E-Update for December 1, 2017

Highlights

• On November 29, the Senate HELP Committee held a hearing for Alex Azar to serve as Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
• On November 28, the Senate Health, Education Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing on “Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act: Examining Proposals to Simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).”
• On December 1, the Chairwoman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee Virginia Foxx (R-NC) introduced a proposal to reauthorize the Higher Education Act – H.R. 4508, the “Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform (PROSPER) Act.”
• On November 28, USED Secretary DeVos announced the approval of Michigan’s consolidated state plan under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Secretary DeVos’s statement is available here. Michigan’s approval letter is available here.

Tax Reform

Senate Continues Tax Reform Plan Debate: As of December 1, the Senate was continuing debate of its tax reform plan with vote-a-rama still expected to take place this evening, which will likely be followed by a vote on final passage in the Senate. On November 29, The Senate approved a motion to proceed to consideration by the full Senate of H.R. 1, the tax reform bill passed by the House, by a vote of 52-48 along party lines.  The Senate proceeded to consideration of H.R. 1 as tax bills are required to originate in the House; however, the Senate will vote to substitute the text of H.R. 1 with the Senate tax reform bill prior to final passage. Following Senate passage, the House and Senate will work to resolve differences between their respective tax bills.

Congress:

Senate:

Senate HELP Committee Holds Hearing for HHS Secretary Nominee: The Senate HELP Committee held a hearing for Alex Azar to serve as Secretary for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). While many of the questions directed to Mr. Azar throughout the hearing focused on drug pricing, Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray briefly mentioned in her closing statement that she was very interested to speak to Mr. Azar regarding whether he would implement the Preschool Development Grants Program as Congress intended it to be implemented. Ranking Member Murray stated that she would follow up with Mr. Azar on the matter, and that she planned to follow the issue closely should he be confirmed. Video recording of the hearing and Mr. Azar’s testimony can be found here. Chairman Lamar Alexander’s (R-TN) opening statement is available here. Full text of Ranking Member Patty Murray’s (D-WA) statement is available here and video here.
November 29, 2017

Student Right to Know Before You Go Act Introduced in the Senate: Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced an updated version of H.R. 4479, the “Student Right to Know Before You Go Act.” The updated version of the bill requires the use of secure multi-party computation (MPC), an advanced encryption technique, to generate statistical data based on student information from colleges and universities as well as loan and income information from government agencies. The bill can be found here. A summary of key provisions in the bill is available here.
November 29, 2017

Senate HELP Committee Holds Hearing on FAFSA Simplification: The Senate Health, Education Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing on “Reauthorizing the Higher Education Act: Examining Proposals to Simplify the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).” All witnesses agreed that the complexity of the current FAFSA form serves as a barrier to college enrollment and completion, and that FAFSA simplification would increase students’ access to post-secondary education and subsequent future economic opportunity. Both Republican and Democrat Committee members agreed that while some progress has been made on FAFSA simplification through use of Prior-Prior Year data and data sharing from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), more needs to be done to simplify the process for students and the information verification process for institutions of higher education. Video recording and witness testimony can be found here. Chairman Lamar Alexander’s (R-TN) is available here. Ranking member Patty Murray’s (D-WA) opening statement is available here. Secretary DeVos’s statement is available here.
November 28, 2017

USED Restores Pell Grant Eligibility to Hundreds of Thousands of Students: The Chronicle of Higher Education reported that USED responded to an inquiry by Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) that the Department has restored at least a portion of Pell Grant eligibility for 288,969 students who had attended 841 institutions that closed from 2001 to 2016. Ranking Member Murray said in a written statement, “I’m pleased the department listened to my request and has taken steps to give hundreds of thousands of students another chance at higher education,”… “after being left in the lurch by for-profit colleges that cheated their students and ultimately collapsed.”
November 17, 2017

USED Acting Undersecretary Responds to Concerns Regarding Discontinuation of CFPB MOUs: USED Acting Undersecretary of Education James Manning responded to an inquiry by Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) regarding concerns with the Department’s decision to discontinue Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). In the response, Manning states, “The Department’s mission of serving students and borrowers has been undermined by the CFPB’s violation of the MOUs. Specifically, the CFPB has failed to direct complaints regarding Federal student loans to the Department for resolution, despite the fact that the Department has consistently fulfilled its commitment under the MOUs to refer all complaints related to private education loans to the CFPB.”
November 13, 2017

House:

Chairwoman Foxx Introduces Higher Ed Reauthorization Bill: The Chairwoman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee Virginia Foxx (R-NC) introduced H.R. 4508, the “Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform (PROSPER) Act.” The bill would reauthorize the Higher Education Act, which was last comprehensively updated nearly a decade ago. The bill would streamline existing federal student aid programs to create “one loan, one work-study and one grant” and a single income-based repayment plan. Full bill text can be found here, fact sheet here, and bill summary here. Senate HELP Committee Ranking Member Patty Murray’s (D-WA) statement is available here.
December 1, 2017

Administration:

White House:

President Trump Announces Nominee for USED Director of the Institute of Education Science: President Trump announced his intent to nominate Mark Schneider to the position of Director of the Institute of Education Science in the Department of Education. If confirmed, Dr. Schneider would serve for six years. Dr. Schneider is currently a vice president and an Institute Fellow at the American Institutes for Research and President of College Measures.
November 28, 2017

U.S. Department of Education (USED):

Secretary DeVos Delivers Speech at Foundation for Excellence in Education Summit: USED Secretary DeVos gave a speech at the Foundation for Excellence in Education National Summit in Nashville, TN. During her speech, Secretary DeVos praised Congress’s efforts to overhaul the tax system, and commended the opportunities provided to students throughout the nation by virtual schools.
November 30, 2017

Secretary DeVos Delivers Speeches on Federal Student Aid: On November 28, USED Secretary DeVos and Federal Student Aid Chief Operating Officer Dr. A. Wayne Johnson addressed a FSA Training Conference where she outlined her broad vision for post-secondary education and FSA reforms.  Secretary DeVos’s speech can be found here. Following this speech, USED Secretary DeVos visited Georgia State University on November 29 to speak with students and staff about the university’s innovative approach to college completion and the transformative steps Federal Student Aid (FSA) is taking to improve customer service and simplify student aid programs. More information is available here. This week, USED also announced the blueprint for the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA)’s Next Generation (Next Gen) Financial Services Environment to transform the delivery of financial aid to students. The USED press release is available here.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB):

President Trump Names Mick Mulvaney as Acting director of CFPB: President Trump announced that he is designating Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Mick Mulvaney as Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Following the announcement, a lawsuit was filed requesting that the Deputy Director of CFPB, who the previous CFPB Director had named as Acting Director, be able to continue as Acting Director. However, a D.C. federal judge found later this week that Mick Mulvaney will remain Acting Director of CFPB as President Trump has the authority to name the agency’s interim chief.
November 24, 2017

Upcoming Events:

• On December 4-7, a Negotiated Rulemaking committee will convene to debate changes to gainful employment regulations. The full set of discussion papers is available here.
• On December 5, the Senate HELP Committee will conduct a nomination hearing for Kenneth Marcus to serve as Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education, and Johnny Collett as Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. The hearing will be livestreamed here.
• On December 6, the House Education and the Workforce Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions will conduct a hearing on “Workplace Leave Policies: Opportunities and Challenges for Employers and Working Families.” The livestream will be available here.
• On December 8, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will hold a public briefing on “The Intersection of Students of Color and Students with Disabilities, and School Discipline Policies.” The livestream will be available here.

Publications:

• On November 28, the Institute for Education Sciences (IES) published a report entitled, “Progress and Challenges in Developing Tiered Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (TQRIS) in the Round 1 Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) States.” The report serves as a descriptive study of TQRIS in the nine Round 1 RTT-ELC states four years after the receipt of grant funds. The report is available here.

Legislation:

H.R.4508
“Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform (PROSPER) Act”
A bill to support students in completing an affordable postsecondary education that will prepare them to enter the workforce with the skills they need for lifelong success.
Sponsor: Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC)

H.R.4491
“Advancing International and Foreign Language Education Act”
A bill to reauthorize title VI of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
Sponsor: Rep. David E. Price (D-NC)

H.R.4479
“Student Right to Know Before You Go Act of 2017”
A bill to establish a new higher education data system to allow for more accurate, complete, and secure data on student retention, graduation, and earnings outcomes, at all levels of postsecondary enrollment, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA)

S.2180
A bill to establish additional protections and disclosures for students and co-signers with respect to student loans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ)

S.2169
“Student Right to Know Before You Go Act”
A bill to establish a new higher education data system to allow for more accurate, complete, and secure data on student retention, graduation, and earnings outcomes, at all levels of postsecondary enrollment, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR)

S.2163
“Educational Freedom Accounts Act”
A bill to expand school choice in the District of Columbia.
Sponsor: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX)