Legislative Activity Elementary and Secondary Education Act Reauthorization Last Thursday, the Senate passed its version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) – the Every Child Achieves Act (S. 1177) – by an 81-17 vote. The bill will now move to conference with the House’s ESEA bill – the Student Success Act (H.R. 5) … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Elementary and Secondary Education Act Reauthorization Both the House and Senate versions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) are expected to hit the floors of their respective chambers this week. While it now appears likely that both pieces of legislation will be considered before the August recess, it is less apparent … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Higher Education Act The House Committee on Education and the Workforce plans to introduce a series of bills starting in early summer that focus on Title IV funding, accreditation, transparency, loan counseling, regulatory relief, and learning innovation (in no particular order). While the bills will be introduced separately, with the opportunity to comment, they will … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate HELP Committee Will Mark Up ESEA Legislation on Tuesday Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) released a bipartisan compromise ESEA reauthorization bill last Wednesday. The Every Child Achieves Act of 2015 is scheduled for markup on Tuesday. The Committee leaders … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Work Begins on ESEA Reauthorization Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) recently released his draft Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization bill – the Every Child Ready for College or Career Act of 2015. Last week, the Senate HELP Committee held its first hearing on ESEA … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Education Priorities for the 114th Congress After the Republicans took the Senate in last week’s mid-term elections, former Education Secretary Lamar Alexander (R-TN) will now be leading the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee and we expect his education policies to align closely with House Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Education and the Workforce Committee Priorities Last week, House Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN) shared some insight into his committee’s priorities for the rest of the year, which include several education-related reauthorization bills that are overdue for consideration. Chairman Kline stated that he plans to consider a Higher … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Interest Rates A bipartisan group of senators, led Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), announced another agreement on student loan interest rates last week. The deal, which represents a new scheme that shifts to market-driven variable interest rates, was announced after Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) ultimately agreed to support it. According to reports, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Student Loan Reform Senators continue to work on a bipartisan deal to address federally subsidized student loan interest rates, which expire July 1. The long-term deal, which is expected to (1) peg the rates to the 10-year Treasury bill, (2) include a consolidated rate cap – something Democrats have called “non-negotiable,” and (3) … Continue Reading