House Approves Budget Resolution for COVID-19 Package
The House on Wednesday approved a budget resolution in a 218-212 vote that would allow Congress to pass a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill without Republican support. The Senate will also have to pass a budget resolution, and then both chambers will need to approve a budget reconciliation package that includes the COVID-19 relief deal. Using the rules prevents Republicans in the Senate from filibustering the package and will mean Democrats will not have to offer concessions to move the deal. Democrats noted that Republicans could vote for the package while signaling they would not wait for them to move toward the White House position. ( The Hill - Feb. 3, 2021)
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Lawmakers Reintroduce TREAT Act to Extend Medical Provider License Reciprocity
Lawmakers yesterday reintroduced the “Temporary Reciprocity to Ensure Access to Treatment,” or TREAT, Act (H.R. 708/S. 168). The bill would temporarily extend license reciprocity for healthcare and mental health workers across the United States. This important bipartisan bill would help ensure that Americans have continuous access to their health care and mental-health providers—including those at AAU member universities—during the pandemic. Last Congress, AAU joined more than 80 other organizations to endorse the measure. ( Association of American Universities - Feb. 3, 2021)
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AAU Joins Letter Urging DHS to Support International Students
Today, AAU, ACE, and 46 other higher education organizations sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to congratulate him on his recent confirmation, voice support for the president’s executive order to protect and fortify the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, and highlight actions the Secretary can take to support international students and ensure the U.S. remains the most attractive destination for foreign talent. The letter recommends that Mayorkas: withdraw proposals to limit the amount of time international students can spend in the U.S. and restore “duration of status;” withdraw interim final rules that limit access to H-1B visas; clarify the future of the Optional Practical Training program; restore the Homeland Security Academic Advisory Council; and more. ( Association of American Universities - Feb. 3, 2021
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Death of EPA’s Controversial ‘Censored Science’ Rule Delights ResearchersScience and environmental groups [and Members of Congress] are celebrating triumph in their nearly decadelong battle against efforts to limit the kinds of scientific evidence that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can use in writing new regulations. A federal judge this week killed a controversial rule, issued late in former President Donald Trump’s administration, that would have allowed EPA to ignore or downplay data from human health studies resting on confidential medical information that is difficult to make public. The agency has long relied on such nonpublic data in developing new regulations to limit air and water pollution or reduce exposure to toxic substances such as workplace chemicals and cigarette smoke. Conservatives and some companies had long pushed to restrict the practice. But the Trump administration’s bid to do so violated procedural rules, ruled Judge Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court of Montana in a lawsuit brought by three environmental groups. ( Science Magazine - Feb. 3, 2021)
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Biden's Higher Ed Team Takes ShapeThe Biden administration on Wednesday announced a slew of appointments to the Education Department, including well-known higher ed advocates, people who have worked on behalf of student loan borrowers, and several former aides to progressive Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders. Among those named was Michelle Asha Cooper, a longtime advocate for education equity. Julie Margetta Morgan, Warren’s former senior education counsel and her domestic policy adviser during Warren's 2020 presidential run, was appointed senior adviser to the still-unnamed education under secretary, the department’s top official on higher education issues. Melanie Muenzer, most recently associate vice president and vice provost for academic initiatives at the University of Oregon, was named chief of staff to the under secretary. Another longtime advocate of student loan borrowers, Joanna Darcus, was named senior counsel in the department’s general counsel’s office. ( Inside Higher Ed - Feb. 4, 2021)
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Cardona Appears Headed to Confirmation
President Biden’s nominee for education secretary, Miguel Cardona, appears to headed for confirmation by the Senate after a hearing Wednesday free of fireworks, save for whether transgender girls should be competing against cisgender girls in high school sports. Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina, the top Republican on the Senate education committee, called Cardona “eminently qualified,” as the committee’s hearing for the Connecticut education commissioner came to an end. The hearing was light on specifics. Focusing on Cardona’s rapid ascent from a first-generation immigrant growing up in Connecticut’s housing projects to becoming an elementary school teacher, principal and then the state's top schools official, the hearing was a marked contrast from the contentious questioning Betsy DeVos, education secretary during the Trump administration, faced during her confirmation hearing before the same panel. ( Inside Higher Ed - Feb. 4, 2021)
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