March 2, 2026

Leading the News this Week

The House Appropriations Committee released guidance for Fiscal Year 2027 funding requests. The deadline of Friday, March 20th, means that community college advocates wishing to participate in this process must do so with haste. Read on to the next section for additional information.

News in Higher Education

FY 27 Community Project Funding Requests Due March 20th

Please join us on Friday, March 6, 1-2 PM ET for Latest Action in Washington (LAW) Live, where we will do a deep dive on advocating for community college funding this year in Congress's annual Appropriations process. Register here.

For fiscal year 2027, ACCT and the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) sent a letter to the leadership of the House Committees on Appropriations and Education and Workforce, asking Congress to sustain or increase investment for the Pell Grant Program, Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP), Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS), Career and Technical Education, among others.   

House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (OK-04) released FY27 guidance for submitting both community project funding requests, formally known as earmarks, and programmatic and language requests. 

Community project funding is an opportunity for Members of Congress to direct federal funds to fund projects in their districts. The requests Members of Congress submit to the appropriations committee are informed by their constituents. Normally, Congressional offices take submissions from constituents for community project funding requests via an online platform found on their website. View ACCT's past webinar and slides on earmarks on ACCT Connect here.

Programmatic and language requests allow Members of Congress to ask the appropriations committee for specific funding levels for agencies and federal programs. This is also an opportunity for Members to request specific language to be included in appropriatons bill(s) and accompanying report language.    

Here are highlights of this appropriations season:

• Members of Congress can submit up to 20 requests. Please visit your member of Congress's website to learn how to submit your requests prior to that particular office's submission deadline.
• Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (LHHS) Subcommittee Chair Robert Aderholt (AL-04)  released guidance for the LHHS bill. For this account, Members of Congress have until March 20th to submit their community project funding requests.
• For this cycle, the Departments of Education and Labor are not eligible accounts for community project funding requests.

ACCT Participates in Public Comment Period for Proposed Rule Affecting Student Loans

ACCT submitted its comments on the proposed rules issued ​​​​​​by the Department of Education, stemming from the work of the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) committee. In our comments, ACCT pointed out that in order for colleges to maintain accreditation, professors must have at least a master's degree. The new loan caps affecting high-cost and high-demand fields would limit those pursuing such a degree. ACCT also reminded the Department to include representation from public two-year institutions. We reiterated that our peers from the four-year sector cannot fully speak on the unique nature of our institutions.

Congressional Hearing on Community Colleges: March 4th

The House Appropriations Committee is holding a hearing on March 4th at 10:30 AM ET titled Preparing for the Future: America's Community Colleges. The witnesses include Dr. Patricia G. Sims, President of Drake State Community and Technical College, Dr. Brad Hall, President of Blackfeet Community College, Shawn M. Morgan, Vice President of Workforce and Strategic Initiatives of Bevill State Community College, and Shalin Jyotishi, Founder and Managing Director of Future of Work and Innovation Economy Initiative at New America. It is anticipated that this hearing will inform members of the Appropriations Committee on the value community colleges have in the higher education space and in the American economy. Click here to tune in. 

Related to hearings, the Senate Chair of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Bill Cassidy (LA), said ​​​​​​that he'sinterested in holding a hearing with Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon. While it is unknown when this hearing will take place, typically, budget and oversight hearings happen during the spring.   

Join ACCT's LAW Live Friday, March 6, 1-2 PM ET 

The ACCT Government Relations Team's Federal Update Webinar, Latest Action in Washington (LAW) Live, will return Friday, March 6, 1-2pm ET.

Right now, members of Congress are asking their constituents which programs and projects to fund in the annual spending process for fiscal year 2027 (FY27). This is a critical time for the community college community to make our voices heard and advocate for critical programs supporting student success and workforce development. 

At the March First Friday Federal Update Webinar, we will go inside the federal funding process in Congress and share the critical steps to take to advocate for community college funding. Click here to register. 

Grant Opportunities

Please review the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education's Community College webpage for new grants community colleges are eligible for.

Strengthening Community College Training Grants

In this 6th round, the objective of  the Strengthening Community College Training Grant (SCCTG) competitionis to fund community colleges aiming to build "program and system capacity for implementing and scaling access to short-term training opportunities through Workforce Pell Grants—i.e., promoting industry-driven strategies, worker mobility, and integration with the larger state workforce system (e.g., Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) partners) for statewide impact."  

The closing date for this grant opportunity is May 20, 2026, at 11:59 PM ET.

• March 2 Public comment period closes for proposed rule from Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) committee.
• March 4, 10:30 AM ET  House Appropriations Committee Hearing: Preparing for the Future: America's Community Colleges.
• March 6, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• March 20, 6:00 PM LHHS Programmatic and Language and Community Project Funding Request Deadline
• March 30, 11:59 PM ET Public comment period closes for the proposed revision on certifications that recipients of federal funding must submit.
• April 3, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• April 14 FAFSA Form 2027-28 comment period closes
• May 1, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• May 20, 11:59 PM ET. Strengthening Community College Training Grant Closes
• June 5, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• July 10, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• August 7, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• September 4, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live
• October 2, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live 
• October 21-24 ACCT Leadership Congress
• November 6, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live 
• December 4, 1-2 PM ET LAW Live

Outreach Efforts

Is your institution meeting or hosting an event with federal elected officials?

We created a Congressional Contact Form that will help us track outreach efforts of community college leaders across our membership. By filling out the form, you are better informing ACCT's advocacy efforts and our advocacy team is able to continue those conversations with congressional staff in DC. 

ACCT NOW is the go-to resource for issues affecting community colleges. Our new website features original reporting and research, as well as of-the-moment legislative updates. ACCT NOW also includes articles, reports, and research from outside sources that benefit the ACCT community. Read the Latest Articles on ACCT NOW:

Would you Like a Federal Update Session for Your Team?

Both this new presidential administration and new Congress have brought with them a flurry of developments in the federal landscape that can make keeping up a monumental task. ACCT's Government Relations team is here to help by offering a 45-minute to an-hour federal update session to community college leadership teams who are ACCT members. To request a session, fill out this form and please email publicpolicy@acct.org with any questions.

Have a Question?

Contact us with any questions or concerns about public policy and ACCT's advocacy on behalf of two-year colleges and two-year college trustees. ACCT's Latest Action in Washington alerts are sent to interested ACCT members to keep you up to date on important legislative activities that impact community colleges.

If you no longer wish to receive ACCT's Latest Action in Washington alerts, reply to this email with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line. For more information about ACCT's advocacy services, visit acct.org/advocacy

Spread the Word.

Please encourage your fellow trustees, presidents and colleagues to stay up to date about legislation that affects their community colleges by joining the Latest Action in Washington (LAW) Alert network. To join, simply register here. 

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