MACRAO Legislative Update 2019-05-03

Below are the highlights.  There are other “educational” bills, but I’ve tried to focus on issues that directly impact our work as registrars, admissions officers or enrollment managers. There’s a lot to watch, so if you hear of something I missed, let me know!!  I’ll try to track it down.

CORE 42 and MOTR Courses Update:

• The database of approved course for CORE 42 2019-20 is now posted. CORE 42 website.  These are courses for which we need to submit our equivalents, change our previously submitted equivalents or delete previous equivalents.  

 There are the new Knowledge Area requirements since last spring.  These are outlined on the Knowledge Areas in the Course Transfer Tracker system.

 Social & Behavioral Sciences

• 9 credits minimum from at least 2 disciplines, including at least one Civics course

Humanities & Fine Arts

• 9 credit hours minimum, from at least 2 disciplines, and a limit of no more than 3 credit hours of performance courses that can be applied to the Humanities and Fine Arts Knowledge Area and to the total CORE 42.

State Legislative Updates:

• Budget Time – There was a reduction in the anticipated revenue shortfall for this year is impacting plans for 2020. This week, the House and Senate named the conferees tasked with forging the compromise on the budget differences. In addition, the House took up and passed the capital improvements appropriations bills – HB 17, the re-appropriation bill for capital improvement projects not yet completed, and HB 19, new capital improvement projects – which will now go before the Senate.

• STEM Dual Credit: HB 1093 Allows dual credit students who are studying approved STEM courses to be reimbursed for 100% of the costs.  The credits are limited to household incomes that do not exceed 110% of the standard median income in the US. Reported “Do Pass,” which means that it was passed with amendments. The change was to remove the $500 annual cap. 

• Education Task Force: HB 744 This bill would create a “21^st Century Missouri Education Task Force,” to review evaluate and make recommendations regarding the condition of the state’s public higher education system. The committee is to look at the impact of artificial intelligence, standardized testing, certificate and workforce development to guide students into certain fields from young ages, evaluate K-12 funding, This was referred for fiscal review on 5/2.

• Fast Track Workforce Incentive Grant – HCS HB 225 Goal is to meet increase the number of adults with college degrees and/or workforce training.  The bill continues to move forward (it has passed out of the House and had one reading in the Senate), but the question of funding due to the recent discoveries about lower-than anticipated state revenue casts some doubt on the likelihood it can be fully funded. However, tweaks continue to be made. The current version states that to qualify individuals need to not have a degree, have an adjusted gross income of less than $80,000 if the taxpayer's filing status is married filing combined, or $40,000 if the taxpayer's filing status is single, head of household, or qualifying widow(er). In addition, such student must be at least 25 years of age. Grant funding may be renewed, but the student must continue to meet the eligibility requirements and must demonstrate a grade-point average of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale.  Senate Education Committee received public testimony. Committee members asked about clawback provisions and the three-year sunset, the culture of work, and programs that would be covered by the grant. This passed a second Senate committee April 18, but ran into push back from Republicans this week. After amendments, it was placed on the informal calendar for a third reading in the House.

• STEM Certificates for high school students - HB 456 This bill would allow high schools that want to do so to develop a STEM certification for their students.  This would not directly impact all of higher ed.  Public hearing scheduled for 5/7.

• Returning Heroes – HB 400  There is an effort to modify the act to include benefits for graduate students (masters and doctorate) seeking degrees. The maximum that the students can be assessed is 30% of tuition and fees.  Students must have been in active duty combat and must claim the benefit within 20 years of being discharged. The veteran must have been a Missouri resident when first entering the military or entered military service in Missouri. Reported “Do Pass,” which means that it was passed with amendments, on 5/2 in the Senate.

• Required On-Campus Housing – HB 435  Prohibits public institutions of higher education from requiring students to live on campus, except for first-year freshmen who may be required to live in campus housing for their first year.  No update since February.

 Federal/ national issues:

*Taken from AACRAO reports

•  Negotiators Convene to Rewrite Wide Range of Higher Ed Rules - Credit hour definition remains unchanged. Cap on outsource academic programs was pulled back from 100% to 50%.  Negotiators reached consensus on “regular and substantive” interaction and state authorization. Rules will continue to be communicated out.  

•  *Education Dept. Releases Draft Higher Ed Proposals. The U.S. Education Department released draft consensus language for the Trump administration's planned overhaul of higher education regulations. Following months of negotiations, a federal rulemaking committee recently reached agreement on rules governing college accreditation, state approval of online colleges, religious institutions, competency-based education, and TEACH grants, among other issues. Some of the agreed-upon proposals would allow colleges to get faster approval for changes to their programs; facilitate quicker federal recognition of new accreditors; allow for more targeted, less comprehensive federal reviews of accreditors; and give accreditors discretion over when to take action against a college that is out of compliance. Additionally, the panel kept intact rules that defined a credit as one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out-of-class student work each week. Department officials will formally propose the rules and solicit public comments later this year, but have not finalized a timeline.

• *State Authorization: A federal judge in California ruled that the U.S. Education Department illegally delayed Obama-era rules governing state authorization of online programs, as first reported in Politico. The agency will now be required to implement the long-delayed regulations, which were set to take effect last July. Shortly before implementation, the department suspended them until 2020, citing confusion from institutions and lobbying groups. The Obama-era state authorization rules could go into effect as early as next month, according to the Politico report, while the recently agreed-upon updates could follow next year.

• *Free Speech Trump Signs Executive Order on Higher Ed. President Trump signed an executive order that addresses campus free speech and college transparency. The order directs certain federal agencies to certify that institutions receiving federal research funds comply with existing federal law and regulations on free academic inquiry. The document does not apply to federal student aid programs.

• *Call to Action on Dream and Promise Act. AACRAO joined a broad coalition of higher education groups in support of the Dream and Promise Act of 2019 (H.R. 6). The measure—which would provide permanent legal protections and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children—includes new language providing protections for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) recipients. The coalition strongly urged House leaders to advance this important legislation. Further, we encourage our members and state & regional organizations to use AACRAO's online Advocacy Center to reach out to their U.S. Representative and request Congress to act quickly and pass H.R. 6, The Dream and Promise Act of 2019.

• *Lawmakers Reintroduce College Transparency Act. A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House and Senate reintroduced legislation that would overturn the ban on a federal postsecondary student-level data system. The College Transparency Act aims to modernize the Education Department's National Center of Education Statistics (NCES) college reporting system to include program-level data on student outcomes such as enrollment, completion, and post-college success across colleges and majors. A federal ban on student-level data has been in place since 2008. However, bipartisan momentum has gathered behind the legislation. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) suggested in a speech last month that the College Transparency Act was one of several bipartisan bills that could be included in a reauthorization of the Higher Education Act.

• *Trio of Bills Aim to Make College Costs More Transparent. U.S. Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Tina Smith (D-MN), along with Joni Ernst (R-IA), introduced three bills that seek to ensure students and their families have access to better information to estimate the costs of attending college. The Net Price Calculator Improvement Act would require institutions to display prominently on their websites the costs of tuition, room and board, and other expenses. The bill would also authorize the Education Department to develop a "universal calculator" to compare individualized estimates of their net price across multiple colleges at one time. The Understanding the True Cost of College Act would create a universal financial aid award letter so that students could easily compare financial aid packages between schools. The Know Before You Owe Federal Student Loan Act would strengthen the current loan counseling requirements for institutions to ensure students are provided with timely and relevant information about student loan borrowing. U.S. Representatives Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD) and Brett Guthrie (R-KY) introduced companion legislation for the Net Price Calculator Improvement Act in the House.

• *House Passes Legislation to Expand Campus Voting. House Democrats passed a sweeping electoral reform bill in a 234-193 party-line vote. The For the People Act, H.R. 1, aims to expand voting rights and contains language meant to make it easier for college students to register and vote. The legislation includes language that would require colleges to appoint "campus vote coordinators" responsible for helping students register. The coordinators would send voter registration information and forms to all students at least twice a year and at least 30 days before any federal or state election. The legislation would also create competitive grants for colleges that sponsor large on-campus voter mobilization efforts and invite candidates to speak on campus, among other things. The For the People Act is not likely to gain traction in the Republican-controlled Senate

• *Education Dept. Releases Draft Higher Ed Proposals. The U.S. Education Department released draft consensus language for the Trump administration's planned overhaul of higher education regulations. Following months of negotiations, a federal rulemaking committee recently reached agreement on rules governing college accreditation, state approval of online colleges, religious institutions, competency-based education, and TEACH grants, among other issues. Some of the agreed-upon proposals would allow colleges to get faster approval for changes to their programs; facilitate quicker federal recognition of new accreditors; allow for more targeted, less comprehensive federal reviews of accreditors; and give accreditors discretion over when to take action against a college that is out of compliance. Additionally, the panel kept intact rules that defined a credit as one hour of classroom or direct faculty instruction and a minimum of two hours of out-of-class student work each week. Department officials will formally propose the rules and solicit public comments later this year, but have not finalized a timeline.

• *Senators Reintroduce Dream Act. U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Dream Act of 2019, which would provide dreamers a chance to earn lawful permanent residence and a path to American citizenship. House Democrats introduced their version of the Dream Act in early March—the Dream and Promise Act—which includes the elements of the Senate bill, as well as new language providing protections for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) recipients. AACRAO is listed in support of both the U.S. Senate and House measures.