Latest Action in Washington
Latest Action in Washington
ACCT Releases HEA Summary
September 2, 2008—Last
month, President George W. Bush signed H.R. 4137, the Higher Education
Opportunity Act, into law. Now known as
P.L. 110-315, the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act significantly
increases the reporting requirements for institutions. Below is a brief summary of some of the most
important changes for community colleges and their trustees. For more information or to see the whole
bill, please visit http://thomas.loc.gov
and enter H.R. 4137.
Meanwhile, the
Department of Education, as part of the process of implementing the Higher
Education Act, has scheduled a series of regional meetings to begin the
negotiated rulemaking process. Previously,
the Department announced four regional meetings, but has recently added two
additional meetings (six total). To see
the meeting locations or for further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/policy/highered/leg/hea08/index.html.
Higher Education Opportunity Act Summary
ACCT has prepared summaries of the following major HEA provisions, all of which have the potential to significantly impact community college and trustees.
- Pell Grant program
changes
- College cost provisions
- Consumer information
- Accreditation
- Maintenance of effort
- Textbook information
- Peer-to-peer file
sharing
- Certification regarding
the use of federal funds
- Transfer-of-credit
policy
- Code of conduct
- New programs: Predominantly Black Institutions, Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions; and College Partnership Grants
Pell Grant Program Changes—Summary
The Act increases the
authorization level of the Pell Grant maximum to $6,000 for 2009 and increases
the maximum to $8,000 in 2014. The Act
also establishes year-round Pell Grant for students and increases the Pell
Grant minimum from $400 to 10% of the Pell Grant maximum in a given year. Pell Grant eligibility is capped at 18 semesters,
but is prorated based upon the student’s attendance status. (Section 401)
Continue reading
summaries of the other major provisions of the Act at http://www.acct.org/HEA%20Summary%20Final.pdf.
HEA Passes;
Public Meetings to be Held to Discuss Negotiated Rulemaking Process
Meanwhile, the Department of Education is quickly working to begin the negotiated
rulemaking process around the recent reauthorization of the Higher Education
Act; specifically, the Department is focusing on the development of all
regulations implementing statutory changes to Title IV of the HEA. Here
are the dates and locations for the four public meetings.
-September 19, 2008, at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas
-September 29, 2008, at the University of Rhode Island, Providence Campus, Paff
Auditorium, Providence, Rhode Island
-October 2, 2008, at Pepperdine University, Malibu, California
-October 8, 2008, at the U.S. Department of Education, 8th Floor Conference
Center, 1990 K Street, N.W., Washington, D.C.
Here is a link to the Department of Education's Web site with the rulemaking information:
http://www.ed.gov/policy/highered/leg/hea08/introduction.html.
Congress Passes Higher Education Reauthorization Bill
August 1, 2008—Last night, the Senate passed the Higher
Education Reauthorization Bill by a vote of 83-8, with one voting
present. This follows approval by the House by a vote of 380-49.
The bill will now go to the President for his signature. The President is
expected to sign the bill.
The full bill can be found here: http://help.senate.gov/Hearings/2008_07_29_E/KOS08400_xml.pdf
Conference Committee Passes Higher Education Reauthorization
Bill; House and Senate to Consider Bill this Week
July 30, 2008—Last night, the House and Senate conferees on
the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act passed H.R. 4137, The Higher
Education Reauthorization and College Opportunity Act of 2008, by a 40-4
vote. The primary negotiators had been working to resolve some key areas,
including the “maintenance of effort (MOE)” provision (please see below for
more information).
Congressional staffers indicated that the House and Senate
would consider the bill this week. With bi-partisan support, the bill is
expected to pass and will be sent the President for his signature. The
President is expected to sign the bill.
The major provisions in the HEA bill include:
a)
increasing the authorization level for the Pell Grant Maximum, up to $8,000;
b)
creating year-round Pell Grants;
c)
streamlining the financial aid process, including simplifying the FAFSA;
d)
creating a new federal program to support states to develop articulation
agreements for public institutions;
e)
opening up Pell Grant eligibility to students with disabilities;
f)
requiring colleges to provide textbook information, including price for courses
before the start of the semester, and requiring that publishers disclose
pricing and other information to faculty and offer unbundled course materials
with several exceptions;
g)
requiring colleges to have code-of-conduct policies for college officials
related to student loans;
h)
requiring all colleges participating in federal financial aid programs to
provide information to the public on 26 data items, ranging from each college's
mission to student activity groups;
i)
creating Predominantly Black Institutions and Asian and Pacific
Islander-Serving Institutions in Title III and will be eligible for
institutional aid; and
j)
creating programs focused on helping community college students in need of
remedial coursework and helping non-traditional students with academic and
career goals.
A major theme of the reauthorization is an effort to clamp
down on the increasing cost of higher education. The bill would require
the Secretary of Education to publish annual “transparency lists” to spotlight
institutions and their costs. The "transparency lists" include:
1.
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the highest tuition and fees;
2.
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the highest net price (total
cost of attendance);
3.
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the largest increase in terms
of percentage in tuition and fees;
4.
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the largest increase in terms
of percentage in net price;
5.
a list of the top ten percent of colleges that have the lowest tuition and
fees; and
6.
a list of the top ten percent of colleges with the lowest net price.
Colleges that are included in list 3 and 4 would need to
prepare a report outlining which costs have increased, an explanation of the
costs and the remedies the college is utilizing to reduce costs.
Institutions that increase their tuition and fees and net price less than $600
for a three-year period would not need to prepare this report. The
exemption was focused primarily on community college.
In addition, Congress included a provision that they hope will ensure that
states will maintain the funding level for higher education. A state
“maintenance of effort” (MOE) provision would require states to maintain an
equal or greater amount of funding than the average amount (over a five-year
period). States that fail to meet this provision would be at risk of
losing funding for the Challenge Grants, a new program that is currently not
funded. States may receive a waiver from MOE from the
Secretary.
With the passage of the bill, many of the provisions in the
bill will not go into effect until the next academic school year. There
is an expectation that Congress will need to do a technical corrections bill
next year to address inadvertent provisions. Furthermore, the
implementation and regulation of HEA will be the responsibility of the next
administration and will be a priority for the 2009 National Legislative Summit.
Congress Works to Wrap Up Action before August Recess
July 24, 2008—With the August Congressional recess looming,
the House and Senate are working diligently to complete action on a number of
bills, including the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. It
appears that the House and Senate Conference Committee on HEA, which has been
negotiating the bill, has made significant progress. There is speculation
that the bill may be released next week, with a goal of passing it before Congress
leaves Washington. At present, it is unclear what is in the final package
because the bill is not available to the public. ACCT will continue to
monitor this situation and will send an update when the bill becomes available.
Meanwhile, it appears that the Congressional Appropriations
process has grinded to a halt. With House Democratic and Republican
leaders unable to agree on the process for completing Labor, Health and Human
Services and Education and the Interior appropriations bills, Congress is
looking toward a long-term continuing resolution to fund the federal
government. The goal is for Congress to pass the appropriations bill when
the new president is sworn in.
There is some discussion that Congress may attempt to pass a
Supplemental Appropriations bill to help stimulate the economy. This new
Supplemental may contain some additional funds for the National Institutes of
Health, which may free up dollars for education in the Labor, HHS and Education
appropriations bills. Congress passed a Supplemental Appropriations bill
earlier this year.
Senate Committee Passes Education Funding Bill
June 26, 2008—Today, the Senate Appropriations Committee
passed by voice vote with strong bipartisan support its version of the Fiscal
Year 2009 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill,
which provides $154.9 billion for discretionary programs. The Senate
bill, like the House bill, greatly increases the funding level over that of
Fiscal Year 2008 and the Administration’s budget request.
The Committee increased the funding level for the Pell Grant
program by $2.7 billion, which would restore the discretionary Pell Grant
maximum at $4,310. The full Senate is expected to consider the bill
pending Committee approval; however, the timetable for consideration is unknown
at present.
Below is a list of the funding highlights that impact
community colleges:
•
$4,310 for the Pell Grant maximum, an increase of $69 (the Pell Grant maximum
would be $4,800, which includes the mandatory funding level of $490);
•
$125 million for the Community Based Job Training program, level funding; and
•
$1.16 billion for State Career and Technical Education Grants (Perkins),
including $102.9 million for Tech-Prep, level funding.
House Committee Delays Action on Education Funding
June 26, 2008—Today, the House Appropriations Committee
stopped consideration of its Fiscal Year 2009 Labor, Health and Human Services,
and Education Appropriations bill. The bill would have provided $157.5
billion for programs under its jurisdiction. The Department of Education
is funded at $64 billion. The funding allocation for the Department is
almost $5 billion more than the Administration’s request.
During the committee’s consideration, Ranking Member Jerry
Lewis (R-CA) asked the committee for a commitment to consider the Interior and
Environment Appropriations bill during the week of July 7th. Rep. Lewis
wanted the committee to consider an amendment that would allow for offshore oil
and gas drilling. Chairman David Obey (D-WI) voiced opposition to the
tactic and brought the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
Appropriations bill for consideration. In response, Rep. Lewis offered an
amendment to strip the Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
Appropriations bill and insert the Interior and Environment Appropriations
bill. After this transpired, the Committee Democrats offered a motion to
adjourn which passed by a party line vote of 35-27. At present, it is unclear
when and if the committee will consider the education funding bill. If
the committee does not consider the bill, the House would have to use the
FY2008 funding levels as their basis for discretionary funding for the upcoming
fiscal year which commences October 1st.
A major part of the bill was the funding increase in the
Pell Grant program. Pell will receive an increase of $3.1 billion from
last year’s funding level, which will increase the Pell maximum by $169.
Additionally, the Perkins Career & Technical Education programs were level
funded at $1.26 billion, and so was the Community Based Job Training Grant
program at $125 million.
Below is a list of the funding highlights that impact
community colleges:
•
$4,410 for the Pell Grant maximum, an increase of $169 (the Pell Grant maximum
would be $4,900 with the mandatory funding level of $490);
•
$125 million for the Community Based Job Training program, level funding; and
•
$1.16 billion for State Career and Technical Education Grants (Perkins), including
$102.9 million for Tech-Prep, level funding.
Senate Subcommittee Restores Pell to $4,310
June 24, 2008—Today, the Senate Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee passed by voice vote its
Fiscal Year 2009 bill, which provides $154 billion for programs under its
jurisdiction. The Senate is providing nearly $1 billion more in its bill
than the House.
The subcommittee is increasing Pell Grant funding by $2.7
billion. The program funding level increase would restore the Pell Grant
maximum by $69 for a total of $4,310 (which is the FY2007 level).
Additionally, the Perkins Career & Technical Education programs was level
funded at $1.26 billion, and so was the Community Based Job Training Grant
program at $125 million.
The full Senate Appropriations Committee and the House
Appropriations Committee are slated to finalize action later this week on their
respective bills. It is unclear whether the Senate and House
Appropriations Chairmen will attempt to pass the bills in their respective
chambers.
House Appropriations Committee Sets Funding Level
June 13, 2008—Today, the House Appropriations Committee
released its Fiscal Year 2009 302(b) allocations for
the appropriations bills, including $153.1 billion for the Labor,
Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Bill, which is over $8
billion more than the Administration's request. Overall, the allocation
is $6 billion over the Fiscal Year 2008 level. The bulk of the
funding increase will used to restore funding for a number of programs,
including the Perkins Career and Technical Education program and Labor
Department programs, and will deal with funding gaps in other programs
such as the Pell Grant program.
Congressional staff have indicated that the Pell Grant
program will need an additional $2.7 billion to maintain the current Pell Grant
maximum funding level. The additional funds will be used to deal with the
Pell Grant shortfall and to cover the increase in Pell eligible students.
The House Appropriations Subcommittee is slated to markup
the bill next week.
House Passes FY2009 Budget Resolution
June 6, 2008—Today, the House of Representatives passed by a
vote of 214-210 the FY09 budget resolution. The resolution provides
including $1.013 trillion in discretionary spending.
The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and
Human Services and Education is expected to markup their bill on June 19,
followed by the full committee markup on June 25.
Senate Passes Budget Resolution Conference Report; House to
Consider Tomorrow
June 4, 2008—Today, the Senate passed the FY2009 budget
resolution conference report. The budget resolution provides $84.4
billion in discretionary funding for the Function 500 (includes education and
job training/employment programs), or $8.4 billion over the president’s request
and $1 billion over the House request. Additionally, it includes $3.7
billion in advanced appropriations. In total, the resolution provides
$1.01 trillion for discretionary spending. The conference report was
approved by a vote of 48-45.
The conference agreement provides funds for programs that
the Administration had sought to consolidate, including the Perkins Career and
Technical Education program. House and Senate leaders have indicated that
higher education programs, specifically the Pell Grant program, should receive
increases in the upcoming appropriations process.
The House is now slated to consider and pass the conference
report tomorrow. The Congressional budget resolution does not need the
approval of the Administration. The budget resolution will help guide
Congressional appropriators in determining the various funding allocations for
each of the appropriations bills.
House
and Senate Release Draft Compromise Bill
May
23, 2008—Recently, the House and Senate conference committee on the
reauthorization of the Higher Education Act released a draft of a compromise
bill. We have been analyzing the bill and we wanted to provide some
insight into some of the major provisions. The conference bill is a draft
and some of the pieces of the legislation are in flux, such as the textbook
provisions and the maintenance of effort for states regarding state aid.
We expect to see a finalized version of the bill soon.
First,
the things that would affect community colleges and their students positively
include the following:
a)
year-round Pell Grants;
b)
increase in the Pell Grant Minimum;
c)
a new grant program geared toward funding institutions and states to develop
articulation agreements;
d)
simplification of the FAFSA;
e)
creation of Asian American- and Native American-/Pacific Islander-serving and
Predominantly black institutions (should be included in the final
bill) in Title III; and
f)
a number of programs geared toward workforce, rural and adult learners (it’s
unclear whether these programs will survive).
Second,
Congress is making a major effort to clamp down on college costs. The
bill would create a series of "transparency lists," which include:
1)
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the highest tuition and fees;
2)
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the highest net price;
3)
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the largest increase in terms
of percentage in tuition and fees;
4)
a list of the top five percent of colleges with the largest increase in terms
of percentage in net price;
5)
a list of the top ten percent of colleges that have the lowest tuition and
fees; and
6)
a list of the top ten percent of colleges with the lowest net price.
These lists would cover all the sectors of higher education. In our case,
the lists would be broken down by two-year public institutions.
Congress is also looking to provide an exemption for schools by establishing a
dollar exemption (as long as colleges keep tuition-and-fees and net price
increase under $600 over a three-year period) from lists 3 & 4.
Unfortunately, the bill language requires that approximately 60 community
colleges (5% of the sector) be on each list. If a college is on
lists 3 & 4, the colleges have to prepare reports on the tuition/cost
increase various causes and remedies. The colleges will also be listed on
the College Navigator Web site as
institutions with the highest tuition/cost
increase.
Third
and overall, there are a number of reporting requirements that will be
burdensome to institutions. According to reports, the legislation would
create 431 lists for colleges. In addition, all colleges participating in
the federal financial aid programs will have to provide information to the
public on 26 items, ranging from each college’s mission to student activity
groups.
Congress
recently passed an HEA extension through end of June. In addition, the
sad news regarding Sen. Edward Kennedy’s health has likely pushed up the
timetable to complete the bill by June 30.
House and Senate Move Higher Education Act Extension
May 8, 2008—The House and Senate passed S. 2929 to extend the programs
authorized under the Higher Education Act through May 31, 2008. The President
is expected to sign the legislation. For the past several months, Congress has
been working to work out a final conference bill. The Education Committee staff
have been meeting to hammer out agreements on various issues. Staff have
indicated that they are looking to wrap-up action on the bill by the end of the
month.
Appropriations and Budget Process Ongoing
May 7, 2008—Since the House and Senate moved their respective budget
resolutions, Congress has been unable to come to an agreement on a FY2009
budget resolution. At a minimum, Congress will need to move a deeming
resolution to set the budgetary parameters for the Appropriations Committees.
The Appropriations Committee are expected to markup the Labor, Health and Human
Services and Education Appropriations bill during the summer. Due to the
upcoming elections, Congressional leadership have stated that final appropriations
action is unlikely until after the elections.
One major concern for higher education funding is the Pell
Grant program. The recent changes in the eligibility for Pell Grants has
created a $750 million shortfall in the program. Unless Congress provides
additional funds for Pell, it is very likely that the discretionary allocation
for Pell will be reduced which will reduce the Pell Grant maximum.
House and Senate Move FY2009 Budget Resolutions
March 13, 2008—Yesterday, the House of Representatives
passed its version of the FY2009 budget resolution (H Con Res 312) by a vote of
212-207. The budget resolution provides an increase of $7.1 billion or 9
percent over the President’s FY09 request for education and training. It also
includes two deficit neutral reserve funds, one to accommodate a higher
education bill to make college more accessible and affordable and one to
accommodate a tax credit for school construction.
In addition, the Senate adopted its FY2009 budget resolution
(S Con Res 70) by a vote of 51-44. The budget resolution provides $5.4 billion
above the President's FY2009 request. The House and Senate are now expected to
meet to hammer out a budget resolution which will guide the year's
appropriations activities. The President does not need to sign the
Congressional budget resolution.
House Passes HEA Reauthorization
Febuary 7, 2008—On February 7, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4137,
the College Opportunity and Affordability Act of 2007, which is the
reauthorization of the Higher Education Act by a 354-58 vote.
ACCT supported the House bill which does a number of things
that will support community college students and community colleges. The bill
does the following:
• Increase the authorized Pell Grant maximum to $9,000, and
ensuring that year-round Pell Grants will be provided to certificate and
part-time students;
• Streamline the federal aid process;
• Make Academic Competitiveness Grants available to part-time and certificate
students as well as permanent resident aliens;
• Reject the “single definition” of institution of higher education, and
thereby ensuring that the HEA continues to reflect fundamental differences
between non-profit and for-profit institutions;
• Provide new assistance for a variety of critical activities undertaken by
community colleges, including teacher training, remedial education, rural
development, nursing education, and other activities;
• Facilitate transfer between institutions of higher education.
The House passage of HEA paves the way for the House and
Senate to begin conferencing their separate bills. Due to strong bi-partisan
support, a final version of HEA is expected to be completed by the end of the
year. To view the bill, click
here.
Administration Releases FY2009 Budget Request
February 4, 2008—The Administration released its FY2009
budget request for the Department of Education. Overall, the Administration
requests a total of $59.2 billion for education programs which was the funding
level that was appropriated in FY2008. The budget request would increase the
funding for the Pell Grant program increasing the maximum by $69 to $4310. The
Pell Grant discretionary total and the mandatory total ($490) would provide for
a $4800 maximum.
The budget request seeks to create a new program at the
Department that would create a competitive grant program to faciliate the
transfer of credits from one institution to another and increase college access
through dual enrollment and articulation partnerships between high schools and
community colleges. This new program would be funded at $16 million.
Unfortunately, one of the programs slated for elimination is
the Career and Technical Education program(including Tech Program). The
Administration is voicing concern about the effectiveness of the program.
Although the budget request eliminates funding, Congress most likely provide
funding for this program because it receives strong bipartisan support.
Program funding levels:
Pell Grant program $16.9 billion, $2.6 billion increase
Pell Grant maximum $4310, $69 increase
Career and Technical Education State Grants $0, $1.16 billion decrease
Strengthening Institutions $78.1 million, level funding
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants $0, $757.5 decrease
Additionally, the Department of Labor is seeking $125
million for the Community Based Job Training Grant Program.