Duke Federal Relations: DC Digest

DC Digest - September 3, 2010

In Today's Issue:

Obama Announces Export Control System Reforms
DOD Asks Defense Science Board to Establish Task Force on Basic Research
Justice Department Appeals Preliminary Injunction on Embyronic Stem Cell Research Funding
Proposed Rules on Gainful Employment Continue to Roil the Waters
Senator Wants For-Profit Colleges to Share Default Risk
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to Speak at Duke Sept. 29
DOE Seeks Input on Education, Technical Training Efforts
VA Publishes State Maximum Tuition and Fee Numbers for 2010-2011
GAO Report on IPEDS Reporting Burden Leads to Dept of Ed Proposal for Comment
Troubling Maintenance-of-Effort Requirement in Education Jobs Bill
Is Your University Complying with the New Textbook Law?

OBAMA ANNOUNCES EXPORT CONTROL SYSTEM REFORMS
This week, President Obama announced plans for comprehensive changes in the current export control system. These changes – in what we control, how we control it, how we enforce those controls and how we manage our controls – will help strengthen our national security by focusing our efforts on controlling the most critical products and technologies and by enhancing the competitiveness of key U.S. manufacturing and technology sectors.

DOD ASKS DEFENSE SCIENCE BOARD TO ESTABLISH TASK FORCE ON BASIC RESEARCH
Under Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter has asked the Defense Science Board (DSB) to create a Task Force on Basic Research. In an August 2 memo to DSB Chair Paul G. Kaminski, Carter said the new task force was needed “to assess matters relating to departmental planning and managing the defense basic research program.”
“The Task Force,” he wrote, “will serve as a mechanism for external validation of the quality of the basic research program and for advice on long term research plans and strategies for the corporate-wide defense basic research portfolio.”

Read More:
DOD Asks Defense Science Board to Establish Task Force on Basic Research (Acq.osd.mil)

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT APPEALS PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION ON EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH FUNDING
The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an appeal yesterday asking for suspension of last week‟s preliminary injunction which halted federal funding of human embryonic stem cell (ESC) research. The government‟s appeal argues against each of the points made in Judge Lambert‟s injunction ruling and asserting that the injunction causes “irrevocable harm” by “terminating research projects midstream, invalidating results in process, and impeding or negating years of scientific progress toward finding new treatments for devastating illnesses such as diabetes, Parkinson‟s disease, and blindness, as well as crippling spinal cord injuries.”

NIH Director Francis Collins filed an affidavit in support of the government‟s case. In addition, NIH this week issued an official notice in the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts, confirming that while ongoing ESC research will continue until it is up for renewal, issuance of new awards, peer review of ESC applications, and consideration of new stem cell lines for the ESC registry have all been suspended.

Read More:
NIH Notice on Applications and Awards Involving Human Embyronic Stem Cells

PROPOSED RULES ON GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT CONTINUE TO ROIL THE WATERS
The trade and national press continue to turn out stories and commentaries in the wake of the Department of Education's Notice of Proposed Rule-making on "gainful employment" and Sen. Tom Harkin's (D-Iowa) August 4 hearing, scalding the for-profit sector.

Lost in all the media frenzy are the implications of the proposed regulations on non-profit and public colleges. Given all the new matrixes proposed by the regulations, it is impossible to predict which colleges might be negatively impacted by the proposals, since program-level data on which the formulas will be based do not yet exist.

Read More:
Proposed Rules on Gainful Employment Continue to Roil the Waters (NAICU Washington Update)

SENATOR WANTS FOR-PROFIT COLLEGES TO SHARE DEFAULT RISK
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, a key member of the Senate Democratic leadership, on Tuesday called for a number of reforms of federal laws that involve for-profit higher education, saying that they should share in the default risks of their students -- costs that are currently assumed by the taxpayers.

Read More:
Durbin: Congress Must Take Steps to Curb Exploitative Practices at For-Profit Colleges (Durbin.senate.gov)
Senator Wants For-Profit Colleges to Share Default Risk (InsideHigherEd QuickTakes)

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE ROBERT GATES TO SPEAK AT DUKE SEPT. 29
U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates will give a public lecture Wednesday, Sept. 29, at Duke University. Gates will deliver the Ambassador S. Davis Phillips Family International Lecture in Reynolds Industries Theater at the Bryan Center on Duke’s West Campus. The talk will be followed by a brief question-and-answer session for students.

Read More:
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to Speak at Duke (DukeNews)

DOE SEEKS INPUT ON EDUCATION, TECHNICAL TRAINING EFFORTS
The Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking public input on its energy education and technical training efforts. The Department is not looking for specific project proposals. The information, according to the RFI, “is intended to assist DOE in further defining the scope and priorities of its education and workforce development activities.”

Read More:
DOE Request for Information - deadline September 17 (FedConnect)

VA PUBLISHES STATE MAXIMUM TUITION AND FEE NUMBERS FOR 2010-2011
On August 30, the Department of Veterans Affairs published the state-by-state maximum tuition and fee levels to be used for the calculation of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits for the 2010-11 academic year. With a few exceptions, the maximum payment per credit hour increased modestly. There were greater variations in the maximum fee levels.

Read More:
2010-2011 Maximum In-State Tuition and Fees (VA.gov)
VA Publishes State Maximum Tuition and Fee Numbers for 2010-2011 (NAICU Washington Update)

GAO REPORT ON IPEDS REPORTING BURDEN LEADS TO DEPT OF ED PROPOSAL FOR COMMENT
A new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report has shown that the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data Systems (IPEDS) collection burden for institutions is much higher than Department of Education estimates. In responding to the study, the Department of Education has proposed a revised burden estimate for the completion of IPEDS. The Department is now soliciting comments from institutions on the new estimates by October 1.

TROUBLING MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT REQUIREMENT IN EDUCATION JOBS BILL
The $26 billion education jobs and state Medicaid funding bill passed by Congress in early August included a "maintenance of effort" (MOE) requirement for states to keep up their funding for public K-12 and public higher education - but fails to similarly protect state funding for student aid programs or funds for private colleges. It is critically important for NAICU, the state executives, and member presidents to continue to work with congressional and state representatives on the issue - educating them about the MOE's unintended consequences for students.

Read More:
Troubling Maintenance of Effort Requirements in Education Jobs Bill (NAICU Washington Update)

IS YOUR UNIVERSITY COMPLYING WITH THE NEW TEXTBOOK LAW?
This year a federal law has taken effect which requires "institution[s] of higher education receiving Federal financial assistance" to provide students with information on textbook pricing. The mandated disclosure should reduce the monopoly power of the local college bookstore. Armed with a textbook's title and ISBN, students can jump on the Internet and search for a retailer with a lower markup. The disclosure, however, might also promote other dimensions of competition.

Read More:
Is Your University Complying with the New Textbook Law? (NY Times - Freakonomics Blog)