Weekly Update: 5/4/20
California
After a two-month-plus hiatus coinciding with the statewide coronavirus lockdown, California legislators are returning to the state Capitol today…
Gov. Newsom has said he could make some announcements about meaningful changes to California’s stay-at-home order this week. Newsom on Friday, 5/1, said the state could start easing its restrictions within "many days, not weeks," but has made clear that counties cannot allow activities to resume that are prohibited by the state order…
On Friday, 5/1, Modoc County — a small northern county of 9,600 residents with no confirmed Covid-19 cases — became the first to defy the state order, reopening virtually all businesses including bars, restaurants and churches with physical distancing restrictions….
University of California president Janet Napolitano said that the system’s campuses will offer classes in the fall, but declined to state whether those offerings will be online, in person, or a combination…
President and Administration
“President Trump predicted the United States will lose between 75,000 to 100,000 people to the coronavirus, a marked increase from just a few weeks ago when he estimated 60,000 could die…
President Trump predicted a vaccine for the novel coronavirus by the end of the year. The Trump Administration is reportedly instructing agencies to speed up the vaccine development process with a new project called ‘Operation Warp Speed’ to speed up vaccine development by several months and have 300 million doses of a vaccine available by January….
“President Trump said he won’t support another round of coronavirus stimulus legislation unless it includes a payroll tax cut, a measure that has muted support among lawmakers in Congress…
President Trump also said that he would like to see a sizable infrastructure bill pass to help revive the economy, which has cratered amid the coronavirus pandemic…
President Trump said he is urging universities and schools to open their doors in September but he’s worried about the safety of teachers who are 65 and older in classrooms while there is no coronavirus vaccine…
“Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb warned that if states allow schools, workplaces and other public areas to “let their guard down,” an explosion of new coronavirus cases could bubble up into a “new epidemic” or “large outbreak.”
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued another round of regulatory waivers and rule changes to provide expanded care to seniors and the healthcare in response to the crisis. These changes can be found here.
Education
School superintendents from across the country will talk today, 5/4, about how to effectively reopen schools during the first virtual meeting of a recovery task force launched by AASA, The School Superintendents Association, to help district leaders deal with challenges caused by the coronavirus (Politico).
In light of the current economic situation, two-year institutions across the country are offering discounts and deals, waiving fees, and offering free summer tuition, and other programs meant to help students
With the increased immigration enforcement over the past few years, Latino math performances have gone down, showing that arrests and deportations are likely disrupting and widening the gap on Latino student learning….
As colleges and universities work out logistics on how to return fall semester, whether virtually or in-person, there are concerns in whether faculty have the option to not provide on-campus sessions
Congress
Lawmakers are facing a quick pile up of potential obstacles to a deal as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) offer “red lines” and competing priorities for legislation….
The American Federation of State, Country and Municipal Employees is spending more than $1 million on a campaign in efforts to urge Congress to supply more money to states and cities in its next relief package
This morning Majority Leader Hoyer sent the following to House members: “Members are advised that due to ongoing bipartisan conversations surrounding additional CARES legislation and a Rule change related to remote work, and in continued consultation with Members and the House Attending Physician, the House is not expected to be in session the week of May 4, 2020….
Senators returned to DC today, as scheduled.