WASHINGTON UPDATES
Capitol Advocacy Partners provides weekly newsletter updates featuring curated news from the executive and legislative branches, along with timely information on federal funding opportunities—tailored to keep you informed and ahead.
DC Update: 3/25/19
President and Administration
On Friday, 3/22, Robert Mueller released the results of his nearly two-year-long Russia probe. It concluded without finding adequate evidence to show that officials with Donald Trump’s presidential 2016 campaign aided Russian attempts to interfere with the election but did not take a clear position on whether Trump obstructed justice…
On Thursday, 3/21, President Trump signed an executive order regarding on campus free speech. The order essentially reinforces what schools are already supposed to be doing by formally requiring colleges to…The order will direct 12 federal agencies that fund university research to…
On Monday, 3/18, the Trump administration released its priorities for the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA), with proposals focusing on…
Department of Education
This week the Department of Education convenes for the third session of accreditation negotiated rule making. Topics for this session include…
Congress
Today, 3/25, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Susan Collins (R-ME) reintroduced “The American Apprenticeship Act,” legislation to help states pay for apprenticeship programs. The bill would instruct the Labor Department to…
On 3/27 the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing on “Expanding Registered Apprenticeship Programs”. Witnesses include…
On 3/26 the House Appropriations LHHS Subcommittee will hold a hearing on the Department of Education’s FY20 budget proposal, and on 3/28 the Senate Appropriations LHHS Subcommittee will hold its hearing on the Department of Education’s FY20 budget proposal. Secretary DeVos is scheduled to be the witness at both hearings. It is anticipated that the Secretary will face higher education questions about…
On Tuesday, 3/26, at 10am the House Committee on Energy and Commerce: Subcommittee on Communications and Technology will host a hearing on H.R. 1644, the "Save the Internet Act of 2019" to…
DC Update: 3/11/19
President and Administration
Today, the President released his 2020 budget to lawmakers…The Senate and House will hold hearings this week and next to discuss the president’s proposed budget. Highlights of the proposal include…
President Trump requested $8.6 billion in new funding for the construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexican border in his FY20 budget proposal. The Senate is expected to…
According to the Associated Press, as the U.S. Supreme Court weighs whether the Trump administration can include a citizenship question on the 2020 census, the Census Bureau is quietly seeking comprehensive information about the legal status of millions of immigrants…
On 3/6 a federal judge in California ruled that President Trump and the Department of Justice cannot withhold federal funds from “sanctuary cities”. The case related specifically to…
Department of Education
On Thursday, March 7, a federal judge ruled that the Education Department violated the Administrative Procedure Act when it delayed the implementation of an Obama-era rule by two years. The rule, which was finalized in December 2016, was designed to…
Congress
On Friday, March 8, the House passed H.R. 1, a voting reform bill that, among other provisions, requires colleges to appoint "campus vote coordinators" responsible for helping students register. Additionally, it would create…
On Tuesday, March 12, at 10:00am the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing on "Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act: Simplifying the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and Reducing the Burden of Verification."
Additionally, the House Education and Labor Civil Rights and Human Services Subcommittee will hold a hearing at 10:15am on "Growing a Healthy Next Generation: Examining Federal Child Nutrition Programs" and the House Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee will hold a hearing at 2:00pm on "Oversight of For-Profit Colleges: Protecting Students and Taxpayer Dollars from Predatory Practices."
On Wednesday, March 13, at 8:00am the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a hearing on "The Cost of College: Student Centered Reforms to Bring Higher Education Within Reach."
On 3/13 the House Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee will hold a hearing on "Department of Health and Human Services Budget Request for FY2020" at 2:00pm. The hearing will provide…
On Thursday, March 7, Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR), Ben Sasse (R-NE) and Tim Scott (R-SC) introduced The Education Savings Accounts for Military Families Act of 2019. The bill would create…
Other News
On Thursday, March 7, the Hope Center, released a study that found that 19% of California’s 2.1 million community college students have been homeless during the past year. The survey is the most comprehensive yet done on…It echoes earlier findings that…
Education Update: 3/4/19
President and Administration
On Wednesday 3/6, the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board will hold its first meeting. Co-chaired by…the board is composed of various CEOs who provide recommendations on…
President Trump announced Saturday 3/2 that he plans to issue an executive order that would deny federal research funds to colleges and universities that do not support free speech…
The House of Representatives voted on Tuesday 2/26, to overturn President Donald Trump's national emergency declaration…Senator McConnell believes the President will…
Department of Education
On Thursday 2/28, Secretary DeVos, Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Bradley Byrne unveiled the details of the Administration’s education freedom policy proposal, legislation entitled the Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act. Education Freedom Scholarships would…
Congress
House Appropriations Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) announced that, as of now, earmarks will not be included in the spending bills lawmakers will be writing for fiscal 2020, citing…
On Wednesday 2/27, the House passed H.R. 8…
On 2/7, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) introduced the Green New Deal in the House and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced a companion resolution in the Senate. The resolution lays out…
On 2/28, Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said in remarks at the Center for American Progress that she wants to reach a deal with Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) on a comprehensive overhaul of the Higher Education Act…
SALT: Congress and Administration
On Tuesday 2/26, The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) released a report stating that nearly 11 million taxpayers…
On Wednesday 2/27, the House Budget Committee held a hearing entitled “2017 Tax Law: Impact on the Budget and American Families” where they discussed the SALT Deduction…
Funding/Support Opportunities
A new Department of Education funding opportunity…
DC Update: 3/4/19
President and Administration
On Wednesday 3/6, the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board will hold its first meeting. Co-chaired by…the board is composed of various CEOs who provide recommendations on…
President Trump announced Saturday 3/2 that he plans to issue an executive order that would deny federal research funds to colleges and universities that do not support free speech…
The House of Representatives voted on Tuesday 2/26, to overturn President Donald Trump's national emergency declaration…Senator McConnell believes the President will…
Department of Education
On Thursday 2/28, Secretary DeVos, Senator Ted Cruz and Congressman Bradley Byrne unveiled the details of the Administration’s education freedom policy proposal, legislation entitled the Education Freedom Scholarships and Opportunity Act. Education Freedom Scholarships would…
Congress
House Appropriations Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) announced that, as of now, earmarks will not be included in the spending bills lawmakers will be writing for fiscal 2020, citing…
On Wednesday 2/27, the House passed H.R. 8…
On 2/7, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) introduced the Green New Deal in the House and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) introduced a companion resolution in the Senate. The resolution lays out…
SALT: Congress and Administration
On Tuesday 2/26, The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) released a report stating that nearly 11 million taxpayers…
On Wednesday 2/27, the House Budget Committee held a hearing entitled “2017 Tax Law: Impact on the Budget and American Families” where they discussed the SALT Deduction…
Funding/Support Opportunities
A new National Science Foundation grant…
DC Update: 2/25/19
President and Administration
The House plans to vote Tuesday 2/26 on legislation to formally block President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency at the southern border…
Acting OMB Director Russell Vought wrote in an Op-Ed for RealClearPolitics that the President’s upcoming FY20 budget proposal will adhere “to the spending caps already set in law”, which would necessitate a 5% reduction to non-defense spending. President Trump’s previous budgets have…
In the next few days the USDA is expected to release its final rule on hiring requirements for school food directors. The rule is expected to provide more flexibility for small districts by loosening the experience requirements.
Department of Education
On 2/22 a federal judge ruled that the Department of Education had acted improperly when rejecting some student loan borrowers from the public service loan forgiveness program. The borrowers were initially told…
Congress
The House plans to vote on HR 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019, this week. With a Democratic majority in the House…
On 2/26 the House Education and Labor Committee will hold a markup on H.R. 865 …The bill calls for new federal funding to improve public school buildings and would create a…
Congress’ hopes to introduce a national privacy law early 2020 have been stalled due to dissent from California Democrats who are happy with the California Consumer Privacy Act. They are concerned…
On 2/27 the Budget Committee will have a hearing on the Republican tax reform bill. The hearing is expected to touch on the SALT cap as well as…
This week the House will hold two hearings expected to examine President Trump’s immigration policies. Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA) will be an expert witness for the Foreign Affairs Committee…
Other
Last week the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Center for Education and the Workforce is launching the Jobs Data Exchange (JDX) to provide open source data for…