The DC Digest

Duke in DC's Top News Today:

Congress will return from recess on Monday. Other updates are below:

Trump Signs Executive Order to Dismantle Department of Education
Reports Say Federal Student Aid Office Calls Back Some Workers
Committee Seeks Info from Institutions Regarding Enrolling Chinese National Students
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The Highlights 📰

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

TRUMP ADMIN SIGNS ORDER TO DISMANTLE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order (EO) directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take "all the necessary steps" to shrink the department.

The actual closure of the Department would require congressional approval, which appears unlikely in the current political environment as that would require 60 Senators to be in favor and Republicans currently hold 53 seats. However, Senator Bill Cassiday (R-LA), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension (HELP) Committee, is expected to draft a similar bill to Trump's EO.

As outlined by NAICU, "While this is clearly one step in what will be a long-term effort, there are still significant questions about the specifics of such a closure and what it would mean for the services, benefits and programs the Department is required to provide." However, President Trump has stated that key services like Pell Grants and student loans would be preserved but, where possible, dispersed to other agencies. This afternoon, he said that the Small Business Administration would now manage the federal student loan program and that "special needs and nutrition programs" would be run by Health and Human Services.

Several higher education organizations have released statements on the EO, including AAU, ACE and NAICU. The Office of Government Relations will continue to monitor this issue closely and provide updates as they come.

REPORTS SAY FEDERAL STUDENT AID OFFICES HAVE CALLED BACK SOME WORKERS

According to reports from POLITICOPro, teams across the Education Department’s Federal Student Aid office have been brought back after initially being cut during the agency's reduction in force actions last week, including from the Technology Operations Division, Technology Services Division and Product Management Division.

Immigration

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

COMMITTEE SEEKS INFO FROM INSTITUTIONS REGARDING ENROLLING CHINESE NATIONAL STUDENTS

Representative John Moolenaar (R-MI), Chairman of the House Select Committee on China, has sent a letter to six universities to inquire about their policies on admitting Chinese national students to advanced STEM programs. Those universities include Carnegie Mellon, Purdue University, Stanford University, the University of Illinois, the University of Maryland and the University of Southern California, specifically requesting information on each of their policies and practices regarding the enrollment of Chinese national students and their involvement in federally funded research.

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