The House and Senate are out of session and will return for legislative business on Monday, September 8.  The Senate approved a “conditional” adjournment resolution that provides for several pro forma sessions until the second week of September in order to prevent the President from making recess appointments. 

When the Senate returns to session on September 8, it will take up the FY09 Defense authorization bill (S. 3001).  No legislative program has been announced for the House.

CONGRESS MAKES LITTLE PROGRESS ON APPROPRIATIONS 

The House and Senate have made little progress in approving the FY09 appropriations bills largely because of partisan differences over energy policy.  With the public upset about high gas prices, Republicans in the House and Senate have sought to offer amendments to lift the moratorium on new offshore oil and gas drilling on a number of bills—particularly appropriations measures.  Democratic leaders have worked to avoid such votes, reportedly, to shield vulnerable members from having to vote on the issue and out of concern they could lose the vote.  

Late last month, House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-WI) suspended committee consideration of the FY09 appropriations bills after committee Republicans tried to offer oil and gas amendments during markup of the FY09 Labor-HHS-Education bill.  Likewise, Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd (D-WV) cancelled a July 24 markup of the second FY08 supplemental bill and two FY09 funding bills for the same reason.   

So far, the House Appropriations Committee has approved just five of its 12 bills and the Senate Appropriations Committee has approved nine. 

It has been apparent for some months that Democratic leaders were likely to bundle the FY09 funding bills into a continuing resolution (CR) in September.  This would avoid individual veto battles with President Bush and tide federal programs over until the New Year, when there presumably would be a friendlier presidential administration and a new Congress. 

SENATOR BYRD WOULD ADD $1.2 B. FOR SCIENCE AGENCIES IN SECOND FY08 SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING BILL

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd (D-WV) has released details of the second FY08 supplemental funding bill that he plans to take up in September and the $24-billion package includes $1.28 billion for several science agencies.  Senator Byrd cancelled markup of the package last week because he said there was no room in the Senate schedule to consider the bill before the August recess and because of concern that Republicans would seek to add amendments to open up offshore oil and gas drilling, as they have sought to do on other appropriations bills. 

The supplemental funding package would add $500 million for the National Institutes of Health; $250 million for NASA to shorten the projected five-year gap between retirement of the Space Shuttle and availability of the new space vehicle; $150 million for Department of Energy science programs; $250 million for clean-up of nuclear weapons production plants; $100 million for “energy and cybersecurity;” and $26 million for the Centers for Disease Control for combating infectious diseases. 

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has said she hopes to enact a $50 billion supplemental funding bill before Congress leaves this year. 

SENATE FAILS TO APPROVE TAX EXTENDERS BILL

The Senate once again failed to approve a package of popular tax extenders (S. 3335) this week, after Democratic leaders twice failed to achieve the 60 votes needed to proceed on the bill.  Among the issues still unresolved between Democrats and Republicans is whether and how to include revenue-raisers to offset some of the tax extenders. Republicans also would like to see some of the expiring provisions, such as the research and development tax credit, extended for a longer period of time or made permanent. 

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) said the bill will be revisited in September.  The House approved its own extender bill (H.R. 6049) on May 21.

A group of 10 higher education associations, including AAU, wrote to all members of the Senate on July 28 urging them to approve the legislation (S. 3335).  The measure includes extensions of the above-the-line deduction for qualified tuition and related expenses and the Individual Retirement Account Charitable Rollover.  Both provisions were allowed to expire in 2007. 

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

NSF REQUESTS PUBLIC COMMENT ON COST-SHARING POLICIES   NEW

As part of a continuing review of cost-sharing policies at the National Science Foundation (NSF), a committee of the National Science Board (NSB) has issued a request for public comment on the use of cost-sharing in NSF-funded activities, with a focus on a list of specific topics.  The NSB will use this information in developing the second of two reports on NSF cost-sharing, which will be more comprehensive than the first report and which the NSB plans to issue in early 2009. 

The deadline for comments is October 1, 2008.  AAU and the Council on Governmental Relations (COGR) will share their draft comments with the CFR in mid-September. 

BACKGROUND

A provision of the America COMPETES Act tasked the NSB with conducting a comprehensive review of the “unintended consequences” of the agency’s decision in 2004 to eliminate mandatory cost-sharing for all NSF programs.  In February 2008, the Board issued its first report to Congress, which focused on mandatory cost-sharing. 

Based on recommendations in the first report, NSF will reinstate mandatory cost sharing in FY09 for the following programs: Engineering Research Centers, the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers.

A statement accompanying the first report said that the Task Force would continue to examine this issue, with the goal of formulating a comprehensive set of recommendations on NSF cost-sharing policy.  The panel held two roundtable discussions with stakeholders on July 9-10, 2008—in which AAU President Robert Berdahl and AAU staff participated—which also will help inform the final report.

HIGHER EDUCATION ASSOCIATIONS COMMENT
ON PROPOSED E-VERIFY REQUIREMENTS

The higher education community submitted comments to the General Services Administration on August 11 regarding the proposed rule that would require all federal contractors to use the E-Verify system to verify the eligibility of new and current employees to work in the United States.  
The letter sent by a group of 12 higher education associations, including AAU, expresses support for effective efforts to enhance homeland and national security, but expresses serious concerns about the proposed mandate.  These reservations include the concern that by requiring verification of existing employees, the proposed rule exceeds statutory limitations; that the E-Verify system lacks the capacity to handle a major new influx of participating employers and individuals in the short period of time provided; that there is no recourse for employers and employees in the event of a false non-confirmation of employment eligibility; and that the rule fails to account for problems that international workers experience in obtaining Social Security numbers.   

OTHER CONGRESSIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

PRESIDENT SIGNS HEA REAUTHORIZATION BILL INTO LAW   NEW

President Bush on August 14 signed into law the Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization bill (H.R. 4137), which Congress approved on August 31.  The latest HEA extension was set to expire today, August 15.  An updated cost estimate for the bill has been published by the Congressional Budget Office.

ASSOCIATIONS PROVIDE ANALYSIS OF PEER-TO-PEER FILE SHARING PROVISIONS IN HEA REAUTHORIZATION

A group of higher education associations, including AAU, has developed an analysis of peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing provisions and report language in the just-passed Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization bill (H.R. 4137).  The document seeks to answer campus information-technology administrators’ most pressing questions about their new responsibilities for addressing unauthorized P2P file sharing on campus networks. 

AAU will soon distribute analyses of other provisions in the HEA bill of importance to AAU member universities, including a side-by-side document that compares the House- and Senate-passed provisions with those in the final bill.

Members of the CFR are encouraged to discuss the P2P memorandum with campus information technology officers.  

OTHER

AAU SEEKS INDIVIDUALS WHO BENEFITTED FROM
NDEA SCHOLARSHIPS AND PROGRAMS

AAU is conducting a broad survey of academic, industry, and government leaders to find individuals who benefitted directly from the National Defense Education Act (NDEA), which Congress approved in 1958 in response to the Soviet launch of the Sputnik satellite.  The goal of NDEA was to improve the U.S. education system and strengthen the nation’s intellectual talent base in scientific, technical, and other fields vital to national security through fellowships, financial aid, and a variety of other programs

Those individuals who were direct beneficiaries of the NDEA are asked to complete the survey by Wednesday, August 27. (Those unable to do so by that date are asked to still fill out the survey because AAU will continue to collect the information.)  Those who know of others who may have been aided by NDEA are asked to pass along this information to them.  The contact is Marcus Tang at: marcus_tang@aau.edu. 

The purpose of the AAU survey is to celebrate this year’s 50th anniversary of the Act by showing how significant it has been for U.S. research and economic competitiveness and why the nation would benefit from greater federal support of research and science education. 

The information collected will be used to illustrate the Act’s significance and impact.  It will be highlighted at events and in accompanying materials being planned to coincide with the actual anniversary of the Act—September 2, 2008.  It also will be used to demonstrate to current policymakers why the nation would benefit from strengthening federal support of scientific research and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education at all levels.

Source: American Association of Universities