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

September 13, 2024

CONGRESS

House GOP leadership released a Continuing Resolution (CR) that will fund the government through March 28. This bill includes a GOP proposal to require proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections, known as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) postponed the vote on this bill until next week.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) published a Dear Colleague Letter, sharing that the Senate aims to avoid a government shutdown by passing a CR free from “poison pills or Republican extremism.” The letter also urged the House to take up the Senate passed Kids Online Safety Act and Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act legislation.

The House Education and the Workforce Committee marked up several education-related bills. The Committee passed H.R. 5646, the Stop Campus Hazing Act, on a 28 to 2 vote; H.R. 7233, the Jenna Quinn Law of 2024, on a 33 to 0 vote; and H.R. 736, the PROTECT Kids Act, on a 22 to 12 vote, advancing the bills to the House floor for consideration.

A bipartisan group of twenty Senators sent a letter to the Department of Education (ED) asking for an extension on the deadline for reporting under the agency’s new gainful employment regulations.

The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology marked up several artificial intelligence-related education and workforce bills. The Committee passed H.R. 9402, the NSF AI Education Act of 2024; H.R.9403, the Expanding AI Voices Act; H.R.9197, the Small Business Artificial Intelligence Advancement Act; H.R.9215, the Workforce for AI Trust Act; H.R.5077, the CREATE AI Act of 2023; H.R.9497, the AI Advancement and Reliability Act;  H.R.9466, the AI Development Practices Act of 2024; and H.R.9211, the LIFT AI Act, all on voice votes, advancing the bills to the House floor for consideration.

ADMINISTRATION

ED released additional information about the forthcoming beta testing phases for the 2025–26 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, which ED has stated will be accessible to all students and contributors by December 1 or earlier.

COURTS

Navient agreed to a $120 million settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regarding allegations that it illegally serviced federal student loans.

Education News Headlines
[Click on the link to read the article online]

What College Leaders Want From Harris and Trump [Inside Higher Ed]

UNC System colleges eliminate 59 DEI-related positions [Higher Ed Dive]

Disney Cuts Employee Tuition Assistance Program [Inside Higher Ed]

Navient, CFPB reach $120M settlement over landmark student loan servicing case [POLITICO]

Federal Anti-Hazing Bill Moves One Step Closer to Becoming Law [Inside Higher Ed]

20 senators ask Cardona to delay gainful employment, financial value transparency deadline [Higher Ed Dive]

Alleging ‘Negligence,’ Fordham Files to Cut Ties With 2U [Inside Higher Ed]

Judge signs off on 2U’s bankruptcy plan [Higher Ed Dive]

Penn joins Harvard in ending sociopolitical statements [The Hill]

A Silver Lining for HBCUs in Affirmative Action’s Demise [Inside Higher Ed]

UPenn, UT Austin produce the most CFOs [Higher Ed Dive]

UC Berkeley launches one of the nation’s few Palestinian-Arab studies programs amid demand [Los Angeles Times]

There Aren’t Enough Internships to Go Around [Inside Higher Ed]

Attacks on higher ed could portend Southern ‘brain drain,’ AAUP says [Higher Ed Dive]

Does Diversity Training Work? [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

Decades of Enrollment Declines for Black Men at HBCUs [Inside Higher Ed]

Higher ed construction pendulum back in full swing [Higher Ed Dive]

One Year After Massive Cuts, West Virginia Is Still Bleeding Faculty, Administrators [Inside Higher Ed]

Cal State San Bernardino braces for budget cuts amid $1B system deficit [Higher Ed Dive]

Georgia Tech severs ties with blacklisted Chinese university [The Washington Post]

Committee News and Schedule, Schedule for House and Senate Floor:

Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs

September 17: Subcommittee Hearing on “Back to School: Shedding Light on Risks and Harm in the Private Student Lending and Servicing Market”

Witnesses: Ms. Aissa Canchola Bañez, Policy Director, Student Borrower Protection Center; Dr. Beth Akers, Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute; Ms. Dalié Jiménez, Professor of Law and Director, Student Loan Law Initiative, University of California, Irvine School of Law

Dirksen 538

2:30 p.m. ET

Speaker of the House

Press Release: Speaker Johnson: Senate Democrats Have Failed in Their Duty to Responsibly Fund the Government

House Committee on Education and the Workforce
Press Release: Foxx Statement at Markup to Protect Kids, Deter Hazing, and Strengthen Employer-Sponsored Health Care

September 11: Full Committee Markup of H.R. 5646, Stop Campus Hazing Act; H.R. 7233, Jenna Quinn Law of 2024; H.R. 736, PROTECT Kids Act; H.J. Res. 181, Congressional Review Act resolution to stop the Biden-Harris rule limiting access to Association Health Plans (AHPs); H.R. 3120, Healthy Competition for Better Care Act; H.R. 9457, Transparent Telehealth Bills Act of 2024

2175 Rayburn and via webcast

10:15 a.m. ET

Press Release: Chair Foxx Reacts to Georgia Tech’s Decision to End Partnership with Blacklisted Chinese University

Press Release: Ranking Member Scott Statement on the August Jobs Report

House Committee on Ways and Means

Press Release: Biden-Harris Record: Job Losses for Small Business While Adding More Government Bureaucrats

Press Release: Neal Statement on August 2024 Jobs Report

House Committee on Appropriations

Press Release: DeLauro Calls for Four-Corners Negotiation to Avoid a Government Shutdown

U.S. Department of Education and the Administration

White House Press Release: Statement from President Joe Biden on the August Jobs Report

White House Press Release: A Proclamation on National Hispanic-Serving Institutions Week, 2024

White House Press Release: President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions

White House Press Release: Executive Order on Investing in America and Investing in American Workers

White House Press Release: FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠Harris Administration Lowers Mental Health Care Costs by Improving Access to Mental Health and Substance Use Care

White House Press Release: FACT SHEET: Congressional Republicans are Wasting Time Instead of Delivering for the American People Yet Again

ED Press Release: New Resources from the U.S. Department of Education Will Help School Administrators Address Sex Discrimination and Provide Equal Opportunity Based on Sex including Pregnancy or Related Conditions and Parental, Family, or Marital Status

ED Press Release: U.S. Department of Education Releases Additional Details for 2025–26 FAFSA Testing Periods

ED Press Release: U.S. Department of Education Awards More Than $251 Million to Improve Employment Opportunities for Individuals with Disabilities

ED Media Advisory: U.S. Department of Education Announces 2024 National HBCU Week Conference

DOL Press Release: Statement by US Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su on August jobs report

DOL Press Release: US Department of Labor awards $90M in grants to support career services, training in 44 states, Puerto Rico to help farmworkers access good jobs

DOL Press Release: President Biden announces ‘Investing in America and Investing in Americans’ order to speed creation of Good Jobs through federal investments

GAO Report: Child Care Accessibility: Agencies Can Further Coordinate to Better Serve Families with Disabilities

Legislative Movement in Congress:

H.Res.1426 — Expressing support for the designation of September 2024 as National Campus Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

Sponsor: Norton, Eleanor Holmes [Del.-D-DC-At Large] (Introduced 09/06/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: House – Oversight and Accountability

Latest Action: House – 09/06/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.

H.R.9486 — To establish a grant program within the Small Business Administration to provide funds for eligible accelerators or eligible incubators that provide services to small business concerns owned and controlled by women and rural small business concerns, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Stansbury, Melanie A. [Rep.-D-NM-1] (Introduced 09/06/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: House – Small Business

Latest Action: House – 09/06/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Small Business.

H.R.9475 — To authorize the Director of the National Science Foundation to identify grand challenges and award competitive prizes for artificial intelligence research and development.

Sponsor: Lieu, Ted [Rep.-D-CA-36] (Introduced 09/06/2024) Cosponsors: (1)

Committees: House – Science, Space, and Technology

Latest Action: House – 09/06/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.

H.R.9461 — USA Workforce Investment Act

Sponsor: Smucker, Lloyd [Rep.-R-PA-11] (Introduced 09/06/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: House – Ways and Means

Latest Action: House – 09/06/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means

H.R.9530 — To require the Secretary of Education to establish a program to provide for antisemitism monitors at institutions of higher education. Sponsor: Torres, Jay [Rep.-D-NY-15] (Introduced 09/10/2024) Cosponsors: (1)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce

Latest Action: House – 09/10/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

H.R.5646 — Stop Campus Hazing Act

Sponsor: McBath, Lucy [Rep.-D-GA-7] (Introduced 09/21/2023) Cosponsors: (53)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce

Latest Action: House – 09/11/2024 Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute by the Yeas and Nays: 28 – 2.

H.R.7233 — Jenna Quinn Law of 2024

Sponsor: Moran, Nathaniel [Rep.-R-TX-1] (Introduced 02/05/2024) Cosponsors: (7)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce

Latest Action: House – 09/11/2024 Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute by the Yeas and Nays: 33 – 0.

Federal Education Training and Grant Opportunities, Notices:

ED Grant Notice: Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education-Tribal Controlled Colleges or Universities (TCCUs) Research and Development Infrastructure (RDI) Grant Program. Applications due on or before September 16, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Performance Reports for Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need (GAANN) Program. Comments due on or before September 16, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Federal Student Loan Program: Internship/Residency and Loan Debt Burden Forbearance Forms. Comments due on or before September 18, 2024.

ED Comment Request: William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (Direct Loan Program) Promissory Notes and Related Forms. Comments due on or before September 19, 2024.

Bureau of Indian Affairs Comment Request: Bureau of Indian Education Adult Education Program. Comments are due on or before September 27, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Federal Student Aid (FSA) Partner Connect System and User Access Management. Comments due on or before September 30, 2024.

ED Notice: Notice Inviting Publishers To Submit Tests for a Determination of Suitability for Use in the National Reporting System for Adult Education. Applications are due on or before October 1, 2024.

NSF Grant Notice: Advanced Technological Education. Applications due on or before October 3, 2024.

 ED Comment Request: Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act State Plan Guide. Comments due on or before November 12, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Consolidated Annual Report (CAR) for the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. Comments due on or before November 12, 2024.

ED Grant: Strengthening Program Evaluation Capacity: Building Evidence of Effectiveness of Strategies To Increase Postsecondary Student Success. Applications due on or before November 14, 2024.

HHS Grant Forecast: Tribal Colleges and Universities Head Start Partnership Program Grants. Estimated due date is on or before January 6, 2025.

ED Notice: Postsecondary Student Success Grant

ED Notice: President’s Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

ED Notice: Annual Notice of Interest Rates for Fixed-Rate Federal Student Loans Made Under the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program