- Federal Judge Issues Permanent Injunction Against Unlawful Presence Policy
- Education Department Withdraws Emergency HEA Section 117 Information Collection Request
- White House to Release FY21 Budget Recommendations Monday
- Upcoming Events
- ICYMI
FEDERAL JUDGE ISSUES PERMANENT INJUNCTION AGAINST UNLAWFUL PRESENCE POLICY
A federal judge yesterday issued a permanent nationwide injunction against an August 2018 memo from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services “clarifying” that nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors holding “F,” “J,” and “M” visas would immediately begin to accrue days of “unlawful presence” if they are not in compliance with their visa terms. A preliminary injunction had been in place since May 2019. Students may fall out of compliance for many reasons: medical leave, a reduced course load, or paperwork errors. Implementation of the memo would have subjected those who accrued more than 180 days of “unlawful presence” to a three- or 10-year bans from reentering the United States. Accruals could also be retroactive. The administration is likely to appeal the decision to the Fourth Circuit.
In 2018, AAU’s board or directors made the unprecedented decision to support the litigation despite not being a named plaintiff. The plaintiffs alleged the memo violates federal regulatory law and conflicts with federal immigration law. The lawsuit was an important effort to support international students and scholars and help them avoid status violations.
EDUCATION DEPARTMENT WITHDRAWS EMERGENCY HEA SECTION 117 INFORMATION COLLECTION REQUEST
The Office of Management and Budget yesterday announced the Education Department will withdraw its request for emergency review and immediate implementation of new reporting requirements for foreign gifts and contracts under HEA Section 117. The department will resubmit the information collection request on Monday. OMB and the Education Department have agreed that the department will separately pursue rulemaking to address the department's desire to collect "true copies" of contracts from covered institutions. Additional information will be available after the information collection request is released on Monday.
RESOURCE AVAILABLE: AAU, Associations Comment on Foreign Gifts and Contracts Reporting Proposed Information Collection | AAU Comment Letter on Sec. 117
WHITE HOUSE TO RELEASE FY21 BUDGET RECOMMENDATIONS MONDAY
The White House is expected to release its proposed FY21 budget Monday, February 10. The request is expected to adhere to spending levels set by last year’s deal to raise the Budget Control Act’s discretionary spending caps for two years. The bipartisan agreement set FY21 spending levels at $671.5 billion for defense and $626.5 billion in non-defense spending, a combined increase of $10 billion over FY20 spending limits split equally between defense and nondefense spending, excluding Overseas Contingency Operations funding. The deal also suspended the debt ceiling through July 31, 2021.
UPCOMING EVENTS
MARCH 8 – 10 NHA ANNUAL MEETING AND HUMANITIES ADVOCACY DAY; Washington Court Hotel, 525 New Jersey Avenue NW. Sunday, March 8, 1:00 p.m. ET – Tuesday, March 10, 5:00 p.m. More information and registration available here.
MARCH 30 – 31 COSSA SOCIAL SCIENCE ADVOCACY DAY; Spire Conference Center, 750 1st Street NE. More information and registration available here.
APRIL 28 AAU/APLU 2020 UNIVERSITY INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP SHOWCASE; Rayburn Cafeteria, Rayburn House Office Building, 45 Independence Avenue, SW. 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. ET. Applications will be considered until February 27. More information available here.