Washington Update

Higher Ed Associations Submit Title IX Comments
APLU and more than 60 higher education associations submitted joint comments to the Department of Education in response to its Title IX Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. In the comment letter, the associations provide detailed feedback to the Department’s proposed regulations, which would significantly change the scope of Title IX relative to incidents of sexual misconduct and how colleges and universities must respond.

In all, the Department received more than 100,000 comments, including many from APLU members. The Department will reopen the comment period for one day — this Friday — because some individuals encountered technical glitches when trying to submit previously. The Department of Education also received comments from the Education & Labor Committee Minority and a significant portion of the Senate Democratic Caucus. The Department now has the very challenging task of reviewing the comments and responding to relevant, substantive comments as required by the Administrative Procedures Act. This will undoubtedly be a slow process. Other organizations are also expected to prepare further litigation as the Department moves to promulgate a final rule.

FY2019 Appropriations Update
House and Senate lawmakers continue to negotiate toward a bipartisan agreement to fund the federal government past February 15, the current expiration date for the continuing resolution signed on January 25. On Monday evening, negotiators signaled optimism that they had reached a deal “in principle” to fund the government. Full details of the deal are forthcoming and it is not yet clear whether President Trump will support the compromise, but the Wall Street Journal reports that he is likely to sign the spending and border security deal. On Sunday, before congressional negotiators had reached a deal, the president’s acting Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney, underscored that he could not be certain the president would sign a potential deal into law.

APLU President McPherson Joins 100+ CEOs in Call to Protect Dreamers
On Monday, the Coalition for the American Dream, an advocacy coalition of businesses, trade associations and other industry groups, sent a letter to congressional leadership urging passage of a permanent, bipartisan legislative solution to protect Dreamers. APLU President Peter McPherson joined more than 100 leaders in business and industry in sending the letter, which also ran as a full-page ad in the Monday edition of The New York Times in Washington, DC.

Bill Reintroduced to Reauthorize Title VI International Education Programs
Last week, Senators Todd Young (R-IN) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) reintroduced the “Advancing International and Foreign Language Education Act” to reauthorize Title VI of the Higher Education Act (S. 342). APLU supports this bill, which reauthorizes funding for international education and foreign language education programs administered by the Department of Education. The legislation extends six currently funded programs, consolidates unfunded programs, and creates two new Global Business and Professional Education programs to help students meet 21^st century workforce needs.