DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Susan Harwood Training Grant Program

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.

ACTION: Notice of availability of funds and request for grant applications.

SUMMARY: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) awards funds to nonprofit organizations to conduct safety and health training and education in the workplace. Its grant program, formerly called the Targeted Training Program, has been renamed the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program. This notice announces grant availability for training in safety and health programs for small businesses, ergonomics, scaffolding, and workplace violence. The notice describes the scope of the grant program and provides information about how to get detailed grant application instructions. Applications should not be submitted without the applicant first obtaining the detailed grant application instructions mentioned later in the notice.

Authority for this program may be found in section 21(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 670).

DATES: Applications must be received by June 13, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Grant applications may be submitted to the OSHA Office of Training and Education, Division of Training and Educational Programs, 1555 Times Drive, Des Plaines, Illinois 60018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ronald Mouw, Chief, Division of Training and Educational Programs, or Helen Beall, Training Specialist, OSHA Office of Training and Education, 1555 Times Drive, Des Plaines, Illinois 60018, telephone (847) 297-4810, e-mail helen.beall@oti.osha.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The program previously known as the Targeted Training Program is being renamed the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program in memory of Susan Harwood, an OSHA employee who died in 1996. Ms. Harwood, who had a Ph.D. in microbiology and immunology, was an outstanding figure in the world of workplace safety and health. She was a dedicated OSHA employee from 1979 until her death. She spent her last eight years as Director of the Office of Risk Assessment in the Directorate of Health Standards Programs. Ms. Harwood's leadership role in developing standards to protect the health of workers resulted in the implementation of many requirements that significantly reduced occupational diseases in the workplace. Among others, she was responsible for developing the standards for bloodborne pathogens, cotton dust, benzene, formaldehyde, asbestos and lead in construction, and the guidelines for tuberculosis, all of which have had lasting impact on the health of workers. The Susan Harwood Training Grant Program commemorates her exceptional services to occupational health.

What is the Purpose of the Program?

Susan Harwood Training Grants provide funds to train workers and employers to recognize, avoid, and prevent safety and health hazards in their workplaces. The program emphasizes three areas.

• Educating workers and employers in small businesses. A small business has 250 or fewer workers.
   
• Training workers and employers about new OSHA standards.
   
• Training workers and employers about high risk activities identified by OSHA or as part of an OSHA special emphasis program.

Grantees are expected to develop training and/or educational programs that address one of the targets named by OSHA (see below), recruit workers and employers for the training, and conduct the training. Grantees will also be expected to follow-up with people who have been trained to find out what, if any, changes were made to reduce hazards in their workplaces as a result of the training.

What are the Training Topics this Year?

The purpose of this notice is to announce that funds are available for grants. Each grant application must address one of the following target areas.

1. Safety and health programs for small businesses. OSHA is interested not only in training small businesses about safety and health, but in assisting them to implement safety and health programs. Applications addressing this target should include provisions for following up with trainees to help them put what they have learned to use in their workplaces. A small business is a firm with 250 or fewer employees.

2. Ergonomics. This training should be designed to inform workers and employers about ergonomic hazards, how to recognize them, and how to abate them.

3. Scaffolding. Applications for this topic should provide training in the hazards of scaffolding on construction sites and how to abate them. Training should be based on OSHA's scaffolding standard (29 CFR 1926 Subpart L) published on August 30, 1996.

4. Workplace violence. This training should address the prevention of violence in the workplace. In selecting applications for grant award, OSHA will give preference to those that provide training for workers and employers of commercial establishments at risk at night, particularly 24-hour workplaces such as retail stores, gas stations, and restaurants.

Who is Eligible to Apply for a Grant?

Any nonprofit organization that is not an agency of a State or local government is eligible to apply. However, State or local government supported institutions of higher education are eligible to apply in accordance with 29 CFR 97.4(a)(1).

Applicants other than State or local government supported institutions of higher education will be required to submit evidence of nonprofit status, preferably from the IRS.

A consortium of two or more eligible applicants is also eligible to apply. Each consortium must have a written agreement that spells out roles and responsibilities for each consortium member and names one member as the lead agency. The lead agency will receive the grant and be responsible for grant administration.

What Can Grant Funds be Spent On?

Grant funds can be spent on the following.

• Conducting training.
   
• Conducting other activities that reach and inform workers and employers about occupational safety and health hazards and hazard abatement.
   
• Developing educational materials for use in the training.
   
• Sharing educational materials with others in the industry to which the materials apply.

Are There Restrictions on How Grant Funds Can be Spent?

OSHA will not provide funding for the following activities.

1. Any activity that is inconsistent with the goals and objectives of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.

2. Training involving workplaces that are not covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Examples include state and local government workers in non-State Plan States and workers covered by section 4(b)(1) of the Act.

3. Production, publication, reproduction or use of training and educational materials, including newsletters and instructional programs, that have not been reviewed by OSHA for technical accuracy.

4. Activities that address issues other than recognition, avoidance, and prevention of unsafe or unhealthy working conditions. Examples include workers' compensation, first aid, and publication of materials prejudicial to labor or management.

5. Activities that provide assistance to workers in arbitration cases or other actions against employers, or that provide assistance to employers and/or workers in the prosecution of claims against Federal, State or local governments.

6. Activities that directly duplicate services offered by OSHA, a State under a State Plan, or consultation programs provided by State designated agencies under section 7(c)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

7. Activities intended to generate membership in the grantee's organization. This includes activities to acquaint nonmembers with the benefits of membership, inclusion of membership appeals in materials produced with grant funds, and membership drives.

What Other Grant Requirements are There?

1. OSHA review of educational materials. Educational materials produced by the grantee will be reviewed by OSHA for technical accuracy during development and before final publication. OSHA will also review curriculums and purchased training materials for accuracy before they are used.

When grant recipients produce training materials, they will provide copies of completed materials to OSHA before the end of the grant period. OSHA has a lending program that circulates grant-produced audiovisual materials. Grant recipients' audiovisual materials will be included in this lending program.

2. OMB and regulatory requirements. Grantees will be required to comply with the following documents.

• 29 CFR part 95, which covers grant requirements for nonprofit organizations, including universities and hospitals. These are the Department of Labor regulations implementing OMB Circular A-110.
   
• OMB Circular A-21, which describes allowable and unallowable costs for educational institutions.
   
• OMB Circular A-122, which describes allowable and unallowable costs for other nonprofit organizations.
   
• 29 CFR part 96 and OMB Circular A-133, which provide information about audit requirements.

3. Certifications. All applicants will be required to certify to a drug-free workplace in accordance with 29 CFR part 98, to comply with the New Restrictions on Lobbying published at 29 CFR part 93, to make a certification regarding the debarment rules at 29 CFR part 98, and to complete a special lobbying certification.

4. Matching share. The program requires the grantee to provide a matching share. Grant recipients are to provide a minimum of 20% of the total grant budget. This match may be in-kind, rather than a cash contribution. For example, if the Federal share of the grant is $80,000 (80% of the grant), then the matching share will be $20,000 (20% of the grant), for a total grant of $100,000. The matching share may exceed 20%.

How are Applications Reviewed and Rated?

Grant applications will be reviewed by OSHA staff and the review results presented to the Assistant Secretary who will make the selection of organizations to be awarded grants.

Preference will be given to applications that plan to conduct train-the-trainer programs. Applicants are encouraged to include managers and/or supervisors in their training. In general, applications that propose to serve a single employer will not be selected, since OSHA is interested in reaching multiple employers with each grant awarded.

The following factors will be considered in evaluating grant applications.

1. Program Design

a. The proposed training and education program addresses one of the following targets.

i. Safety and health programs for small businesses.
ii. Ergonomics.
iii. Scaffolding.
iv. Workplace violence.
b. The proposal plans to train workers and/or employers and clearly states the numbers to be trained.
c. The proposal contains a train-the-trainer program, and the numbers to be trained by these trainers are clearly stated.
d. The planned activities are appropriate for the workers and/or employers to be trained.
e. There is a plan to recruit trainees for the program.
f. If the proposal includes developing educational materials, there is a plan for making these materials available in the industry to which they apply.
g. There is a plan to evaluate the program's effectiveness and this includes plans to follow-up with trainees to see if the training resulted in workplace change.
h. The planned work can be accomplished in one year.

2. Program Experience

a. The organization applying for the grant has experience with occupational safety and health.
b. The organization applying for the grant has experience training adults in work-related subjects.
c. The staff to be assigned to the project have experience in (1) occupational safety and health, (2) the specific target chosen, and (3) training adults.
d. The organization applying for the grant has experience in recruiting and training the population it proposes to serve under the grant.

3. Administrative Capability

a. The applicant organization has had experience managing a variety of programs.
b. The applicant organization has administered a number of different Federal and/or State grants over the past five years.
c. The application is complete, including forms, budget detail, narrative and workplan, and required attachments.

4. Budget

a. The budgeted costs are reasonable.
b. The proposed non-Federal share is at least 20% of the total budget.
c. The budget complies with Federal cost principles (which can be found in applicable OMB Circulars) and with OSHA budget requirements contained in the grant application instructions.
d. The cost per trainee is less than $500 and the cost per training hour is reasonable.

In addition to the factors listed above, the Assistant Secretary will take other items into consideration, such as the geographical distribution of the grant programs and the coverage of populations at risk.

How much money is available for grants?

There is approximately $1,900,000 available for this program. The average Federal award will be $100,000.

How Long Are Grants Awarded For?

Grants are awarded for twelve-month periods. Grants may be renewed for additional twelve-month periods depending on whether there are funds available, there is still a need for the training, and the grantee has performed satisfactorily.

How Do I Get a Grant Application Package?

Grant application instructions may be obtained from the OSHA Office of Training and Education, Division of Training and Educational Programs, 1555 Times Drive, Des Plaines, Illinois 60018. The application instructions are also available at http://www.osha.gov/fso/ote/training/training_resources.html.

When and Where are Applications to be Sent?

The application deadline is 4:30 p.m. Central Time, June 13, 1997. Applications can be mailed to the Division of Training and Educational Programs, OSHA Office of Training and Education, 1555 Times Drive, Des Plaines, IL 60018. Applications will not be accepted by fax.

How Will I be Told if My Application Was Selected?

Organizations selected as grant recipients will be notified by a representative of the Assistant Secretary, usually from an OSHA Regional Office. An applicant whose proposal is not selected will be notified in writing.

Notice that an organization has been selected as a grant recipient does not constitute approval of the grant application as submitted. Before the actual grant award, OSHA will enter into negotiations concerning such items as program components, funding levels, and administrative systems. If the negotiations do not result in an acceptable submittal, the Assistant Secretary reserves the right to terminate the negotiation and decline to fund the proposal.

Signed at Washington, DC, this 10th day of April 1997.

Greg Watchman,
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor.

[FR Doc. 97-9874 Filed 4-16-97; 8:45 am)