The DC Digest

Duke Government Relations

Duke in DC's Top News Today:

No Plans for Congress to Return for Hurricane Helene Relief Vote
Biden Admin Pushes Collections of Defaulted Student Loans to After Election
Fifth Circuit to Hear Oral Arguments in Case Challenging Legality of DACA
State Lawmakers Call for Rethinking Federal Role in Higher Ed
Post of the Week!

The Highlights 📰

Budget & Appropriations

The latest coverage on Fiscal Year 2025 appropriations that are relevant to Duke.

Duke Government Relations' primer on the federal appropriations process.

NO PLANS TO RETURN TO CONGRESS FOR HURRICANE HELENE RELIEF VOTE

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said in an interview this week that Congress would not return for a vote on Hurricane Helene relief and instead reconvene after the upcoming election, emphasizing the importance of thoroughly assessing the hurricane's damage before making funding decisions. President Joe Biden recently sought additional funds for the Small Business Administration's disaster loan program. Johnson pointed out that Congress had previously allocated $20 billion to FEMA for immediate disaster needs before the hurricane struck, assuring that there would be bipartisan support for further relief efforts.

Helene Help

Student Aid, Institutional Support and Taxes

The latest updates regarding legislation and regulatory actions related to student aid, higher education institutional support, taxes and more.

NASFAA Student Aid Reference Desk

BIDEN ADMIN PUSHES COLLECTIONS OF DEFAULTED STUDENT LOANS TO AFTER ELECTION

The Biden Administration is set to start back up the collections of its student loan defaults in the coming months, but it’s delaying the harshest consequences for millions of borrowers until after the November election. According to POLITICO Pro, the administration confirmed the postponement and said it "won’t seek to withhold wages and benefits from those defaulted borrowers until next year." The latest federal data indicates that approximately six million borrowers have defaulted on their debts as of June of this year.

Immigration

The latest updates on legislation and regulatory actions related to immigration that are relevant to Duke.

FIFTH CIRCUIT HEARS ORAL ARGUMENTS IN CASE CHALLENGING LEGALITY OF DACA

This week, the Texas Fifth-Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments for the ongoing legal challenges related to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. DACA has faced many court battles over the last few years with the latest court case in Texas challenging the legality of the program itself, which affects more than half a million individuals. At this time, it is unclear how the three-judge panel will rule and when, and the case will almost certainly be heard before the Supreme Court.

DACA Challenges

Additional Federal Relations Items of Interest to Duke

STATE LAWMAKERS CALL FOR RETHINKING FEDERAL ROLE IN HIGHER ED

A new report from the National Conference of State Legislatures’ Task Force on Higher Ed calls for a reduced role of the federal government when it comes to accountability measurse in the higher education system, in addition to more participation from the states themselves generally. The task force is comprised of legislators from both parties across 32 states, including Senator Amy Galey (NC-25). The report outlined a want for states and the federal government to work together more to make college a better return on investment through different but coordinated ways to enhance the value of degrees by states, institutions and the federal government.

Task Force Talks

Post of the Week!

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