This week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for multiple current and on-going efforts. A full list of DHS proposed rules can be found here.
Some highlights include:
On Wednesday, the Department of Education (ED) released its Fall 2019 Unified Regulatory Agenda. The agenda includes a number of areas for proposed rulemaking that carried over from Spring 2019, as well as a new proposed rule on campus free speech. Of note, the final Title IX regulations are in the final stage at OMB. The final rules could be delayed into 2020.
Typically the public comment window is 60 days, but the Administration has allowed for just 30 days in some instances. While ED often does not make major changes to its proposed rules, public comments can result in positive improvements to the final regulations.
Timeline for Forthcoming Proposed Rules
Below is a selection of articles the Federal Relations team has read this week.
Public Impeachment Hearings: The House Intelligence Committee has been holding public hearings related to the impeachment inquiry. Key figures have had the chance to testify publicly regarding what they knew and heard in the events surrounding the infamous Ukraine call. The testimonies exclude classified information, but shed light on how career government officials interpreted President Trump’s behaviors. Live updates on CNN.
A Uniform Federal Grant Application: A report from the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs recommends a uniform federal grant application as a key tool to deter foreign influence. Supporters argue a single application would reduce administrative burden, and allow agencies to assess foreign threats against unified criteria. Full story at Science Magazine.
New Data on Study Abroad: A report from the Institute of International Education, which receives Department of State funding, shed light on the demographics of US college students who study abroad. In the last year, the total number has increased slightly, and about 16% of all college students study abroad at some point. Two-thirds of participants are women, and half study in Europe. STEM majors make up the majority of participants, at about 25%. Continue reading at Inside Higher Ed.
The House approved yesterday afternoon the second continuing resolution by a vote of 231 to 192. It must now be cleared by both the Senate and the President before midnight Friday morning in order to prevent a government shutdown.
The House is scheduled to take up a second continuing resolution (CR) later today that would keep the federal government funded past midnight Friday morning, when the current CR expires. It must be passed and signed into law by Thursday night to avoid a shutdown.
The new CR would extend current funding for all federal agencies through Dec. 20 or just before the scheduled Christmas recess. in addition, the measure would temporarily extend three Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act provisions through March 20, 2020, and take the provisions out of play for the resolution of FY2020. The measure would also extend numerous expiring health care programs that were temporarily renewed in the most recent stopgap law, such as funding for community health centers and teaching hospitals, as well other miscellaneous programs ranging from the higher education reauthorization law to the Export-Import Bank.
The measure is expected to pass both the House and Senate, but the White House has been a bit of an unknown. However, Administration officials have indicated that the President will likely sign the CR if it reached his desk.