- Senate Pushes “Skinny” COVID-19 Aid Package; Prospects Waning for Pandemic Relief Before Election
- AAU, Associations Request At Least $120B In Pandemic Aid for Higher Education
- AAU Comments Urge DHS to Withdraw Proposed Rule to Limit H-1B Visas
- Colleges, Universities Join Businesses, Associations on Lawsuits against Administration’s H-1B Visa Restrictions
- AAU, APLU Submit Reply Comments on US Copyright Office’s Sovereign Immunity Study
- Labor Department Requests Information on “Race and Sex Stereotyping and Scapegoating”
- Education Department Claims Colleges and Universities “Massively Underreported” Foreign Funding
- Action Item: House Republican “Dear Colleague” Letter Urges DHS to Reconsider Proposed Duration-of-Status Rule
- House Republicans Introduce the China Task Force Act
- Upcoming Events
SENATE PUSHES “SKINNY” COVID-19 AID PACKAGE; PROSPECTS WANING FOR PANDEMIC RELIEF BEFORE ELECTION
On Wednesday, the Senate held a procedural vote on its $500 billion “skinny” pandemic aid measure which failed to clear the 60-vote threshold required to advance. According to Bloomberg Government, the measure includes: $300 per week in supplemental unemployment payments through Dec. 27; liability protections for businesses and schools; $10 billion in forgivable aid for the United States Postal Service; emergency funding for health, child care, education, and farm programs; new tax credits and grants for private school and home-school education expenses; and the recission of $200 billion in unused funds from Federal Reserve programs to assist businesses and state and local governments. The emergency funding for education includes $105 billion for the Education Stabilization Fund, of which $29 billion is designated for higher education institutions.
On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) held a procedural vote on a bill that would provide $258 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program and deliver a second round of forgivable loans to small businesses. The measure faced opposition from Senate Democrats, who voted to “table” the measure because it was not part of a larger relief proposal and prevented the proposal from achieving the 60 votes necessary to overcome a filibuster.
Meanwhile, negotiations continue between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Yesterday, CQ News reported that Pelosi seemed to suggest that even if negotiators reached an agreement, Congress may not have enough time to pass it before Election Day on Nov. 3. She also noted several sticking points in negotiations, including funding for state and local governments and liability protections. Additionally, Pelosi said it would be up to the White House to ensure enough Republican support in the Senate to pass any pandemic aid package to which Democrats and the administration agree.
RESOURCE AVAILABLE: AAU Urges Negotiators to Include Key Priorities in COVID-19 Relief Package
AAU, ASSOCIATIONS REQUEST AT LEAST $120B IN PANDEMIC AID FOR HIGHER EDUCATION
On Monday, AAU joined ACE and eight other higher education associations on a letter to House and Senate leaders urging them to provide at least $120 billion in new federal pandemic aid for colleges and universities. The associations say that the funding would address problems stemming from decreased revenue and increased expenses, waning enrollment, and previously underestimated costs of operating campuses safely. The funding would also help offset the effects of cuts to state funding, aid current and future students, and prevent further furloughs and layoffs for college and university staff. If these issues are not addressed, the letter says, the “ramifications will linger for years, well after [the United States] has recovered from COVID-19.”
AAU COMMENTS URGE DHS TO WITHDRAW PROPOSED DURATION-OF-STATUS RULE
Yesterday, AAU submitted comments to the Department of Homeland Security to urge the department to withdraw its proposed rule , titled “Establishing a Fixed Time Period of Admission and an Extension of Stay Procedure for Nonimmigrant Academic Students, Exchange Visitors, and Representatives of Foreign Information Media.” The letter outlines the detrimental effects the proposed rule would have on student and scholar visas, focused on the impact on graduate education, optional practical training, delivery of medical care, the nation’s long-term global competitiveness, and more. Ultimately, the letter states, the rule would “create significant procedural uncertainty for international students and universities and seriously damage our ability to attract top international students, scholars, and researchers who contribute mightily to our nation’s higher education and research enterprises, the highly-skilled U.S. workforce, and the economy.”
RESOURCES AVAILABLE: AAU, Associations Send Letter to DHS to Request Extension on Comment Period for Duration of Status NPRM | Executive Order Restricting Immigration Threatens National Health and Economic Security
COLLEGES, UNIVERSITIES JOIN BUSINESSES, ASSOCIATIONS ON LAWSUITS AGAINST ADMINISTRATION’S H-1B VISA RESTRICTIONS
This week, colleges and universities, businesses, and associations filed two lawsuits in response to interim final rules released by the Labor Department and the Department of Homeland Security that would make it more difficult for high-skilled foreign workers with college degrees to acquire H-1B visas. Cornell University, Stanford University, the University of Rochester, the University of Southern California, and the University of Utah joined the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and several other groups to file a complaint against both the Labor Department and DHS in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Purdue University, the University of Michigan, and Indiana University joined 14 other plaintiffs to file a complaint against the Labor Department’s rule in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Plaintiffs in both cases also intend to request temporary restraining orders or preliminary injunctions, which, if granted, would provide immediate relief in at least some jurisdictions.
AAU, APLU SUBMIT REPLY COMMENTS ON US COPYRIGHT OFFICE’S SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY STUDY
AAU and APLU yesterday submitted reply comments to the U.S. Copyright Office, in response to the initial comments the Copyright Office received regarding its forthcoming study on the extent to which copyright owners are experiencing infringement by states without adequate remedies. The reply comments argue that substantial evidence of widespread, intentional copyright infringement is necessary to abrogate sovereign immunity, but the initial comments submitted to the Copyright Office do not provide such evidence. Nor is there evidence that public universities typically invoke sovereign immunity in bad faith or use the doctrine affirmatively as an excuse to infringe copyrights. The reply comments also assert that higher education is one of few sectors in society that undertakes rigorous systemic efforts to comply with copyright law and to educate its constituents about the benefits and obligations of copyright law.
AAU and APLU submitted initial comments to the Copyright Office on Sept. 2 and, previously, filed an amicus brief in the related Supreme Court case, Allen v. Cooper.
LABOR DEPARTMENT REQUESTS INFORMATION ON “RACE AND SEX STEREOTYPING AND SCAPEGOATING”
Yesterday, the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs released a its request for information on “Race and Sex Stereotyping and Scapegoating,” which will be published in the Federal Register tomorrow. The RFI seeks “comments, information, and materials from the public relating to workplace trainings that involve race or sex stereotyping or scapegoating.” During a stakeholder call held today, the office indicated that it will evaluate complaints under the Executive Order on “Equal Employment Opportunity” until the Executive Order on “Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping” is implemented on Nov. 21, 2020. The office has developed a new landing page with the information about the Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping order, including FAQs and contact information for a department “hotline” devoted to the issue.
EDUCATION DEPARTMENT CLAIMS COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES “MASSIVELY UNDERREPORTED” FOREIGN FUNDING
The Education Department on Tuesday held a virtual event titled “No Strings Attached? Tracing Foreign Funding in U.S. Higher Education.” During the event, the department unveiled their report, “Institutional Compliance with Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965,” which was based on the department’s investigation into 12 colleges and universities including 10 AAU members. The report alleges that schools have “massively underreported” foreign funding received from “foreign adversaries,” including China and Russia. “The threat of improper foreign influence in higher education is real. Our action today ensures that America’s students, educators, and taxpayers can follow the money,” Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said in a press release. The department has announced it will publish a notice of interpretation in the Federal Register and update their online search of reported foreign gifts and contracts.
AAU is quoted in The Associated Press, saying that “while the Department of Education purports to be concerned about threats, it has consistently failed to respond to repeated requests for clarity, transparency, and guidelines.” The quote goes on to say that the report is “less a serious security assessment than it is a partisan and politically driven attack on America’s leading research universities.”
HOUSE REPUBLICANS INTRODUCE CHINA TASK FORCE ACT
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on Tuesday announced he had introduced the China Task Force Act along with House Foreign Affairs Committee Minority Leader Michael McCaul (D-TX) and members of the China Task Force. The package of bills contains several measures related to higher education and research, including the “SALSTA Act,” the “INFLUENCE Act,” the “CONFUCIUS Act,” the “American Innovation & Competitiveness Act,” and several STEM and cyber- and hacking-related bills that address research. According to McCarthy, the legislation is a “comprehensive blueprint that will be critical in curbing China’s dangerous behavior and securing America’s prominence on the world stage.”
UPCOMING EVENTS
NOVEMBER 12 OFFICE OF SCIENCE GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH PROGRAM NOMINATIONS DUE; Nominations can be submitted by 5:00 p.m. ET Thursday, Nov. 12. More information and nomination instructions can be found here.
DECEMBER 1 GOLDEN GOOSE AWARD VIRTUAL CEREMONY; 4:00 p.m. ET. More information available here.