The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced its intent to issue an Advanced Notice of Proposed Guidance (ANPG) on Circular A-21, the government publication which governs cost recovery associated with grant-making. This is a follow-on effort to the White House’s interagency Circular A-21 Task Force. The ANPG will seek comments on initial reform proposals OMB has identified based on feedback from the Task Force and other groups, including guidelines on audit procedures and indirect cost rates. OMB will then follow up with another public request for comment later in the year outlining specific revisions to Circular A-21 and other relevant circulars.
Category: Uncategorized
Sequestration: What it means for Federal Research Funding
Automatic spending cuts, or sequestration, was established through the Budget Control Act passed by Congress last August and is set to go into effect January 2013. The sequestration process has great implications for all federal discretionary programs, including most – if not all – of federally funded research programs. Below is a link to a detailed explanation of this process and the impacts to federal spending in both the short- and long-term.
CR Agreement Finalized
Late yesterday, Congressional leaders agreed to a deal that will avert a government shutdown as the end of the federal fiscal year looms. The Senate approved a week-long continuing resolution (CR) that will run through October 4th, which is expected to be approved by the House – through a pro forma session – sometime on Thursday. A longer term CR will still be necessary and will be the main topic of debate when both chambers reconvene next week after this week’s recess period. The deal will do little, however, to end partisan fighting over FY12 spending.
The Senate bill is a considered a “clean” CR that will fund the federal government through October 4th at the $1.043 trillion limit set by the debt limit law (PL 112-25) enacted in August. The bill would eliminate the $1 billion in fiscal 2011 disaster aid for the FEMA and Army Corps of Engineers included in the House version, as well as offsets for an energy loan program. The House plans to approve the measure by voice vote in a pro forma session on Thursday, paving the way for the President to sign the measure and avoid a federal shutdown when the new fiscal year begins October 1st.
The overall deal was agreed to after the Senate passed a revised version of Majority Leader Reid’s six-week stopgap measure that would provide government funding through November 18th and eliminate disaster aid for FY11 and the energy offsets. While both chambers favor the longer-term stopgap, it will not be cleared until next week after the House returns from recess and has had a chance to debate it. Appropriators are expected to use the next six weeks to draft a year-end omnibus spending bill, but with partisan divisions forcing lawmakers to spend nearly two weeks on the short-term deal, it seems far from certain that an agreement can be reached by November 18th on a broader spending bill.
The good news for now is that we are avoiding a government shutdown but the path forward on FY12 appropriations is far from certain.
Sources: Congressional Quarterly, Roll Call
President Obama Announces New Push for Education Reform
President Obama today announced that it was time to commit to tackling education reform and that he would allow states to apply for waivers that will give them flexibility from mandates under the ‘No Child Left Behind’ law that many officials agree is outdated and no longer effective.
The President stated that many states and school districts have initiated education reforms and innovations to support excellent teaching and encourage all students to learn and achieve success. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has since become a barrier to implementing these practices and reforms.
The goal is to support states and local school districts transitioning to college and career ready standards and assessments, developing systems of differentiated recognition, accountability, and support, and evaluating teacher and principal effectiveness and supporting improvement. For example, a state will no longer have to set a target requiring all students to be proficient by 2014, but instead be allowed to establish ambitious but achievable goals in reading/language arts and math. States and school districts under a waiver would also have more flexibility related to the use of federal education funds.
In order to receive a waiver a state must develop a rigorous and comprehensive plan addressing the critical areas that are designed to improve educational outcomes for all students, close achievement gaps and increase equity, and improve the quality of instruction.
Early Details of Obama’s Jobs Package Released Ahead of Tomorrow’s Speech
In light of a stalled and bleak economic recovery, President Obama is set to annouce an aggressive “Jobs” proposal in a speech before Congress tomorrow evening.
While officially unconfirmed by the White House, the package apparently contains approximately $300 billion worth of tax credits, school renovation projects, job training for the unemployed, and a program to prevent layoffs of school packages in an effort to jumpstart the economy and put many Americans back to work.
Although Obama has said that the jobs plan will include ideas that Republicans have historically supported, there has already been early skepticism voiced by members of the GOP and even some conservative democrats concerned that this will look too much like another stimulus package.