Weekly Update 4/5/21

California

The effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom is shaping up to be an expensive national spectacle as unlimited fund-raising and partisan interests converge in the most populous U.S. state…

California appears in the midst of another drought only a few years after a punishing five year dry spell dried up rural wells, killed endangered salmon, idled farm fields and helped fuel the most deadly and destructive wildfires in modern state history…

Coronavirus

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said last week that the federal eviction moratorium has been extended through June 30, a move that will protect millions of tenants who have struggled to make their rent payments during the COVID-19 crisis…

 Seeking to overcome vaccine hesitancy, the Biden administration on Thursday, 4/1, stepped up its outreach efforts to skeptical Americans, launching a coalition of community, religious and celebrity partners to promote COVID-19 shots in hard-hit communities…

On Wednesday, 3/31, Pfizer said its COVID-19 vaccine was 100% effective in a final-stage trial in children ages 12 to 15, which could pave the way for teens and pre-teens to get shots before the next school year and intensifies pressure on schools to decide whether to make shots mandatory when students return…

During Pfizer's Phase Three clinical trial for its COVID-19 vaccine, researchers have found that protection lasts up to six months after the second dose…

President Joe Biden and top health officials warned last week that COVID-19 infections are once again beginning to climb — urging Americans, including elected officials, to double down on precautions to prevent a fourth surge…

Fully vaccinated people can resume recreational travel in the U.S. at “low risk” yet should still wear a mask and avoid crowds, according to new advice from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)…

President and Administration

Biden may address a joint session of Congress after about 100 days of his presidency, which falls on April 30…

President Biden is looking to send an unprecedented amount of federal funding to help people living in areas that have been disproportionately harmed by air pollution, contaminated water, and other environmental impacts…

The Biden administration is stepping up efforts to combat domestic extremism, increasing funding to prevent attacks, weighing strategies historically used against foreign terrorist groups and more openly warning the public about the threat…

The U.S. Labor Department (DOL) office that polices government contractors intensified its enforcement of anti-bias laws under President Biden, a marked change from the Trump administration’s focus on proactive measures…

President Biden announced his first slate of judicial nominees last week, elevating U.S. District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the influential appeals court in Washington to succeed Merrick Garland as part of the largest and earliest batch of court picks by a new administration in decades…

Amid steady progress with COVID-19 vaccinations, the U.S. economy is gathering so much steam that its gains will not stay at home…

Congress 

Last week, Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) said he won’t back any tax increases that President Biden proposes to pay for infrastructure legislation unless there is also a repeal of the $10,000 cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions…

Republicans may be ready to support limited infrastructure funding in Biden’s spending proposal, which would require scaling back the $2.25 trillion plan by more than two thirds, Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO) said…

Many of those who invaded the halls of Congress on 1/6 are likely to get little or no jail time…

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said he plans to pursue comprehensive marijuana legislation but will likely face some resistance from the White House because Biden hasn’t backed full legalization…

 Last week, Gun Violence Prevention Task Force Chairman Mike Thompson led a letter signed by more than 100 of his colleagues asking President Biden to take Executive Action to regulate concealable assault-style rifles, like the firearm used recently in Boulder, Colorado… 

Education

Last week, the Biden administration halted the collection of more than 1 million federally guaranteed student loans, extending relief to a subset of the borrowers who have been left out of the government’s unprecedented freeze on loan payments and interest over the past year…

Labor unions are making a new push to get the Education Department to use executive action to forgive the student loans of Americans working in public service jobs - the latest pressure from the left for the Biden administration to act more aggressively on student debt relief…

 On Friday, 4/2, Education Secretary Cardona joined a roundtable discussion alongside Senate Majority Leader Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Warren (D-MA) to listen as student loan borrowers and advocates shared their stories about the impact student loan debt has had on their lives…

President Biden’s new infrastructure plan proposes billions of dollars for higher education over eight years…

The U.S. higher education sector will feel a revenue hit for several years from a low number of international students enrolling in colleges and universities this fall, according to Moody’s Investors Service…

A string of recent court decisions have accepted sex-based discrimination claims by male students after their schools sanctioned them for harassment or assault, potentially complicating plans for a complete overhaul of former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’s campus sexual misconduct regulations…

Weekly Update 3/29/21

California

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday, 3/24, named Rob Bonta, a Democratic state legislator and loyal political ally, to succeed Xavier Becerra as attorney general…

California is one of 11 states that still distinguish between spousal rape and rape…

Californians frustrated by the hunt for COVID-19 vaccine appointments may have to wait several more weeks for an appointment, Blue Shield’s CEO said on Friday, 3/26…

Gun control advocates are putting pressure on the gun industry to comply with California’s unique law requiring individual identifiers on all bullet casings, a fairly ineffective mandate approved in 2007…

The mayor of Oakland on Tuesday, 3/23, announced a privately funded program that will give low-income families of color in the city $500 per month with no rules on how they can spend it…

California added 141,000 jobs in February as more than a quarter of a million people returned to the workforce, state officials announced Friday, 3/26, a reflection of loosening virus restrictions on businesses as more people get vaccinated…

Coronavirus

Today, 3/29, President Biden urged state and local officials to reconsider lifting their COVID-19 restrictions and to reinstate mask mandates that have lapsed as the U.S. faces an increase in cases…

Hospitalizations related to COVID-19 are climbing in half of the U.S., the latest sign that the nation’s fourth upswing in infections is underway…

Researchers in the U.S. and abroad are beginning to test younger children to ensure COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective for all ages…

49 percent of educators have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, according to a new survey by the National Education Association (NEA), the nation’s largest union representing nearly 3 million members…

On Thursday, 3/25, the Senate voted 92-7 to extend the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) from 3/31 to the end of May…

Face masks, hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes can qualify as medical expenses for tax deductions or can be paid for with money from tax-advantaged health accounts, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced Friday, 3/26…

President and Administration

President Biden will unveil the framework for a major infrastructure-and-jobs program on Wednesday, 3/31, in Pittsburgh, and later in the week will offer a glimpse of his 2022 budget - which promises to redirect federal funds to areas such as climate change and health care… 

President Biden on Thursday, 3/25, prioritized the country’s numerous crises, pledging to administer 200 million COVID-19 vaccine shots by end of April, repair U.S. infrastructure and expand voting rights, with guns and immigration as secondary priorities…

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said Wednesday, 3/24, that he expects 100 percent of schools to be open for in-person learning in the fall as vaccination efforts continue amid the pandemic…

The Homeland Security Department will issue a notice of proposed rulemaking “to preserve and fortify” the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement…

Federal food assistance recipients won a victory as President Biden’s Agriculture Department abandoned a Trump administration court challenge designed to compel states to enforce work requirements to receive the aid…

Business groups are challenging the Department of Labor’s decision to delay a Trump-era rule that would make it easier for businesses to classify workers as independent contractors…

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said his plan to slow First Class mail and hike rates will help the U.S. Postal Service avoid bigger financial deficits in the future…

The Biden administration is escalating efforts to safeguard the U.S. power grid from hackers, developing a plan to better coordinate with industry to counter threats and attacks, said people familiar with the matter…

Congress 

Moderate Senate Democrats are pushing their leaders for a more modest approach to the party’s signature minimum wage hike, arguing for a compromise that can attract broader support after the defeat of a $15 hourly wage proposal…

Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) says voting rights, economic recovery and gun safety are on the agenda when lawmakers return in mid-April…

College lobby groups launched a campaign on Thursday, 3/25, for lawmakers to double the total value of grants to low-income students…

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Wednesday, 3/24, unanimously advanced the bipartisan “Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act of 2021”…

Seven House committees launched a sweeping investigation Thursday, 3/25, into the federal government's handling of the 1/6 assault on the Capitol and the intelligence and security breakdowns preceding it…

Education

The Education Department's Office of Federal Student Aid unveiled a new portal last night, 3/28, to ease the administration of aid programs…

The Department of Education announced today, 3/29, that relief for certain borrowers who have received student loan discharges due to total and permanent disability…

Legislatures are weighing proposals to establish summer learning initiatives, expand afterschool programs and extend the school year…

The Institute of Education Science’s Monthly School Survey Dashboard shows almost 50 percent of white students attended in-person school full-time in January, compared to just 28 percent of Black and 33 percent of Hispanic students…

Education and Labor Committee Republican Leader Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Republican Leader Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) sent a letter to Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona questioning a recently released template for states to request waivers of certain accountability and reporting requirements under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), which appears to violate the Secretary’s authority….

Coronavirus and D.C. Update 3/25/21

Coronavirus

Next Thursday, 4/1, California will expand COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to residents aged 50 and older, and everyone at least 16 years old will be eligible to make an appointment starting 4/15, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced today, 3/25…

AstraZeneca may have included “outdated information” in touting the effectiveness of its COVID-19 vaccine in a U.S. study, federal health officials said Tuesday, 3/23, in an unusual public rift that could further erode confidence in the shot…

In early April, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will begin providing financial assistance for funeral expenses incurred after 1/20/20 for COVID-19-related deaths to help ease financial stress and burden caused by the pandemic…

New jobless claims fell to their lowest levels amid the pandemic era, with a better-than-expected 684,000 being filed last week…

As of February, 76 percent of schools were open for full-time or hybrid learning, with classroom reopenings differing between student groups and locations, a federal survey finds…

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona will visit school campuses in the coming weeks to highlight successful reopening efforts during the pandemic…

A coalition of 12 state attorneys general called on Facebook and Twitter yesterday, 3/24, to enforce their community guidelines and rid their services of misinformation spreading by accounts promoting anti-vaccine ideas…

D.C. Update

This afternoon, 3/25, President Biden held his first solo press conference…

President Joe Biden on Tuesday, 3/23, called for a federal assault weapons ban and strengthened background checks for firearms sales in the aftermath of a deadly supermarket shooting in Boulder, CO — hoisting the contentious issue of gun reform among the White House’s top legislative priorities…

Biden plans to unveil his initial 2022 spending requests next week to help shape congressional negotiations, and expects to release a full budget proposal in the coming months, the administration said Tuesday, 3/23…

The Biden administration is considering extending a soon-to-expire federal policy prohibiting landlords from evicting cash-strapped tenants, as the government seeks to buy more time for an estimated 10 million families behind on rent…

Biden put Vice President Kamala Harris in charge of resolving a surge in migration on the U.S. southern border that’s overwhelming federal immigration authorities…

Weekly Update 3/22/21

California

The House has dismissed a Republican attempt to remove Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) from the House intelligence panel over his contact more than six years ago with a suspected Chinese spy who targeted politicians in the United States…

“We’re anticipating within five-and-a-half weeks where we can eliminate all of the tiering,” said California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday, 3/19, “and make available vaccines to everybody across the spectrum because supply will exponentially increase”…

Last week, Judge Cynthia Freeland issued a temporary restraining order blocking California from enforcing a wide swath of rules that limit and regulate school openings, saying the state has denied children their right to an education by forcing many to stay in online learning…

Last week, Newsom committed to nominating a Black woman to the U.S. Senate should Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) resign…

The Senate narrowly confirmed California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to become the new Secretary of Health and Human Services last Thursday, 3/18…

Coronavirus

The COVID-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford provided strong protection against COVID-19 in a large clinical trial in the U.S., completely preventing the worst outcomes from the disease while causing no serious side effects, according to results announced today, 3/22…

Schools can allow social distancing of three feet, rather than six, between students in classrooms, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Friday, 3/19, in what is expected to be a boost to reopening schools nationwide…

A new analysis found that states such as South Carolina and Florida that rushed to offer the vaccine to ever-larger groups of people have actually vaccinated smaller shares of their population than those that moved more slowly and methodically, such as Hawaii and Connecticut…

The Small Business Administration (SBA) will begin accepting online applications on 4/8 for more than $16 billion in grants for performing arts centers, movie theaters and museums that have been shut down during the pandemic…

The Senate must move to prevent a lapse in new loans for small businesses bruised by the pandemic…

President and Administration

White House officials are weighing a number of means to pass the Biden administration’s next big legislative push, “Build Back Better,” including breaking the jobs plan into as many as three bills…

The Education Department announced Thursday, 3/18, that students who were cheated by for-profit institutions and previously granted partial relief on their direct federal loans will now be granted full relief…

As the U.S. reels from major cyber-attacks by suspected Russian and Chinese hackers, officials are looking to implement new technologies that would allow the federal government to respond more effectively…

President Biden’s next major economic package will almost certainly have to rely once again on a Democrat-only approach after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) shut the door on Republican support for tax hikes to pay for it…

States are demanding the Biden administration clarify a last-minute provision in the latest virus relief package that bars them from using federal benefits to cut taxes…

President Biden is considering keeping U.S. troops in Afghanistan until November, rather than withdrawing them by a 5/1 deadline outlined in an agreement his predecessor negotiated with the Taliban…

Congress 

House lawmakers described the fear and trauma rippling through the Asian-American community and argued the rise in violence was a result of anti-China messaging stoked during the pandemic…

House Republicans voted to allow their members to request dedicated-spending projects, known as earmarks, following that same move by Democrats, in a positive sign for Biden’s hopes for a bipartisan infrastructure bill…

President Biden on Tuesday, 3/16, said he supports changing the Senate’s filibuster rule back to requiring senators talk on the floor to hold up a bill, the first time he has endorsed reforming the procedure…

On Tuesday, 3/16, a bipartisan bill was introduced - The Water Quality Protection and Job Creation Act of 2021 - that would authorize $50 billion in direct infrastructure investment over five years…

Backers of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) won a fresh victory in the House, with a vote to remove a ratification deadline they hope to see matched in the Senate and upheld in the courts…

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved the bipartisan Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances Act on Wednesday, 3/17, legislation to protect firefighters from “forever chemicals” and reduce their releases into the environment…

The House moved on Wednesday, 3/17, to renew the Violence Against Women Act, adding firearm restrictions for convicted domestic abusers and other new provisions to a landmark law that has helped combat domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking but lapsed under former President Trump in 2019…

Education

Last week, the Department issued guidance regarding the use of funds received under the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF) grant program…

Secretary of Education Cardona today, 3/22, sent a letter to The Honorable Pedro Pierluisi, Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, informing him that the U.S. Department of Education has provided the Commonwealth immediate access to $912 million in Federal education funds, which had not been available to Puerto Rico as a result of previously imposed grant conditions…

A bipartisan group of Senators on Thursday, 3/18, introduced into Congress the College Transparency Act, which would remove the federal ban on a student-level data system…

Eleven districts in California are seeing an 89 percent surge in chronic absenteeism among students in elementary grades compared to last year at this time, according to new data presented to the California Department of Education…

Immigration Update 3/19/21

Biden Administration

President Joe Biden is working to address the logistical maze of processing over 25,000 migrants stuck waiting in Mexico under the Migrant Protection Protocols (M.P.P.) one of former President Donald Trump’s most consequential border policies…

Despite the massive immigration package Biden introduced his first day as president and the flurry of executive orders that followed, the president’s policies have yet to catch up with his rhetoric…

President Biden reopened the country last month to people seeking green cards, ending a ban on legal immigration that Trump imposed last April, citing what he said was the need to protect American jobs during the pandemic…

Prior to Trump taking office, nearly 500,000 new foreign students came into the U.S. in one year, pumping billions of dollars into small and large schools across the country…

The Biden administration’s task force to reunite families separated at the border under Trump will allow those families to reunite and settle in the U.S., DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said earlier this month…

In an attempt to prevent the detention of migrant families for weeks or months at a time, the Biden administration plans to release parents and children within 72 hours of their arrival in the U.S…

Emergency facilities - a vestige of the Trump administration - are being reactivated to cope with soaring numbers of migrant families and children crossing into the U.S…

In early March, Biden sought help from Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador in preventing another cycle of out-of-control migration from Central America, but without resorting to the full range of policies Trump embraced…

The Courts

A Trump-era rule denying immigrants who use public benefits like food stamps green cards was dealt likely fatal blows last week after Biden dropped legal challenges, including before the Supreme Court…

Biden’s administration asked the Supreme Court to dismiss three pending appeals stemming from his predecessor’s efforts to block federal grants to cities and states that don’t cooperate with federal immigration enforcement…

A federal district court in California granted a preliminary injunction preventing the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) from implementing a late Trump-era rule plaintiffs claim interferes with refugees’ and non-citizens’ ability to pursue relief from deportation…

Two civil rights organizations filed a federal class action lawsuit against ICE to get the agency to halt use of private companies to detain people…

U.S. District Judge Drew Tipton has indefinitely banned the administration from enforcing a 100-day moratorium on most deportations…

Congress 

The House passed The Dream and Promise Act yesterday, 3/18, which would provide a pathway to citizenship for some young undocumented people living in the United States…

The issue of what to do with Biden’s comprehensive immigration plan has bedeviled Pelosi and her leadership team, particularly after a disappointing whip count showing they don’t have the votes to pass the bill on the floor…

Senate Republicans accused President Biden of breaking federal budget law when he ordered a halt to construction of a southern border wall and say the action contributed to a surge in illegal border crossings…

Increases in visas for highly skilled foreign workers could be stymied if Democrats decide to overhaul immigration through a series of small bills instead of the sweeping one put forward by Biden…

While many Americans are receiving another relief check from the government, undocumented workers will once again be left out, even as they work on the front lines of the pandemic…

Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) warned the Biden administration against easing up on unauthorized immigrants, citing their impact on his constituents, local hospitals, and their potential to spread COVID-19…

Last week, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AK) spoke at the Republican Study Committee’s lunch and said that the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border will be key in Republicans regaining the House majority…

On Monday, 3/15, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said border agents he met earlier that day issued dire warnings that suspected terrorists are trying to cross into the U.S. via Mexico…