Washington Update — Volume 92, April 10, 2008
This report includes updates from the Consortium (legislative, executive and committee action) and Washington updates (general updates on issues around Washington facing higher education).
This Week in Washington
Volume 92 April 10, 2008
Center for Public Policy
National Association of Student Personnel Administrators
Higher Education Act Reauthorization Update
The current Higher Education Act extension expires on April 30, 2008. In the meantime, congressional staffers are still reconciling differences between the House and Senate versions of the Higher Education Act of 1965 reauthorization. Very little information is being made public in this stage of the process. According to congressional staffers, congress desires to complete action on HEA reauthorization by Memorial Day recess.
The United States House of Representatives version of the Higher Education Act reauthorization bill contains a provision that would require colleges and universities to issue a an alert within 30 minutes of a critical incident on campus. The Senate version of the Higher Education Act reauthorization does not contain a similar provision, maintaining the current requirement to provide "timely warning," which has no specific time definition.
It is essential that administrators in student affairs and throughout higher education be able to appropriately address and quickly respond to any critical campus situation. The 30-minute time frame proposed by the House could very well be counterproductive and even detrimental to appropriately assess and respond to a given campus emergency.
It is critical that NASPA members join others in the higher education community in opposition to the proposed 30-minute critical incident notification component.
The NASPA Board of Directors is asking members to communicate with Senators and Representatives on the respective committees of jurisdiction-the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and the Higher Education Subcommittee of the House Education and Labor Committee-in order to request the removal of the 30-minute critical incident notification from consideration within the proposed Higher Education Act reauthorization.
Please feel free to use the sample letter drafted by the NASPA Public Policy Division as a starting point for communicating with lawmakers that have influence on the final outcome of the Higher Education Act Reauthorization.
Contact information for these members of Congress is available online with the sample letter. Lawmakers are currently working to conference differences in the House and Senate versions of the reauthorization, so it is critical that they receive calls, faxes, and/or e-mails as soon as possible.
If you have any questions regarding the 30-Minute critical incident notification provision, or are in need of assistance with contacting members of congress, please e-mail Daryl Levine, NASPA public policy specialist at dlevine@naspa.org
Department of Education Releases Proposed FERPA Rules
Following the Virginia Tech incident, many higher education administrators requested additional guidance on privacy issues' and concerns as it relates to Federal rules and regulations. The need for further guidance was made clear in the numerous reports and comments following the various critical incidents occurring over the course of the last year.
On Monday, March 24, 2008, The United States Department of Education released proposed rules relating to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA). The proposed rules, printed in the United States Government's daily, Federal Register, were drafted in order to help the university community, students, and their families have a clearer understanding of what information may be shared in order to better protect the health and well-being of the entire campus community.
According to the American Council on Education, changes in the regulations include:
- Protecting administrators who release confidential information about a student when they believe there is a threat to health or safety of the student or to others.
- Expanding FERPA protections to students who enroll in online courses or degree programs.
- Clarifying rules regarding release of transcripts to parents who claim students as dependents on tax returns.
- Clarifying when school officials can disclose education records to another institution where the student has enrolled or plans to enroll.
To view the full proposed rules document please visit, http://www.naspa.org/files/FERPA.pdf
NASPA intends to provide comments on the proposed rules by the deadline of May 8, 2008. If you would like to submit comments on the proposed FERPA rules for consideration by NASPA's Public Policy Division, or have any questions regarding the proposed FERPA rules, please submit those to dlevine@naspa.org by April 21, 2008.
Fiscal Year 2009 Budget
Both the United States House of Representatives and Senate are currently working out the differences between their budget bills in order for both chambers to vote on a budget soon. There is currently a $3.6 billion difference between the two, but even with this small difference, the congressional budget will still be significantly higher than the President's request submitted in February 2008.
The appropriations process will be similar to last year where there is expected to be much consternation between the White House and Congress. Most likely we will see only a few national security related appropriations bills on the floor of both chambers. The remainder of the appropriations bills will not be completed until the 111th Congress allowing the new President of the United States to have some impact on the final outcomes.
Student Loan Availability Legislation
As a result of the credit crunch and negative impact that the sub-prime mortgage crisis had, members of the House and Senate are concerned with the potential impact of student loan availability.
Both Senator Kennedy, Chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee and Representative George Miller, Chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, have introduced bills in order to pre-empt a possible student loan crisis.
Neither bill appears to have any student affairs impact, but is important for student affairs administrators to be informed of.
On Wednesday, April 9, 2008, The House Education and Labor Committee passed
H.R. 5715 - The Ensuring Continued Access to Student Loans Act of 2008. If passed in its current form by both the House and Senate, the bill would... (Source: U.S. House)
- Increase the annual loan limits on federal unsubsidized student loans by $2,000 for all students, and increase the aggregate loan limits (the total loan limit over the course of a student's education) to $31,000 for dependent undergraduates and to $57,500 for independent undergraduates.
- Give parent PLUS Loan borrowers the option to defer repayment until up to six months after their children leave school, giving families more flexibility in hard economic times.
- Temporarily classify as an extenuating circumstance delinquencies on home mortgages of up to 180 days, therefore making it possible for parents feeling strained by the current housing market to secure PLUS loans for their children.
- Give the Secretary of Education the temporary authority to purchase loans from lenders in the federal guaranteed loan program, if there was a determination that lenders and other existing policy options were unable to meet the demand for loans. This would ensure that lenders continue to have access to capital to originate new loans. The Education Department would only be authorized to purchase loans in such a manner that would carry no cost for the federal government.
Senator Kennedy's Bill - S.2815 - Strengthening Student Aid for All Act is similar and has a couple of differences (Source: Senator Kennedy's Office & Inside Higher Ed)
- Raise the maximum Pell Grant for the lowest-income grant recipients by up to $750 above the maximum award, which is at $4,731 for the 2008-9 academic year.
- Raise the annual limits on the amount of federal loans a student may borrow by $1,000 for dependent undergraduate students and by $2,000 for independent undergraduates and those whose parents cannot obtain federal loans for parents (known as PLUS loans) because of their own poor credit histories.
- Allow borrowers to defer repayment of federal parent PLUS loans while the student is enrolled in college.
- Require the secretary of education to designate guarantee agencies as "lenders of last resort" for an entire college rather than on a student-by-student basis, and clarify that the secretary can provide these lenders with capital to make the loans.
- Permit the Department of Education to serve as a "secondary market of last resort" that would buy loans from lenders in the Federal Family Education Loan, or guaranteed loan, program that have been otherwise unable to raise new funds.
