
forms in a way that is clear and minimizes burden. We estimate that the form will require
30 minutes per respondent to complete.
The Department is requesting an emergency clearance from OMB by May 7 and will
publish an emergency notice with a 60 day comment period as required by 5 CFR
1320.8(d) to solicit public comments on the regular information collection.

2