AASCU Update

To:       AASCU Presidents, Chancellors and Government Relations staff
From:   Ed Elmendorf, Senior Vice President of Government Relations and Policy Analysis
            Makese Motley, Assistant Director of Federal Relations and Policy Analysis
            Barmak Nassirian, Director of Federal Policy Analysis
Re:       Federal Update
Date:     9/19/2013


Continuing Resolution/Debt Ceiling

Two significant congressional actions are imminent and both affect government funding.  At midnight on September 30^th, the current continuing resolution to fund the federal government will expire.  In mid-October the government’s borrowing authority commonly known as the debt ceiling will expire. As of this writing, House GOP leaders are attempting to work on a compromise resolution that most members of the GOP caucus can sign onto. On Friday, a stop gap spending bill will be brought to the House floor for a vote, followed by a vote on raising the debt ceiling early next week. The stop gap spending bill would include language defunding the 2010 health care law and would expire on December 15, 2013.

The debt-limit bill will include language to mandate goals for a revision of tax law, cuts in entitlement programs, a proposal to require the Treasury to pay principal and interest due on debt held by the public before making other payments assuming that the debt ceiling is reached. Defunding of the 2010 health care laws is also included in the debt ceiling bill.  President Obama and Senate Democrats have made clear that defunding the healthcare law is a nonstarter. They have also indicated that in the case of the debit ceiling, they are not prepared to negotiate.

Based on AASCU’s conversations with the Hill, we believe that the government will shut down on October 1. It appears that we are at a fiscal impasse that could potentially be drawn out over several months and it is expected that these negotiations will go right up to the September 30 deadline. We will keep your informed as things develop.


Host an Affordable Care Act (ACA) Educational Forum on Campus

In an effort to educate all campus community members on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 and the health exchange marketplaces opening on October 1, the Obama Administration is seeking institutions that are interested in hosting educational forums on the new health care law. These forums would be unique to each institution and would have Obama Administration officials present. Currently, 16 AASCU institutions have agreed to host forums with more expected to sign up.

Those interested in hosting an educational forum should contact Makese Motley, AASCU Assistant Director of Federal Relations and Policy Analysis, at motleym@aascu.org or by phone at 202-478-4652.


College Rankings

In a conversation about higher education, James Kvaal, Deputy Director of the National Economic Council at the White House, indicated that the Administration intends to modify the College Scorecard by adding mean and median earnings data for their graduates. The mechanism for obtaining these data will be the same as the Administration’s proposed “gainful employment” metrics, i.e., average earnings reported by the Social Security Administration. AASCU will monitor developments and keep members apprised of developments on this critical topic over the coming months.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau intends to follow up on its Request for Information on Financial Products Marketed to Students by hosting a forum on “Banking on Campus” later this month. We urge you to review the series of questions in the CFPB RFI and would appreciate hearing from you about any issues or concerns you may have regarding the topics listed.