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

October 30, 2024

CONGRESS

The House and Senate are not scheduled to conduct legislative business until after the November election with both chambers returning on November 12.

ADMINISTRATION

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) reported preliminary data on Federal student aid originations for the 2024-2025 award year.

ED announced a proposed rule providing student loan debt relief for borrowers experiencing hardship. The rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register in the coming days.

ED announced, as part of a Court filing, that Third-Party Servicer guidance which the agency issued in 2023, but did not subsequently implement, would be rescinded in the coming weeks.

The General Accountability Office issued reports on how school districts spent initial Federal COVID-19 funds and the extent to which the agency has issued discharges of Federal student loan debt due to Borrower Defense to Repayment claims.

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

Connecticut governor seeks probe into college system after ‘controversial spending’ [Higher Ed Dive]

Report: Mental Health Disrupts Studying for Most Students [Inside Higher Education]

Should College Presidents Be Ranked? [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

Trump’s deportation plan could separate millions of families, leaving schools to pick up the pieces [The Hechinger Report]

The FAFSA Change Behind Colleges’ Pell Progress [Inside Higher Education]

Lawsuit targets Illinois college scholarships aimed at increasing teacher diversity [Higher Ed Dive]

The cost of college is quietly going down [The Hill]

When science is captured by politics [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

You may not need to borrow as much to pay for college. Here’s why. [The Washington Post]

Trying again: Education Department pitches new debt relief proposals [Higher Ed Dive]

Report: Women, First-Gen, BIPOC Students Less Likely to Have Paid Internship Experience [Inside Higher Education]

Fewer Black men are enrolling in HBCUs. Here’s why and what’s being done [NPR]

Biden offers student loan relief for hardships, despite ongoing litigation [The Washington Post]

Low-income students work more amid rising college costs, analysis finds [Higher Ed Dive]

Students Under More Surveillance Than Ever [Inside Higher Education]

Johnson & Wales University debuts 3-year bachelor’s programs [Higher Ed Dive]

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

Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions

Press Release: Ranking Member Cassidy Blasts Latest Biden-Harris Student Loan Scheme

House Committee on Education and the Workforce
Press Release: Foxx Reacts to Latest Biden-Harris Student Loan Scheme: Shameless Attempt to Bribe Voters

Press Release: Foxx, Good Continue to Press Biden-Harris for Answers on Botched Job Numbers

Press Release: Chair Foxx Reacts to GAO Report; Democrats Attempt to Manipulate Borrower Defense for Student Loan Scheme

U.S. Department of Education and the Administration

ED Press Release: Biden-Harris Administration Releases Proposed Rules to Authorize Debt Relief to Nearly Eight Million Borrowers Experiencing Hardship

IES Press Release: Apply to Participate in the Innovation Science for Education Analytics (ISEA) Data Science Training

IES Press Release: Changes in Public School Teachers’ Certification Type

IES Blog: IES Makes 13 Awards to Statistical and Research Methodology in Education Projects

GAO Report: Department of Education: Student Loan Relief in Cases of College Misconduct

Legislative Movement in Congress:

H.R.10048 — To prohibit the availability of Federal funds to institutions of higher education that conduct painful biomedical research on dogs and cats.

Sponsor: Malliotakis, Nicole [Rep.-R-NY-11] (Introduced 10/25/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce

Latest Action: House – 10/25/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

H.R.10041 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish the childcare provider startup credit, to increase the amount of and make refundable the expenses for household and dependent care credit, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Gottheimer, Josh [Rep.-D-NJ-5] (Introduced 10/25/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: House – Ways and Means

Latest Action: House – 10/25/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means

Press Release: Gottheimer Announces “Family Caregiving Plan”

H.R.10077 — To direct certain institutions of higher education to pay the medical costs of students who were diagnosed with certain diseases following a required COVID-19 vaccination, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Rosendale, Matthew M. [Rep.-R-MT-2] (Introduced 10/29/2024)

Cosponsors: (2)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce

Latest Action: House – 10/29/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

Federal Education Training and Grant Opportunities, Notices:

ED Comment Request: Application for Grants Under the Upward Bound Program. Comments due on or before November 4, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Federal Student Aid (FSA) Partner Connect System and User Access Management. Comments due on or before November 7, 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 Comment Request: Subminimum Wage to Competitive Integrated Employment (SWTCIE) Program Evaluation. Comments are 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.

Veterans Affairs Department Comment Request: Child Care Provider Information-For the Child Care Subsidy Program. Comments due on or before November 18, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Federal Family Educational Loan Program-Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). Comments due on or before November 27, 2024.

ED Comment Request: District Survey on Use of Funds Under Title II, Part A. Comments due on or before November 29, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) Enrollment Document. Comments due on or before November 29, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA): Interest Rate Limitation Request. Comments due on or before November 29,2024.

ED Comment Request: Income Based Repayment-Notifications. Comments due on or before December 6, 2024.

Children and Families Administration Comment Request: Financing for Early Care and Education: Quality and Access for All-Case Studies. Comments due on or before December 9, 2024.

Department of Commerce Comment Request: Existing Awards and Recognition Programs for Standards Development and Best Practices for Standards Workforce Development in Support of the Implementation of the United States Government National Standards Strategy for Critical and Emerging Technology (USG NSSCET). Comments due on or before December 9, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Student Assistance General Provisions-Readmission for Servicemembers. Comments due on or before December 9, 2024.

DOL Comment Request: Sectoral Strategies and Employer Engagement Portfolio. Comments are due on or before December 10, 2024.

ED Grant Notice: Personnel Development To Improve Services and Results for Children With Disabilities-Personnel Preparation of Special Education, Early Intervention, and Related Services Personnel at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities, and Other Minority Serving Institutions. Applications due on or before December 12, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Mandatory Civil Rights Data Collection. Comments due on or before December 16, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Comment Request; National Evaluation of the Pathways to Partnerships Program. Comments due on or before December 30, 2024.

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

Department of Commerce Notice: National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship Meeting

HHS Correction: Improving Child Care Access, Affordability, and Stability in the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF)

ED Notice: Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship Program