Category: Uncategorized

A roundup of bills introduced in the last week that may be of interest to the higher education community:

S. 514: A bill to amend Title 38, United States Code, to provide additional educational assistance to veterans pursuing a degree in science, technology, engineering, math, or an area that leads to employment in a high-demand occupation.
Sponsor: Sherrod Brown (D-OH)   Introduced: 3/11/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to Committee on Veterans’ Affairs   Cosponsors: 0

H.R. 1100: A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to improve mental and behavioral health services on college campuses.
Sponsor: Janice Schakowsky (D-IL)   Introduced: 3/12/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to House Committees on Energy & Commerce and Education and the Workforce   Cosponsors: 12

H.R. 1178: A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants for graduate medical education partnerships in states with a low physician-resident-to-general-population ratio.
Sponsor: Kathy Castor (D-FL)   Introduced: 3/14/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce   Cosponsors: 0

H.R. 1227: A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize certain aliens who have earned a Ph.D. degree from a United States institution of higher education in a field of science, technology, engineering or mathematics to be admitted for permanent residence and to be exempted from the numerical limitations on H-1B nonimmigrants (STAPLE ACT).
Sponsor: Erik Paulsen (R-MN)   Introduced: 3/15/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary   Cosponsors: 3
Paulsen Press Release

H.R. 1271: A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow employers a credit against income tax as an incentive to partner with educational institutions to provide skills training for students (Job Skills for America’s Students Act).
Sponsor: Mark Takano (D-CA)   Introduced: 3/19/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to Committee on Ways and Means  Cosponsors: 0
Takano Press Release

S. 646: A bill to create the National Endowment for the Oceans to promote the protection and conservation of United States ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes ecosystems.
Sponsor:  Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)   Introduced: 3/21/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation   Cosponsors: 3 (including Senator Maria Cantwell)

The full text of these bills can be found by searching for their respective bill number at thomas.loc.gov

This has been a productive week in the world of Congressional Budgets and Appropriations. Congress is wrapping up work on a CR to keep the government funded through the end of the fiscal year on September 30th and both House and Senate Budget Committees unveiled their FY14 budgets this week.

FY13 Spending Package Nearing Passage

The Senate is now considering legislation that the House passed last week to maintain government funding and avoid a shutdown after the current continuing resolution (CR) expires on March 27^th. The current CR maintains funding for federal programs primarily at their FY12 levels, which meets the $1.043 trillion level agreed to in the Budget Control Act (BCA) of 2011.

The House-passed bill includes full-year bills for two appropriations measures – Defense and Mil-Con-VA.  The Senate package included these two and added bills for Agriculture, Homeland Security, and Commerce-Justice-Science. Included in these bills is additional management flexibility for implementing the sequester, but not relief from it. The remaining seven appropriations bills are wrapped up into a larger CR.

The Senate process has been somewhat stalled due to a slew of amendments added to the measure, but bill managers are expected to work over the weekend to develop a smaller list and prepare the bill for floor action on Monday. It would then be sent to the House for final approval. While the CR doesn’t expire until the 27^th, the deadline is realistically the end of next week before Congress departs for the Easter recess. Continue reading “Latest CR & Budget Update”

A roundup of bills introduced in the last week that may be of interest to the higher education community:

S. 440: A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for loan forgiveness for early childhood educators.
Sponsor: Mark Begich (D-AK)  Introduced: 3/4/2013  Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions  Cosponsors: 0
Begich Press Release

S. 441: A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 by establishing a program to provide professional development activities for educators.
Sponsor: Mark Begich (D-AK)  Introduced: 3/4/2013  Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions  Cosponsors: 0
Begich Press Release

H.R. 1037: A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to include Occupational Therapists as behavioral and mental health professionals for purposes of the National Health Service Corps.
Sponsor: Paul Tonko (D-NY)  Introduced: 3/7/2013  Last Major Action: Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce  Cosponsors: 3

The full text of these bills can be found by searching for their respective bill number at thomas.loc.gov

Below are some congressional hearings scheduled for next week that we will be keeping our eye on and may be of interest to the UW community:

Wednesday, March 13
House Appropriations
FY14 Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations
10 am, H-309 Capitol Building

House Appropriations
FY14 Homeland Security Appropriations
10 am, 2359 Rayburn

House Appropriations
FY14 Interior and Environment Appropriations
9:30 am, B-308 Rayburn

House Appropriations
FY14 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations
10 am, 2358-C Rayburn

House Education and the Workforce
Student Loan Programs
10 am, 2175 Rayburn

House Homeland Security
DHS Role in Cybersecurity
10 am, 311 Cannon

House Science, Space, and Technology
STEM Education Initiatives
10 am, 2318 Rayburn

Thursday, March 14
House Appropriations
FY14 Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations
10 am, H-309 Capitol Building

House Appropriations
FY14 Energy and Water Appropriations
10 am, 2362-B Rayburn

House Natural Resources
Energy Resources
10 am, 1324 Longworth

House Science, Space, and Technology
Challenges for Science Agencies
2 pm, 2318 Rayburn

A roundup of bills introduced in the last week that may be of interest to the higher education community:

S. 406: The “Students First Act” – a bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for new program review requirements. The bill is designed to go after ‘bad actors’ in higher education – those that use tax dollars to aggressively market to vulnerable students in potentially illegal ways.
Sponsor: Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ)  Introduced: 2/28/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions   Cosponsors: 3
Link to Lautenberg Press Release

S. 424: A bill to amend Title IV of the Public Health Service Act to provide for a National Pediatric Research Network, including with respect to pediatric rare diseases or conditions. The bill would authorize the Director of the NIH to award grants to create up to 8 research centers.
Sponsor: Sherrod Brown (D-OH)   Introduced: 2/28/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions  Cosponsors: 6

S. 426: A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the participation of particular specialists determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services to be directly related to the health needs stemming from environmental health hazards that have led to its declaration as a Public Health Emergency to be eligible under the National Health Service Corps in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program.
Sponsor: Jon Tester (D-MT)   Introduced: 2/28/2013 Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Link to Baucus Press Release

S. 433: A bill to establish and operate a National Center for Campus Public Safety
Sponsor: Mark Warner (D-VA)   Introduced: 2/28/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to Senate Judiciary Committee   Cosponsors: 1

H.R. 891: A bill to establish a grant program in the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection to fund the establishment of centers of excellence to support research, development and planning, implementation, and evaluation of effective programs in financial literacy education for young people and families ages 8 through 24 years old.
Sponsor: Andre Carson (D-IN)  Introduced: 2/28/2013    Last Major Action: Referred to House Committees on Financial Services and Education & the Workforce
Cosponsors: 0

H.R. 920: A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the participation of optometrists in the National Health Service Corps Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs.
Sponsor: Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)   Introduced: 2/28/2013   Last Major Action: Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce   Cosponsors: 7

The full text of these bills can be found by searching for their respective bill number at thomas.loc.gov