Thursday, October 1, 2009

LAW E-Alert: Congress Passes Continuing Resolution

With the federal fiscal year coming to the end on September 30, Congress moved to pass a Continuing Resolution, which will keep the government running until Congress passes the remaining FY2010 appropriations bills. President Barack Obama signed the bill, which also includes the Legislative Branch appropriations bill, into law. The Continuing Resolution funds the federal programs at FY2009 levels.

ACCT continues to wait for the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee to release its version of the education reconciliation bill. HELP Committee staff have indicated that the bill should be available within the next two weeks. Most importantly for community colleges, the bill is expected to contain the American Graduation Initiative. Senate leaders are waiting for the health care legislative process to unfold before deciding when to carry out the education-reconciliation process.

In other news, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan penned an editorial, “Moving College into the 21st Century,” which the noted the importance of the American Graduation Initiative. The editorial can be viewed at: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0909/27762.html.

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