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News and updates

News and updates

What We’re Reading, April 24-28

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Here’s a selection of articles the Federal Relations team is reading this week.

It’s Harder Than It Looks –  Trump misses driving, feels as if he is in a cocoon, and is surprised how hard his new job is. President Donald Trump on Thursday reflected on his first 100 days in office with a wistful look at his life before the White House. “I loved my previous life. I had so many things going,” Trump told Reuters in an interview. “This is more work than in my previous life. I thought it would be easier.” Read more from Reuters. 

Diversity Among Early Career Awardees – Increasing diversity within academic science has been a priority for France Córdova since she became director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 2014. Within a year she had launched an initiative, called INCLUDES, that challenges universities to do a better job of attracting women and minorities into the field. Now, Córdova has turned her attention inward in hopes of improving the dismal track record of NSF’s most prestigious award for young scientists. Read more from Science Magazine. 

Judge Blocks Another Trump Order – A judge in San Francisco on Tuesday temporarily blocked President Trump’s efforts to starve localities of federal funds when they limit their cooperation with immigration enforcement, a stinging rejection of his threats to make so-called sanctuary cities fall in line. The judge, William H. Orrick of United States District Court, said only Congress could place such conditions on spending. The ruling, which applies nationwide, was another judicial setback for the Trump administration, which has now seen three immigration orders stopped by federal courts in its first 100 days. Read more from The New York Times. 

Indirect Costs Associated with Research – For more than a decade, the University of Washington has used federal research funding to help finance a $1.1 billion building boom in labs and research offices — 15 buildings in all. But now the Trump administration is talking of sharply curtailing the overhead costs that can be included in research grants. Those so-called “indirect” costs cover salaries of hundreds of staffers who help with research support — and constructing new lab and office space. Read more from The Seattle Times.

On DeVos Rescinding Protections for Borrowers – Democrats sent a letter to Secretary DeVos criticizing the reversal of Obama-era policy on loan servicing and borrower protections. Read the full letter here. 

House Scraps ACA Vote, House and Senate Pass One Week CR

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Late last night, House Republican leadership decided to forego a vote on the ACA amendment by Rep. Tom MacArthur circulated earlier this week. MacArthur, who is the leader of the moderate Republican Tuesday Group, would shift how individuals with preexisting conditions are insured to the states. The amendment won the support of the conservative House Freedom Caucus by loosening insurance mandates, but didn’t gain many moderates. Additionally, the House Democrats announced that if the House voted on the amendment, Democrats would all vote against the much-needed, short-term CR to keep the government open though midnight Friday.

This morning, the House of Representatives passed the one-week CR to keep the government operating. It is an necessary step to avert a shutdown as negotiators continue to work on an agreement to extend funding through the remainder of the year via an omnibus appropriations measure.

The Senate unanimously passed a stopgap spending bill, about an hour after the measure was overwhelmingly approved by the House.

The bill funds the government for one week, avoiding a government shutdown at midnight. Lawmakers plan to pass a broader spending package next week to fund the government through September.

Another Short-Term Funding Measure Unveiled

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In order to buy more time for the two parties, the two chambers, and Congress and the White House to negotiate with each other on a spending package for the remainder of FY2017, Congressional leaders have unveiled a short-term measure that would keep the government funded for another week. Without an extension, the current funding agreement expires at midnight this Saturday.

The short-term measure would extend funding through next Friday, May 5.

Trump Tax Plan Released

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The Trump Administration released its initial tax proposal. There are still lots of questions and items to be negotiated. The rollout came via a press conference held by Treasury Secretary Mnuchin and National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn. The highlights are below.

Personal Tax Reform

  • For individuals, income tax rates would be set at 10%, 25%, and 35%; these are different than Trump’s campaign proposal rates of 12%, 25%, and 33%, which were aligned with those in the House Blueprint on tax reform.
  • The plan calls to double the standard deduction, but repeals all itemized deductions for individuals aside from the mortgage interest and charitable contribution deductions (includes eliminating deduction for state and local taxes).
  • The plan calls for repeal of the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) and the estate tax immediately with no phase out.
  • The top capital gains and dividends rate would remain at 20%.
  • The 3.8% net investment income tax, enacted under the Affordable Care Act, would be repealed.
  •   It would provide tax relief for child and dependent care costs.

 

Business Tax Reform:

  • It calls for a 15% business tax rate (which has been very covered in the news).
  • There is a one-time tax on the repatriation of foreign earnings of US companies at an unspecified rate, which Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said would be negotiated with Congress along with other details.
  • For the first time, the Administration called for a switch to a territorial system of taxing foreign earnings. Note, Trump had called for a worldwide system and elimination of deferral in 2015, during the campaign, but had not addressed his preference on the issue for some time. Today’s plan, as outlined by Secretary Mnuchin and during the press briefing, does not address the House border adjustability proposal.
  • Eliminate “tax breaks for special interests”

White House Rolls Back Shutdown Demands on Border Wall, Okays Subsidies

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Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and Hill look closer to a deal as the Trump Administration has backed down on demands for a downpayment on the border wall in FY 2017. The decision by Trump to postpone a battle over wall funding until the fall, if necessary, came as a victory for Democrats who oppose a wall and a comfort for Republican negotiators who were given more freedom to maneuver to get a deal in place that would prevent a government shutdown. 

A bigger sticking point has been the ACA subsidies. This afternoon, the White House has said that it will continue paying Affordable Care Act cost-sharing subsidies, removing the biggest remaining hurdle in the negotiations to avoid a government shutdown.

Negotiations continue, but a short term CR may still be in order.