July 26, 2022

Below is an abridged version of RAMC’s weekly Washington Wrap Up. Find out more about Wrap Up and other RAMC resources here.

Education News Headlines
[Click on the link to read the article online]
Student Loan Servicers Told to Hold Off on Sending Billing Statements [The Wall Street Journal]

Three things to know before the student loan payment pause ends [The Hill]

Supreme Court splits affirmative action cases, will issue separate rulings [Higher Ed Dive]

Americans’ Confidence in Higher Ed Drops Sharply [The Chronicle of Higher Education]
New America Survey: Varying Degrees 2022, New America’s Sixth Annual Survey on Higher Education

College-shopping students have a new query: Is abortion legal there? [The Washington Post]

More High-School Seniors Apply for College Financial Aid, Just Shy of Prepandemic Levels [The Wall Street Journal]

Loan forgiveness may be close for students claiming borrower defense [NPR]

Can a Teaching Track Improve Undergraduate Education? [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

GOP ramps up efforts to rein in Biden on student debt [The Hill]

Committee News and Schedule, Schedule for House and Senate Floor:
Speaker of the House
Press Release: Speaker Pelosi Remarks at UAW Roundtable on Semiconductor Chips

House Majority Leader
Press Release: Hoyer Statement Marking 500 Days Since the Signing of the American Rescue Plan

Senate Minority Leader
Remarks: As Americans Struggle With Historic Inflation, Democrats Plan Tax Hikes

House Education and Labor Committee
July 27: Committee Markup: H.R.2193 – Asuncion Valdivia Heat Illness and Fatality Prevention Act of 2021, and H.R. 8450 – To reauthorize child nutrition programs, and for other purposes
10:15 AM
Location: TBD

Press Release: Foxx: DOL Doesn’t Check its Inbox

Press Release: NLRB’s Bad Behavior

Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
July 26: Full Committee Hearing: Fighting Fentanyl: The Federal Response to a Growing Crisis
Witnesses: Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon, Ph.D, Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration; Carole Johnson, Administrator, Health Resources and Services Administration; Christopher Jones, Pharm.D, Dr.PH, MPH, Acting Director
National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and Kemp Chester, Senior Policy Advisor for Supply Reduction and International Relations, Office of National Drug Control Policy, The White House
10:00 AM Hart Senate Building

Press Release: Burr, Senators Oppose Biden Admin’s Flawed Title IX Proposal, Urge Extension of Public Comment Period

House Committee on Ways and Means
Blog Post: WSJ: For the Same Cost as CHIPS Tax Subsidies, Congress Could Double R&D Tax Credit

House Budget Committee
Press Release: Chairman Yarmuth Celebrates 500 Days of American Rescue Plan

House Committee on Ways and Means
Blog: Fact Check: Treasury in Denial About Shrinking Biden Economy

Senate Committee on Finance
Press Release: Wyden Urges Senate Passage of Incentives for American Chips Manufacturing

Committee on Small Business
July 27: Full Committee Hearing: Leveraging the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: The Role of the SBA’s Bond Guarantee Program
Witnesses: Mr. Peter Gibbs, President & Former Director of SBA’s Office of Surety Guarantees, Foundation Surety & Insurance Company, *Testifying on behalf of the National Association of Surety Bond Producers; Mr. Ralph Pulver, Regional Underwriting Officer, Traveler’s Bond, *Testifying on behalf of the Surety & Fidelity Association of America; Mr. Alan Gravel, President, Willow Construction, LLC; and Mr. Joel Griffith, Research Fellow, Financial Regulations, Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies
10:00 AM in room 2360 of the Rayburn House Office Building and via Zoom.

House Committee on Veteran Affairs
July 20: Subcommittee Hearing: Modernizing Veteran Education in the Shadow of COVID-19
Witnesses: TBA
1:00 PM in HVC 210 and Via Zoom (Hybrid)

Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis
Press Release: Select Subcommittee To Hold Hearing On Understanding And Addressing Long COVID And Its Consequences

Online Events:
July 26: The Hunt Institute webinar — Exploring State Funding for Higher Education in Fiscal Year 2021: As we entered 2022, most states had not recovered from prior recessionary cuts in state funding and now face declines in their other revenue sources. As a result, postsecondary institutions may be in a more precarious financial situation than at any other time in recent history. Amid this uncertainty, the SHEF report offers a comprehensive look at where states stood as they weathered the COVID-19 pandemic and economic recession. This Hunt Institute webinar explores the key findings of the 2022 SHEF report, best practices that have emerged, and what the future of higher education funding holds. Speakers to be announced.
2:00 p.m. Eastern
Register here.

U.S. Department of Education and the Administration:
White House Press Release: Office of the National Cyber Director Announces Camille Stewart Gloster as Deputy National Cyber Director for Technology and Ecosystem Security

White House Press Release: Letter from Dr. Kevin O’Connor: President Biden SARS-CoV-2 Update

DOL Press Release: Department of Labor Awards Cherokee Nation $1.3M in Incremental Funds for Pandemic Workforce Recovery, Humanitarian Support

ED Blog: Federal Student Aid’s Summer Assignment: Modernize the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS®)

White House Fact Sheet: National Cyber Workforce and Education Summit

DOL Press Release: US Departments of labor, commerce announces 120-day cybersecurity apprenticeship sprint to promote registered apprenticeships

White House Press Release: Remarks by Vice President Harris at the 113th NAACP National Convention

White House Press Release: Announcement of White House National Cyber Workforce and Education Summit

ED Blog: Postsecondary Accreditation Cannot Become a Race to the Bottom

Legislative Movement in Congress Last Week:
H.R.8457 — To carry out an income-contingent repayment program for Federal Direct Interest-Free Education Loans for undergraduate students, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Cicilline, David N. [D-RI-1] (Introduced 07/21/2022)
Cosponsors: (0)
Committees: House – Ways and Means; Education and Labor
Latest Action: House – 07/21/2022 Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee…

H.R.8474 — To improve the public service loan forgiveness program under section 455(m) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, to improve loan forgiveness eligibility provisions under such Act for teachers, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Norcross, Donald [D-NJ-1] (Introduced 07/21/2022)
Cosponsors: (0)
Committees: House – Education and Labor
Latest Action: House – 07/21/2022 Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor

H.R.8442 — To provide workers with schedule flexibility and choice, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Cuellar, Henry [D-TX-28] (Introduced 07/20/2022)
Cosponsors: (2)
Committees: House – Education and Labor; Ways and Means
Latest Action: House – 07/20/2022 Referred to the Committee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee…
Press Release: Cuellar, Stefanik, Steel Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Expand Worker Flexibility and Choice

S.2274 — Federal Cybersecurity Workforce Expansion Act
Sponsor: Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH] (Introduced 06/24/2021) Cosponsors: (1)
Committees: Senate – Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Action: Senate – 07/18/2022 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 446.

Federal Education Training and Grant Opportunities, Notices:
ED Comment Request: Guaranty Agency Financial Report. Comments due on or before August 25, 2022.