Department of Education Releases Proposed Gainful Employment Regulations

On Wednesday, the Department of Education released its proposed gainful employment and ability to benefit regulations. The proposed regulations, which also includes rules on financial responsibility, administrative capability, and certification procedures, will be published in the Federal Register today, and comments may be submitted over a period of 30 days. The Department expects to finalize the rules later this year. Rules finalized by November 1, 2023, will go into effect on July 1, 2024.

The Department of Education’s press release may be accessed here.

Department of Education Update on Third Party Servicers

On Tuesday, the Department of Education issued a Dear Colleague Letter on Third-Party Servicers. Like the Department’s April 11 blog post, the letter states the Department plans to issue a final revised Dear Colleague Letter with an effective date at least six months after its publication.

The Dear Colleague Letter may be accessed here and the April 11 blog post may be accessed here.

Brookings Institution Webinar on Affirmative Action and the Future of College Admissions

On Tuesday, May 23, at 2pm Eastern, the Brookings Institution will hold an online-only event on “Affirmative Action and the Future of College Admissions”. The event will feature leading education experts to explore the history of affirmative action in higher education, how affirmative action fits in a broader system of admissions criteria, and the likely impact of the Supreme Court’s decisions on college enrollment.

Details and registration may be accessed here.

ACE Panel on Preparing for the Supreme Court's Race in Admissions Ruling

Earlier this month, the American Council on Education (ACE) held a panel discussion aimed at helping campus leaders prepare for the outcome of the race in admissions cases the U.S. Supreme Court heard on October 31, 2022.

More details including a transcript of the panel session may be accessed here.

House Holds Appropriations Hearing on FY 24 Education Budget Request

At Tuesday’s hearing, Sec. Cardona testified in support of the Department of Education’s FY 24 budget proposal, which seeks a 13% overall funding increase above current funding levels. Republican Members of the Subcommittee, led by new Chair Rob Aderholt (R-AL) expressed concerns about proposed funding increase, citing concerns about continued deficit spending. Democratic Members focused the bulk of their comments on the impact of expected budgetary cuts Republicans will make in FY 24, including to the Labor-HHS Appropriations bill, with Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) anticipating a 20-30% overall cut. In addition, there were discussions about Pell Grant funding, whether the department was prepared to restart student loan repayments, the Parental Bill of Rights, school choice, STEM, as well as Short Term Pell to help address employers’ need for skilled workers.

Our memo on the hearing may be accessed here.

ASAHP, FASHP Statement on Ensuring Academic Freedom and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

ASAHP joined the Federation of Associations of Schools of the Health Professions (FASHP), which comprises 19 associations representing a health professions education community, in issuing a statement of commitment to the principles of academic freedom, as well as creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for students and patients.

The joint statement may be accessed here.

Department of Education Update on Third-Party Servicer Guidance

This afternoon, the Department of Education provided an update on its Third-Party Servicer guidance. ASAHP joined ACE in submitting comments to the Department regarding concerns with the guidance on March 29. The Department said the September 1, 2023 effective date of the guidance letter will no longer be in effect, and that the effective date of the revised final guidance letter will be at least six months after its publication. In the update the Department included a list of activities it does not consider as constituting Third-Party Servicer relationships. Included in this list is “clinical or externship opportunities that meet requirements under existing regulations because they are closely monitored by qualified personnel at an institution”.

The update may be accessed here. The comments submitted by ASAHP, ACE, and others may be accessed here.

ASAHP, HPNEC Letter to Congressional Appropriators on HRSA Health Professions Workforce Funding

ASAHP joined more than 90 members of Health Professions and Nursing Education Coalition (HPNEC) in urging Congress to provide $1.51 billion for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Title VII health professions and Title VIII nursing workforce development programs for FY 2024.

The letter may be accessed here.

ASAHP, ACE Submit Comments to the Department of Education on Third-Party Servicers Guidance

ASAHP joined more than 80 other organizations in submitting comments to the Department of Education on their guidance on third-party servicers released in February. The comments were led by the American Council on Education (ACE). The comments suggest the guidance be rescinded, and highlights its potential negative impact on clinical experiences, among other concerns.

The letter may be accessed here. More ASAHP coverage on this issue may be found here and here.

ASAHP Letter to Congressional Leadership Urging DACA Legislation

ASAHP was one of 77 signatories which sent a letter to Congressional leadership urging legislation that provides permanent protections for “Dreamers” who came to the U.S. as children. Currently, 34,000 Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients provide health care to patients in communities across the nation.

The letter may be accessed here.

Department of Education Announces Public Hearings on Higher Education Rulemaking

The U.S. Department of Education announced that it will hold virtual public hearings on April 11, 12, and 13 to receive stakeholder feedback on potential issues for future rulemaking sessions. The announcement is the first step in the process of issuing new regulations. Following the public hearings, the Department will finalize the issues to be addressed through rulemaking and solicit nominations for non-federal negotiators who can serve on the negotiated rulemaking committee(s), which will convene in fall 2023. The Department suggests the following topics for regulation in the hearing notice but invites comment on any regulatory issue that can improve outcomes for students. Potential topics may include:

• The Secretary’s recognition of accrediting agencies and related issues

• Institutional eligibility, including State authorization

• Third-party servicers and related issues

• The definition of distance education as it pertains to clock hour programs and reporting students who enroll primarily online

• Return of Title IV funds

• Cash management to address disbursement of student funds

• Federal TRIO programs

More details may be accessed here.

House Subcommittee to Hold Education Hearings

On Thursday, March 23, at 10:15 am Eastern, the the House Education and Workforce Committee’s Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development will hold a hearing titled, "Breaking the System: Examining the Implications of Biden's Student Loan Policies for Students and Taxpayers." On Wednesday, March 29, at 10:15 am Eastern, the same Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled, “Diversity of Thought: Protecting Free Speech on College Campuses.”

Also, on Thursday, March 23, 2023 at 2:00pm Eastern, the House Ways & Means Committee’s Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled, “Why Health Care is Unaffordable: The Fallout of Democrats’ Inflation on Patients and Small Businesses.”

On Tuesday, March 28, 2023, 1:00pm Eastern, the House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled, “Lowering Unaffordable Costs: Examining Transparency and Competition in Health Care>.”

The education Subcommittee hearings may be accessed here, the Ways & Means Health Subcommittee hearing may be accessed here, and the Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee may be accessed here.

Department of Education Guidance on Third Party Servicers, Comments Due March 30

On February 15 the Department of Education provided guidance via a Dear Colleague letter which expands its interpretation of the definition of “third-party servicers”. Institutions will have until September 1, 2023 to provide the requested details on their relationships with third-party servicers. The deadline to provide comments to the Department is March 30, 2023. According to ACE: “Based on our review of the DCL, it appears that the following entities may be considered TPSs: an institution that provides courses and instruction to another institution as part of an inter-college consortia; an online extension campus providing services to another campus of the same university; an institution in a state system providing services to other institutions in the system; a hospital providing clinical experiences and the related educational programing for nurses and other medical professionals; a local police department helping to compile and analyze campus crime statistics; a non-profit organization providing student engagement and 1 This letter does not attempt to detail our substantive input on the Department’s proposal, which we are in the process of developing and will provide to the Department in a separate submission. 2 retention services or tools to improve student outcomes for at-risk students; publishers providing online materials and study guides, or technology providers developing adaptive courseware solutions.”

Details and the opportunity to comment may be accessed here. A letter from ACE to the Department of Education is available here.

President's FY 24 Budget Request

This afternoon, the President’s FY 24 budget request was released. The request for $1.73 trillion in discretionary funds is a nearly $90 billion (5.5 percent) increase over the current fiscal year. The request calls for a 7 percent increase in nondefense discretionary spending and a 3 percent increase in defense funding. House Republicans are seeking roughly 9 percent cuts from FY 23. The Administration’s FY 24 request for the Department of Education is $90 billion, a 10.8 billion (13.6 percent) increase. The maximum Pell of $8,215 for the next school year, a $820 overall boost from $7,395 which takes effect July 1. The Administration’s overall goal is to double the overall Pell maximum grant by 2029. The Administration is requesting a $15 billion (11+ percent) increase for the for the Department of Health and Human Services. In the President’s budget request, HRSA would receive a discretionary funding level of $9.205 billion, around $285 million less than what was enacted in FY 23.

The President’s budget request may be accessed here. The HHS budget in brief may be accessed here. A statement by Secretary of Education Cardona may be accessed here. The Department of Education budget summary and background may be accessed here. A funding chart of the HRSA Title VII and VIII Health Workforce Programs is available here.

Resource Guide: Making the Case for Academic Freedom and Institutional Autonomy in a Challenging Political Environment

PEN American and the American Council on Education (ACE) have released a resource guide, “Making the Case for Academic Freedom and Institutional Autonomy in a Challenging Political Environment.” The document provides an overview of divisive concepts laws that restrict higher education, and communication tools for tackling proposed restrictions on academic freedom.

The document may be accessed here.

Senate Committee Seeks Information on Health Care Workforce Shortages

The Senate HELP Committee is requesting input from all stakeholders to best understand the drivers of health care workforce shortages and hear ideas on potential solutions. The request for input comes in the form of a letter from Committee Chair Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Ranking Member Bill Cassidy (R-LA), following a hearing last month entitled, “Examining Health Care Workforce Shortages: Where Do We Go From Here?”. Responses will help the committee as it develops legislation.

Written response should be sent to HealthWorkforceComments@help.senate.gov by March 20, 2023. More details are available here.

House Community Project Funding (Earmark) Request Opportunity

The House Appropriations Committee has released new guidelines on Community Project Funding (earmarks) for FY 24. Members of the House may request funding for projects within their districts. Each House office may set a different deadline for when the requests must be submitted to their respective offices and some deadlines are approaching soon. Institutions that are considering making a request should check with their respective House office for their deadline. Senate guidelines for FY 24 earmarks have also been released.

More details may be accessed here.

Senate Congressionally Directed Spending (Earmark) Request Opportunity

The Senate Appropriations Committee has released new guidelines on Congressionally Directed Spending (earmarks) for FY 24. Each Member of the Senate may request grants for projects within their states. Each Senate office may set a different deadline for when the requests must be submitted to their respective offices and some deadlines are approaching soon. Institutions that are considering making a request should check with their respective Senator’s office for their deadline. House guidelines for FY 24 earmarks have not yet been released but are expected soon.

More details may be accessed here.

Education Department Unveils Regulatory Agenda

The U.S. Department of Education this week unveiled its upcoming regulatory agenda. The ambitious rulemaking agenda includes state authorization, distance education, accreditation, and more.

An article from Inside Higher Ed may be accessed here.

Congress Releases Text of FY 23 Omnibus Appropriations bill

The $1.7 trillion FY 23 Omnibus Appropriations bill was released this morning. It contains a roughly 10% increase for defense related programming. House Democrats highlight a 9.3% increase for domestic programs, but their Republican colleagues claim the increase is actually only 5.5% when excluding a dramatic rise for Veterans’ health care.

The fiscal year 2023 Labor-H bill includes $209.9 billion in base discretionary funding. Including spending offset by savings in changes in mandatory programs, this represents an increase of $14.8 billion or 7.1 percent over the comparable fiscal year 2022 level.

The bill includes $579.3 million, an increase of 60.6 million for HRSA’s Title VII health professions programs.

The bill increases the maximum Pell Grant award by $500 or 7.2 percent to $7,395 for the 2023-24 school year. This is the largest increase in the maximum Pell grant award since the 2009-10 school year and further builds off the $400 increase provided last year.

The bill includes language from the Allied Health Workforce Diversity Act, amending the Public Health Service Act to allow for “increasing educational opportunities in physical therapy, occupational therapy, respiratory therapy, audiology, and speech-language pathology professions, which may include offering scholarships or stipends and carrying out other activities to improve retention, for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds or individuals who are underrepresented in such professions.’’

The leadership expects to move the Omnibus through the Senate, followed by the House, before the December 23rd expiration of the current Continuing Resolution.

More details may be accessed here and here.