AHEAD Committee Reaches Consensus, The Senate Considers Three Appropriations Bills, FIPSE Grants Were Awarded, New $15M Federal Challenge for States Launching January 13
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January 12, 2026
Leading the News this Week
With the looming government funding deadline of January 30th, the Senate will vote today on the House's three appropriations bills. Read on to the next section for additional information.
News in Higher Education
AHEAD Committee Reaches Consensus
The Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) Committee reached consensus on Friday evening. During the weeklong session, negotiators discussed the new accountability metrics, which are to take effect in July 1 of this year. Programs that fail to meet required metrics will lose access to all federal student aid, including access to the Pell Grant, not just federal student loans, as originally proposed. This proposed rule requires higher education programs to demonstrate that program graduates earn more than their counterparts who only hold a high school diploma. In addition, a program found to be failing must demonstrate that it does not constitute half of the institution’s students or federal student aid funds. Failure to meet both requirements in two consecutive years will result in the loss of federal student aid. The next step before generating the final rule is to open the proposed regulations for public comment.
The Senate Considers Three Appropriations Bills
This evening, the Senate will vote on the House funding package of three appropriations bills that would fund the Department of Justice, Department of Commerce, key science agencies, and other related entities; the Department of Energy and water development; and the Department of Interior, Environmental Protection Agency, and other related agencies.
If the Senate passes and President Trump signs these three bills, that would make a total of 6 passed appropriations bills, which would leave 6 appropriations bills that need to be signed into law for fiscal year 2026; this includes the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and other related agencies appropriations bill, which funds programs that ACCT prioritizes.
If Congress is unable to pass all of the remaining appropriations bills by the deadline of January 30th, it would have to either pass a Continuing Resolution to keep the government funded, or there will be a partial government will shut down for the agencies not yet funded.
Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee released a two-bill package that would fund the Department of Treasury and agencies related to financial services, as well as the Department of State and national security programs.
FIPSE Grants Were Awarded
In November of 2025, the Department of Education opened a grant competition for the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE). The Department directed $169 million to cover four of its designated areas of need: Artificial Intelligence, Civil Discourse, Accreditation, and Short-Term Programs. As such, there was no FY25 funding available to cover other programs such as Basic Needs, the Postsecondary Success Grant, or the Rural Postsecondary Education Development program, to name a few.
Read the ACCT Now piece, FIPSE Funding Under the Second Trump Administration for more on how the Trump Administration transformed FIPSE.
On Monday, the Department awarded the funds. Here is a general summary of how these FIPSE funds were awarded in relation to community colleges:
- 17 community colleges were awarded FIPSE funding, which is 24 percent of all awardees
- In total, community colleges received 21 percent of the funds, amounting to $35,806,990
- 9 community colleges were given funding for the Short-term Program area of need; community colleges were 41 percent of award recipients in this category
- In this same area of need, community colleges got 38 percent of the funds ($19,819,510 out of $52,084,897).
Read the latest ACCT Now piece, 2025 FIPSE Grant Awarded: How did Community Colleges Fare?, for a deeper look at which community colleges were awarded and how the overall community college sector performed at the conclusion of this grant competition.
New $15M Federal Challenge for States Launching January 13
On January 13, the U.S. Department of Education will officially launch the Connecting Talent to Opportunity Challenge, a $15 million federal initiative designed to support states in developing integrated, statewide Talent Marketplaces. These efforts aim to better connect learners and workers with education and training providers and employers, strengthening workforce alignment and access to good jobs.
The challenge builds on work already underway in many states related to skills-based hiring, credential transparency, learning and employment records (LERs), and data interoperability.
An information session on January 13 (2:00–3:30 p.m. ET) will provide an overview of the challenge, including eligibility, timelines, and expectations for participating states.
Register here to learn more, or visit cto-challenge.com for additional details.
Preparing for NLS
With the Community College National Legislative Summit (NLS) happening from February 8 to 11, now is the time to start thinking about how to best prepare. To assist you in this process, visit ACCT's website, where you can find resources that include a timeline of steps to take each month leading up to NLS, a short video guide on how to set up a meeting with members of Congress on Capitol Hill, and a federal funds worksheet that assists with narrowing down the key data points to collect for your Hill meetings.
Finally, join the Government Relations teams from both ACCT and the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) on January 22, 2026 at 2 PM ET as we unveil the 2026 legislative priorities, known as the Green Sheet. Register here for the webinar.
Join Us in Advocacy
As a reminder, in this appropriations cycle, ACCT is advocating for members of Congress to fund programs such as Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) and the Strengthening Institutions Program (SIP). These programs provide much-needed support for students and institutions.
To move forward with our advocacy and communicate with lawmakers the importance of CCAMPIS and SIP, we need your help! We urge you to please share with us how your campuses have benefited from CCAMPIS and SIP at publicpolicy@acct.org.
Also, we call upon you to participate in our Action Campaign and let your member of Congress know the devastating effects should CCAMPIS and SIP no longer exist.
- January 13: Preparing for Workforce Pell: Student Outreach
- January 13, 2:00–3:30 PM ET: Connecting Talent to Opportunity Challenge Info Session
- January 22, 2:00 PM ET: NLS Webinar - Green Sheet Launch
- January 26: Deadline to submit comments for the request for information to update the Accreditation Handbook
- February 8-11, 2026: National Legislative Summit
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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