Washington Update: Federal Judge Blocks Revised Travel Restrictions; White House Releases Immigration Principles; APLU and AAU send Letter on FY2019 Priorities

Federal Judge Blocks Revised Travel Restrictions Hours Before Implementation
U.S. District Court Judge Derrick Watson of Hawaii issued a temporary order yesterday blocking implementation of the Trump administration’s third travel ban. A federal judge in Seattle blocked the first ban in February, and Judge Watson blocked the second ban in March. The ban was scheduled to go into full effect today, October 18, and would have placed travel restrictions on citizens of eight countries. The new restrictions would have blocked travelers from North Korea and Syria and placed various country-specific limitations on certain categories of visas for nationals of Chad, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Venezuela, and Yemen. On Wednesday morning, a federal Judge in Maryland granted a second motion for an injunction on the ban.

White House Releases Immigration Principles & Policies
Earlier this month, the Trump administration issued a document, ‘Immigration Principles & Policies,’ outlining its objectives for “safe and lawful admissions, defending U.S. safety and security, and protecting American workers and taxpayers.” The White House proposals call for extensive policy changes in border security, interior enforcement, and merit-based immigration. The package proposes completing construction of a wall along the U.S. southern border, limiting family-based green cards, restricting federal funds to sanctuary cities, and using the federal E-Verify system for employers, among many other reforms. News reports indicate that the administration aims to trade policies from this wish list in exchange for legislation that addresses DACA. In response, Congressional Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) released a joint statement saying that the proposals exceed what is reasonable for protecting Dreamers. The Trump administration also issued an executive summary of its immigration policy priorities.

APLU and AAU Submit Letter to OMB Director Mulvaney on FY2019 Priorities
APLU and the Association of American Universities (AAU) sent a letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Mick Mulvaney, urging the administration to prioritize higher education and research funding in its fiscal year 2019 (FY2019) budget proposal. The letter calls for increased funding for student aid programs and increases of at least four percent real growth for basic research and key federal research agencies. It also urges the administration to exclude any proposal to cut support for facilities and administration reimbursements from the FY2019 budget.

Perkins Loan Program Updates
The U.S. Department of Education recently released a “Dear Colleague Letter” providing guidance on closing-out the Perkins Loan Program. The program’s authorization expired on September 30. The letter notes that if an eligible undergraduate student received a disbursement prior to October 1 for the 2017-18 Award Year, the student may receive a subsequent disbursement of that loan through June 30, 2018. No disbursements are permitted after that date.

Earlier this year, Representatives Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and Mark Pocan (D-WI) and Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced the Perkins Loan Extension Act of 2017 (H.R 2482 & S. 1808), which would to extend the Perkins Loan Program for a period of two years. The sponsors recently reiterated their commitment to moving the bill forward. The House bill has 234 cosponsors.