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

May 12, 2020

COVID-19 Updates 
ED’s Office of Inspector General (IG) released its plan to conduct oversight of education-related provisions in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (P.L.116-136).

ED published guidance on reporting requirements for institutions of higher education receiving CARES Act funding for emergency financial aid grants to students.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published guidance detailing that emergency student grant aid under the CARES Act is not considered taxable income.

HOUSE and SENATE
The House was in recess this week and is scheduled to return next week.

ADMINISTRATION
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) released the text of its final Title IX rule, which is set to take effect on August 14, 2020.

Education News Headlines
[Click on the link to read the article online]
Devastated Budgets and Widening Inequities: How the Coronavirus Collapse Will Impact Schools [Education Week]

Sen. Bill Cassidy On Reopening Schools: Children Are Paying A High Price At Home [National Public Radio]

With limited funds, colleges are rushing to get emergency aid into students’ hands [Inside Higher Ed]

House Dems Want More Education Spending in Stimulus [Inside Higher Ed]

How colleges are helping undocumented students in uncertain times [Education Dive]

Students Call College That Got Millions In Coronavirus Relief ‘A Sham’  [National Public Radio]

President Speaks: College leaders share messages for uncertain times [Education Dive]

Private student loans offer little protection when things go wrong [The Hechinger Report]

What Colleges Need to Know About the New Title IX Rules [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

Small colleges get millions while other colleges struggle [Inside Higher Ed]

Colleges need students to decide. Students aren’t ready. And everyone’s nervous about fall. [The Washington Post]

Student internet access concerns rise as discounted hotspot programs end [Education Dive]

A Few Schools Reopen, But Remote Learning Could Go On For Years In U.S. [National Public Radio]

New York State Teams With Gates Foundation to ‘Reimagine Education’ Amid Pandemic [Education Week]

As Coronavirus Sparks FAFSA Application Drop-Off, Arne Duncan Tells Prospective College Students Not to ‘Derail’ Their Progress [The74million.org]

House Democrats Oppose Proposed Changes to Borrower-Defense Form  [Inside Higher Ed]

Community Colleges Get Smaller Shares of Emergency Grants [Inside Higher Ed]

Admissions Field’s New Leader Hopes to ‘Reinvent Enrollment and College Access’ [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

Economists Expect Huge Future Earnings Loss for Students Missing School Due to COVID-19 [Education Week]

Committee News and Schedule, Schedule for House and Senate Floor:
Speaker of the House
Press Release: Pelosi Statement on Trump Administration’s Rule Dismantling Title IX Protections for Students and Survivors

Senate Majority Leader
Press Release: McConnell on ‘The Daily Briefing’ with Dana Perino

House Education and Labor Committee 
Press Release: Scott, Fudge Introduce Legislation to Protect Access to Food Assistance for Displaced College Students

Press Release: Committee Democrats Call on Secretary DeVos to Fix Borrower Defense Application Process

Press Release: Top House Republicans Announce Probe into Chinese Efforts to Infiltrate U.S. Colleges

Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions  
May 12: Full Committee Hearing: “COVID-19: Safely Getting Back to Work and Back to School”
Witnesses: Anthony Fauci, MD, Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD; Robert Redfield, MD, Director, United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA; ADM Brett Giroir, MD, Assistant Secretary For Health, United States Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC; Stephen Hahn, MD, Commissioner Of Food And Drugs, United States Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, MD
10:00 a.m. in 106 Dirksen Senate Office Building or webcast

Press Release: Murray, HELP Democrats Demand Transparency from Key Trump Official In COVID-19 Response After Reports of Undisclosed Conflicts of Interest

Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
May 13: Full Committee Hearing: “The State of Broadband Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic”
Witnesses: Mr. Steven Berry, President and Chief Executive Officer, Competitive Carriers Association; Ms. Shirley Bloomfield, Chief Executive Officer, NTCA – The Rural Broadband Association; Mr. Jonathan Spalter, President and Chief Executive Officer, USTelecom – The Broadband Association
10:00 a.m. in G50 Dirksen Senate Office Building or webcast

House Committee on Science, Space and Technology
Press Release: Chairwoman Johnson Holds Bipartisan Roundtable On Federal Science Agencies Research And Analysis Capabilities In Addressing COVID-19

House Committee on Appropriations 
Documents and webcast of last week’s: Subcommittee Hearing: “COVID-19 Response”

U.S. Department of Education and the Administration:
White House Press Release: First Lady Melania Trump Celebrates Second Anniversary of “BE BEST”

ED Press Release: Secretary DeVos Takes Historic Action to Strengthen Title IX Protections for All Students

IES Report: “Assessing the Alignment between West Virginia’s High School Career and Technical Education Programs and the Labor Market”

Legislative Movement in Congress Last Week:
H.R.6709 — To direct the Secretary of the Treasury to establish a coronavirus fund to provide hazard payments to high-risk health care workers and essential workers, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Cartwright, Matt [D-PA-8] (Introduced 05/05/2020) Cosponsors: (6)
Committees: House – Education and Labor; Ways and Means
Latest Action:  05/08/2020 Sponsor introductory remarks on measure.
Press Release: Reps. Cartwright, Sánchez Formally Introduce Bill To Provide Hazard Pay For Essential Workers On Front Lines Of Covid-19 Fight

H.R.6743 — To amend the CARES Act to exclude from gross income emergency financial aid grants to students, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7] (Introduced 05/08/2020) Cosponsors: (0)
Committees: House – Ways and Means
Latest Action:  House – 05/08/2020 Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

H.R.6744 — To provide tax credits to low to moderate income individuals for certain computer and education costs; to direct the Federal Communications Commission to modify the requirements for the Lifeline program to provide increased support for broadband internet access service; and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7] (Introduced 05/08/2020) Cosponsors: (7)
Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means
Latest Action:  House – 05/08/2020 Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 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…

S.3651 — A bill to prohibit school food authorities and local educational agencies from collecting unpaid school meal fees during the COVID-19 pandemic, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN] (Introduced 05/07/2020) Cosponsors: (0)
Committees: Senate – Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
Latest Action:  Senate – 05/07/2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

S.3659 — A bill to provide State and local workforce and career and technical education systems the support to respond to the COVID-19 national emergency.
Sponsor: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA] (Introduced 05/07/2020) Cosponsors: (8)
Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Action:  Senate – 05/07/2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

S.3660 — A bill to provide emergency funding for caseworkers and child protective services.
Sponsor: Sen. Casey, Robert P., Jr. [D-PA] (Introduced 05/07/2020) Cosponsors: (5)
Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Latest Action:  Senate – 05/07/2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Press Release: Casey, Colleagues Push for Emergency Funding to Protect Children in Abusive Situations

S.3624 — A bill to amend the national service laws to prioritize national service programs and projects that are directly related to the response to and recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] (Introduced 05/06/2020) Cosponsors: (16)
Committees: Senate – Finance
Latest Action:  Senate – 05/06/2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Press Release: As Senate returns, support builds for Sen. Coons’ legislation to dramatically expand national service amid COVID-19

H.R.6563 — Emergency Educational Connections Act of 2020
Sponsor: Rep. Meng, Grace [D-NY-6] (Introduced 04/21/2020) Cosponsors: (61)
Committees: House – Energy and Commerce
Latest Action:  05/05/2020 Sponsor introductory remarks on measure.

H.R.6699 — To establish a commission to determine essential employment during the COVID-19 crisis period and provide loan repayment and education credit to workers employed in such essential employment during such crisis, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Kuster, Ann M. [D-NH-2] (Introduced 05/05/2020) Cosponsors: (21)
Committees: House – Education and Labor; Financial Services; Ways and Means
Latest Action:  House – 05/05/2020 Referred to the Committee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services, and 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…
Press Release: Kuster, Fitzpatrick Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Provide Student Debt Relief to Essential Workers

H.R.6702 — To amend the national service laws to prioritize national service programs and projects that are directly related to the response to and recovery from the COVID-19 public health emergency, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Price, David E. [D-NC-4] (Introduced 05/05/2020) Cosponsors: (19)
Committees: House – Education and Labor; Ways and Means
Latest Action:  House – 05/05/2020 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: Price, Matsui, Houlahan, Bera, and Schrier Lead Effort to Bolster Public Health with National Service

H.R.6720 — To provide student loan forgiveness to health care workers who are on the front line in response to COVID-19.
Sponsor: Rep. Maloney, Carolyn B. [D-NY-12] (Introduced 05/05/2020) Cosponsors: (0)
Committees: House – Education and Labor; Financial Services; Ways and Means Latest Action:  House – 05/05/2020 Referred to the Committee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services, and 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…
Press Release: Maloney Joins with Health Care Professionals, Educators to Introduce Bill Forgiving Student Loans for Frontline Health Workers

S.3589 — A bill to amend the higher education emergency relief fund under the CARES Act to restrict eligibility to institutions of higher education that owned endowment assets whose average monthly value was equal to or less than $10,000,000,000 in 2019, unless the institution expends additional institutional funds on higher education emergency relief.
Sponsor: Sen. Hawley, Josh [R-MO] (Introduced 05/04/2020) Cosponsors: (4)
Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Action:  Senate – 05/04/2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Press Release: Hawley’s Bill to Stop Universities with Massive Endowments from Receiving COVID Aid Sees Momentum in Congress

S.3595 — A bill to require a longitudinal study on the impact of COVID-19.
Sponsor: Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV] (Introduced 05/04/2020) Cosponsors: (1)
Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Action:  Senate – 05/04/2020 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Press Release: Rosen, Rubio Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Study the Full Health Impacts of COVID-19

Federal Education Training and Grant Opportunities, Notices:
ED Comment Request: Consolidated State Plan. Comments due on or before July 10, 2020. 

ED Grant Notice: Coordinating Center for Transition Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities into Higher Education—Model Comprehensive Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities Program-Coordinating Center (TPSID-CC). Applications due July 10, 2020.

DOL Comment Request: Student Safety Assessment of Job Corps Centers. Comments due on or before June 5, 2020. 

ED Notice: Investigation and Records Requests University of Texas System