CONTENTS
BUDGET, APPROPRIATIONS & TAX ISSUES
- AAU FY15 Appropriations Charts Updated for NSF, NASA, DOE
OTHER CONGRESSIONAL ISSUES
- Senators Introduce Bill to Simplify Free Application for Student Aid
- Congress Approves Reauthorization of Terrorism Risk Insurance Act
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
- White House Issues RFI on Further Executive Actions on Immigration
BUDGET, APPROPRIATIONS & TAX ISSUES
AAU FY15 APPROPRIATIONS CHARTS UPDATED FOR NSF, NASA, DOE
AAU staff has updated its FY15 appropriations charts for the National Science Foundation, NASA, and the Department of Energy.
OTHER CONGRESSIONAL ISSUES
SENATORS INTRODUCE BILL TO SIMPLIFY FREE APPLICATION FOR STUDENT AID
Senators Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Michael Bennet (D-CO) on January 7 reintroduced the FAST Act (Financial Aid Simplification and Transparency Act) to simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The two Senators first introduced the bill last June. The bill, whose other cosponsors are Richard Burr (R-NC), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), and Angus King (I-ME), is Senator Alexander’s first as chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. The measure would also restore the year-round Pell Grant and make other changes.
Chairman Alexander also cosponsored legislation introduced by Senators King and Burr to reform student loan repayment programs. The Repay Act, which was also cosponsored by Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Susan Collins (R-ME), would consolidate federal student loans into two plans. As described in the Committee’s press release, the two options are “a fixed repayment plan, based on a 10-year period, and a single, simplified income-driven repayment option.” The measure also aims to discourage over-borrowing and would create limits on the amount of loan forgiveness that high-debt borrowers could receive.
Senator Alexander said that the Senate HELP Committee plans to act on the two bills this year after it finishes work reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
CONGRESS APPROVES REAUTHORIZATION OF TERRORISM RISK INSURANCE ACT
The Senate on January 8 gave final congressional approval to a six-year reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA), a program that provides back-up insurance for losses resulting from a terrorist attack. The higher education and business communities have strongly supported the reauthorization bill (H.R. 26), which President Obama is expected to sign into law.
The TRIA reauthorization was approved by the House in December, but Senate approval of the House bill was blocked when now-retired Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) objected to a provision. The failure to pass H.R. 26 allowed the program to expire on December 31.
A group of higher education associations, including AAU, wrote to all Senators on December 12 urging them to approve the House-passed bill.
TRIA, enacted in 2002, created a public-private risk-sharing mechanism that has enabled colleges and universities to purchase sufficient affordable insurance coverage to protect against losses resulting from a terrorist attack.
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
WHITE HOUSE ISSUES RFI ON FURTHER EXECUTIVE ACTIONS ON IMMIGRATION
The White House on December 30 issued a Request for Information (RFI) asking the public for recommendations on actions the Administration can take to streamline and modernize the nation’s immigration system. The RFI does NOT apply to the series of administrative actions that President Obama announced on November 20.