The Next Step in Reconciliation, Limitations to Shutting Down ED, Waivers for TRIO are Removed
No images? Click here
March 31, 2025
Leading the News this Week
Senate Majority Leader, John Thune (SD) is committed to moving the reconciliation process forward and aims to complete the next milestone in the process by the end of this week. Keep reading to see how.
News in Higher Education
Reminder: LAW is Going Live
Please join ACCT's Government Relations Team this Friday, April 4th, at 1:00 PM ET as they unpack updates in the Federal government, including the latest on the reconciliation process and President Donald Trump's executive order to shut down the Department of Education. Click here to register.
Next Step in Reconciliation: Securing the Parliamentarian's Approval
The reconciliation process is still underway. The next milestone is the Senate parliamentarian approving the policies that qualify for reconciliation, these policies can only be related to mandatory spending. Republicans and Democrats will make the case to the parliamentarian for and against calculating the proposed tax cuts as costing nothing as this is considered an extension of existing tax policy. While the meeting has not yet been scheduled, approval from the parliamentarian would mean the House and Senate GOP can advance the process which involves an unprecedented two budget resolutions that accept different spending cut minimums for each chamber thus delaying the task of having identical budget resolutions. However, denial from the parliamentarian would interrupt the goal of completing the reconciliation process by Memorial Day.
Limitations Federal Law Places on Dismantling the Department of Education
Today, Inside Higher Ed published a deep dive into the extent to which the law allows the closure of the Department of Education and the transfer of its programs. Aside from laying off nearly half of the Department's staff, terminating contracts, and canceling grants, most of the functions the Department performs are statutorily required; meaning that the law specifically assigns the Department of Education and its Secretary to implement and administer those functions. In the case of student loans, statute states that the Secretary can assign alternative originators, a provision that some legal experts claim allows the Department to transfer the responsibility to a different government agency. Nonetheless, transferring such a program to the Small Business Administration is legally nebulous as this has not been attempted before making the courts the likely place where the strength of this legal argument would be determined.
Please contact ACCT at publicpolicy@acct.org if your institution experiences difficulty with accessing programs administered by the Department of Education or any other federal agency.
Department of Education Removes California and Oregon Waivers for TRIO Programs
On March 26th, the Department of Education revoked waivers issued to colleges in California and Oregon. These waivers permitted them to apply federal TRIO dollars to support undocumented students. These waivers were granted by the Biden administration through the Performance Partnership Pilots for Disconnected Youth. Proponents argued that these waivers helped lower the administrative burden in the operation of TRIO programs.
Higher Ed Dive reported that the majority of unionized workers laid off by the Department of Education came from the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA), the Office of Civil Rights (OCR), and the Institute of Education Sciences (IES).
- April 4, 1:00PM ET - LAW Live Webinar
- April 29, 11:59PM ET - Head Start/Early Head Start Grant Application Due
May 2, 1:00PM ET - LAW Live Webinar
May 23 - Deadline for ACCT's Leadership Congress Presentation Proposals
- June 6, 1:00PM ET - LAW Live Webinar
- June 20 - Fire Science Innovations through Research and Education (FIRE) Grant Application Due
- Jul 11, 2025, 01:00 PM ET - LAW Live Webinar
- Aug 1, 2025, 01:00 PM ET - LAW Live Webinar
- Sep 5, 202,5 01:00 PM ET - LAW Live Webinar
- October 22 - 25 - ACCT Leadership Congress
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, please email publicpolicy@acct.org with the subject line "Request for Federal Update Session."
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.
For more community college news from inside the beltway, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn, or like us Facebook.
