Showing posts with label House of Representatives. Show all posts
Showing posts with label House of Representatives. Show all posts
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Congress Passes Continuing Resolution, Adjourns till November
Last night, the Senate and House passed the continuing resolution which will fund the federal government till December 3rd. The new federal fiscal year is slated to begin on October 1st, but the continuing resolution will fund most programs at FY2010 levels. Although, the total funding provided in the resolution is $9 billion less than the total appropriated level in FY2010. After passing the continuing resolution, Congress adjourned until after the fall elections. Congress is scheduled to return for a lame-duck session starting on November 15th. Congress will need to move the appropriations bills to fund the federal government for the duration of the federal fiscal year.
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Friday, July 2, 2010
House Passes Supplemental Appropriations Bill
Last night, the House of Representative passed an amendment to the supplemental appropriations bill, H.R. 4899, by a vote of 239-182, and one voting present. The amendment, which was offered by House Appropriations Chairman David Obey (D-WI), includes $10 billion for education jobs and $4.95 billion for the Pell Grant shortfall. With the passage of this new amendment, the bill will have to be sent back to the Senate for reconsideration. In total, the House added an additional $23 billion for domestics activities over the Senate passed bill. The Senate and House have adjourned for the July 4th recess. The Senate is not expected to take up the bill until later this month.
During House consideration, the White House threatened to veto the bill because $800 million in education-related rescissions were included to offset additional funding within the bill. The White House veto threat and additional Senate action raises concerns about whether the House provisions will be passed by the Senate. There is an expectation that the education rescissions will be removed during Senate consideration. The House also passed a budget resolution, but this resolution only applies to the House.
In other news, President Barack Obama called on Congress yesterday to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation. In his speech, President Obama renewed his support for the DREAM Act. ACCT, with the Act on the DREAM Coalition, is encouraging to Congress to start the process and pass DREAM this session of Congress.
Read more!
During House consideration, the White House threatened to veto the bill because $800 million in education-related rescissions were included to offset additional funding within the bill. The White House veto threat and additional Senate action raises concerns about whether the House provisions will be passed by the Senate. There is an expectation that the education rescissions will be removed during Senate consideration. The House also passed a budget resolution, but this resolution only applies to the House.
In other news, President Barack Obama called on Congress yesterday to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation. In his speech, President Obama renewed his support for the DREAM Act. ACCT, with the Act on the DREAM Coalition, is encouraging to Congress to start the process and pass DREAM this session of Congress.
Read more!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
ACCT Joins DREAM Act Coalition
Today, ACCT joined forces with 24 other organizations to create the Act on the DREAM Coalition to urge Congress and the Obama Administration to finally pass the DREAM Act. With the short time period before the congressional elections, it is becoming increasingly unlikely that Congress will consider comprehensive immigration reform that the DREAM Act has been a part of for a number of years. The Act on the Dream Coalition is asking Congress to consider and pass the DREAM Act as a separate piece of legislation this year. The Senate version, S. 729, has 38 co-sponsors; the House version, H.R. 1751, has 120 co-sponsors. ACCT encourages members and other supporters of the DREAM Act to visit the Coalition’s website at: http://actonthedream.org/.
Senate leaders were unsuccessful in proceeding to consider H.R. 4213, its version of the “tax extenders” bill. The Senate voted 45-62 on the bill, which would have required 60 votes to move to consider the bill. The large price tag of the bill, nearly $140 billion (of which $60 billion is offset), continues to be the major factor in halting action on the bill, even though most of the extensions have strong support. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) is expected to introduce a stripped-down version of H.R. 4213. The Senate bill includes important changes to the Community College and Career Training Grant (CCCTG) program, which was funded within the reconciliation bill. ACCT will monitor developments closely to ensure that the provisions remain in the final bill. The Senate bill summary can be viewed at: http://finance.senate.gov/legislation/download/?id=c43e1c4b-c9e2-498d-bb68-ebe84ecf9003. Read more!
Senate leaders were unsuccessful in proceeding to consider H.R. 4213, its version of the “tax extenders” bill. The Senate voted 45-62 on the bill, which would have required 60 votes to move to consider the bill. The large price tag of the bill, nearly $140 billion (of which $60 billion is offset), continues to be the major factor in halting action on the bill, even though most of the extensions have strong support. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) is expected to introduce a stripped-down version of H.R. 4213. The Senate bill includes important changes to the Community College and Career Training Grant (CCCTG) program, which was funded within the reconciliation bill. ACCT will monitor developments closely to ensure that the provisions remain in the final bill. The Senate bill summary can be viewed at: http://finance.senate.gov/legislation/download/?id=c43e1c4b-c9e2-498d-bb68-ebe84ecf9003. Read more!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Senate Poised to Pass Reconciliation Bill, Needs to go Back to House for Consideration
Yesterday, during the Senate debate on H.R. 4872, the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Bill of 2010, which contains health-care legislation fixes and the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA), two provisions within the bill were found to be in violation to the reconciliation rules. Of the two violations, the most important one was a “hold harmless” provision related to the Pell Grant program. The “hold harmless” provision was supposed to ensure that students would not see a drop in the Pell maximum if funding for Pell declined. The two violations are being removed the bill. The Senate also defeated a number of amendments that would have changed the underlying bill. The Senate will continue considering amendments, with a goal of final passage of the bill sometime today. Since the Senate bill is now different than the House bill, when the Senate passes the bill, it will be sent back to the House for its consideration.
This past weekend, the House passed the reconciliation bill by a vote of 220-211. The House is working to schedule a vote on H.R. 4872 once the Senate completes the bill. Congressional leaders are working to finalize and pass the legislation prior to Congress adjourning for the spring district work recess, which starts on Monday. House leaders expect to pass the revised bill, which will then be sent to President Obama for his signature. President Obama supports the reconciliation bill.
H.R. 4872 eliminates the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program and moves all federal student loans into the Direct Loan program. Colleges participating in the federal student loans program will need to move to the Direct Loan program by July 1, 2010. Through the conversion to the Direct Loan program, the bill creates $61 billion in savings, which will be utilized for a number of programs and deficit reduction. Most notably, the bill provides $13.5 billion to pay for the Pell Grant shortfall and $22.6 billion to support a Pell Grant maximum increase in an amount equal to the consumer price since the newest projected shortfall is $19.5 billion. The infusion of funds will ensure that a large amount of the shortfall is taken care of, but Congress will still need to find the remaining amount in the appropriations process. Additionally, $2.55 billion would be allocated to fund Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities and tribal colleges.
From the community college perspective, the bill contains $2 billion for community colleges, the Community College and Career Training Grant Program ($500 million for each of four years, fiscal years 2011-2014), which was authorized in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The program will support educational and career-training programs focused on dislocated workers and unemployed workers. The program will likely be a competitive program (meaning that colleges must submit an application in order to receive funding), but each state will be guaranteed .5% of the total funding, which totals $2.5 million per state. The program will be run by the Department of Labor and is located within the finance section of the bill.
ACCT sent a letter in support of the education-related provisions within H.R. 4872. The letter can be read at: http://www.acct.org/Miller4872LetterSupport.pdf
A fact sheet from the House Committee on Education and Labor can be read at: http://edlabor.house.gov/documents/111/pdf/publications/20100318StudentAidandFiscalResponsibilityAct.pdf
Read more!
This past weekend, the House passed the reconciliation bill by a vote of 220-211. The House is working to schedule a vote on H.R. 4872 once the Senate completes the bill. Congressional leaders are working to finalize and pass the legislation prior to Congress adjourning for the spring district work recess, which starts on Monday. House leaders expect to pass the revised bill, which will then be sent to President Obama for his signature. President Obama supports the reconciliation bill.
H.R. 4872 eliminates the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program and moves all federal student loans into the Direct Loan program. Colleges participating in the federal student loans program will need to move to the Direct Loan program by July 1, 2010. Through the conversion to the Direct Loan program, the bill creates $61 billion in savings, which will be utilized for a number of programs and deficit reduction. Most notably, the bill provides $13.5 billion to pay for the Pell Grant shortfall and $22.6 billion to support a Pell Grant maximum increase in an amount equal to the consumer price since the newest projected shortfall is $19.5 billion. The infusion of funds will ensure that a large amount of the shortfall is taken care of, but Congress will still need to find the remaining amount in the appropriations process. Additionally, $2.55 billion would be allocated to fund Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities and tribal colleges.
From the community college perspective, the bill contains $2 billion for community colleges, the Community College and Career Training Grant Program ($500 million for each of four years, fiscal years 2011-2014), which was authorized in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The program will support educational and career-training programs focused on dislocated workers and unemployed workers. The program will likely be a competitive program (meaning that colleges must submit an application in order to receive funding), but each state will be guaranteed .5% of the total funding, which totals $2.5 million per state. The program will be run by the Department of Labor and is located within the finance section of the bill.
ACCT sent a letter in support of the education-related provisions within H.R. 4872. The letter can be read at: http://www.acct.org/Miller4872LetterSupport.pdf
A fact sheet from the House Committee on Education and Labor can be read at: http://edlabor.house.gov/documents/111/pdf/publications/20100318StudentAidandFiscalResponsibilityAct.pdf
Read more!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
House Passes Senate Jobs Bill with a Slight Change
Today, the House of Representatives passed the first part of the Senate Jobs bill by a 217-201 vote. Prior to passing the bill, the House Democrats changed the effective date of a provision to provide about $2 billion to cover the cost of the bill. Since the House changed the bill, the Senate will have to consider and pass the bill again. If the Senate passes the bill, it will be sent to President Obama for his signature. Meanwhile, the Senate continues to work on passing the second part of the Senate Jobs bill. The Senate is considering amendments to the bill with the goal of final passage sometime next week.
In other news, the White House has called on Congress to pass health-care reform legislation by March 18th. At this time, it appears that Congress will utilize the budget-reconciliation process to pass portions of health-care reform. This is significant because Congress had also considered using the reconciliation process to pass H.R. 3221, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA); however, the reconciliation process can only be used once per year. SAFRA has been on hold while health-care reform legislation worked its way through Congress. SAFRA would eliminate the Federal Family Education Loan Program and all new federal student loans would be Direct Loans. Most importantly, SAFRA contains the American Graduation Initiative (AGI) which provides almost $10 billion for community colleges. There is an expectation that the Senate’s version of SAFRA will likely contain less funds for AGI because the increased funds necessary to cover the rise in the number of Pell Grant recipients. If the Senate decides to move to accommodate the March 18th timeframe, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will need to introduce and pass their version of SAFRA soon.
The first part of the Senate’s Jobs bill includes:
1) Payroll Tax Exemption: offers an exemption from social security payroll taxes for every worker hired in 2010 that has been unemployed for at least 60 days. There would also be an additional $1,000 income-tax credit for every new employee retained for 52 weeks, to be taken on the employer’s 2011 income tax return. ($13 billion)
2) Section 179 Expensing: helps small businesses grow by allowing them to write off more of their expenditures.
3) Highway Trust Fund Extension: extends existing highway programs, which provides states and localities with the certainty they need to make decisions on projects.
4) Expansion of Build America Bonds: allows state and local governments to borrow at lower costs to finance more infrastructure projects and put people to work. ($2 billion)
The second part of the Senate’s Jobs bill provides unemployment insurance and COBRA health benefits from February 28, 2010 – December 31, 2010. The total package costs $150 billion. Additionally, the bill extends a number of tax credits that have expired, including the qualified tuition deduction, research and development credit, increased funding for state Medicaid programs, and a number of credits aimed at small businesses. This bill does not include funding for an “Education Jobs Fund.”
To view the press release, go to: http://finance.senate.gov/press/Bpress/2010press/prb030110b.pdf Read more!
In other news, the White House has called on Congress to pass health-care reform legislation by March 18th. At this time, it appears that Congress will utilize the budget-reconciliation process to pass portions of health-care reform. This is significant because Congress had also considered using the reconciliation process to pass H.R. 3221, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA); however, the reconciliation process can only be used once per year. SAFRA has been on hold while health-care reform legislation worked its way through Congress. SAFRA would eliminate the Federal Family Education Loan Program and all new federal student loans would be Direct Loans. Most importantly, SAFRA contains the American Graduation Initiative (AGI) which provides almost $10 billion for community colleges. There is an expectation that the Senate’s version of SAFRA will likely contain less funds for AGI because the increased funds necessary to cover the rise in the number of Pell Grant recipients. If the Senate decides to move to accommodate the March 18th timeframe, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will need to introduce and pass their version of SAFRA soon.
The first part of the Senate’s Jobs bill includes:
1) Payroll Tax Exemption: offers an exemption from social security payroll taxes for every worker hired in 2010 that has been unemployed for at least 60 days. There would also be an additional $1,000 income-tax credit for every new employee retained for 52 weeks, to be taken on the employer’s 2011 income tax return. ($13 billion)
2) Section 179 Expensing: helps small businesses grow by allowing them to write off more of their expenditures.
3) Highway Trust Fund Extension: extends existing highway programs, which provides states and localities with the certainty they need to make decisions on projects.
4) Expansion of Build America Bonds: allows state and local governments to borrow at lower costs to finance more infrastructure projects and put people to work. ($2 billion)
The second part of the Senate’s Jobs bill provides unemployment insurance and COBRA health benefits from February 28, 2010 – December 31, 2010. The total package costs $150 billion. Additionally, the bill extends a number of tax credits that have expired, including the qualified tuition deduction, research and development credit, increased funding for state Medicaid programs, and a number of credits aimed at small businesses. This bill does not include funding for an “Education Jobs Fund.”
To view the press release, go to: http://finance.senate.gov/press/Bpress/2010press/prb030110b.pdf Read more!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Senate Jobs Bill Update
Last week, the Senate Democratic leadership introduced a Jobs Bill Agenda (which can be read at http://democrats.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=322107&) that covers a number of areas, including funds for states to shore up funding for education.
The Senate leadership indicated that the Senate will move individual bills that cover a number of areas as opposed to a single jobs bill such as the one passed by the House. Yesterday, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) introduced the first part of a series of bills. The introduced bill would provide $15 billion in tax cuts, with the bulk of the funding intended to help employers hire new employees. With the Congressional recess approaching next week, it is unclear when the Senate will move this bill and other bills that cover parts of the Jobs Bill Agenda. The bill can be viewed at: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?r111:./temp/~r111kLYGMn
Last year, the House of Representatives passed the “Jobs for Main Street Act of 2010” by a 217-212 vote. The act provides $154 billion for a number of programs. Most importantly, $23 billion will be available to states as part of an “Education Jobs Fund” over the next two years. 95% of the funds will be allocated by states to school districts and public institutions of higher education to retain or create jobs that provide educational services and to modernize, renovate, and repair public education facilities.
The bill provides $750 million in competitive grants to train workers for jobs in high-growth fields. The bill also provides $300 million for the Federal Work Study Program.
The summary of the bill can be found here: http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/Jobs_for_Main_Street_Act_of_2010_Summary.pdf.
The bill can be found here: http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/2010_Jobs_For_Main_Street_Bill_Text.pdf. Read more!
The Senate leadership indicated that the Senate will move individual bills that cover a number of areas as opposed to a single jobs bill such as the one passed by the House. Yesterday, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) introduced the first part of a series of bills. The introduced bill would provide $15 billion in tax cuts, with the bulk of the funding intended to help employers hire new employees. With the Congressional recess approaching next week, it is unclear when the Senate will move this bill and other bills that cover parts of the Jobs Bill Agenda. The bill can be viewed at: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?r111:./temp/~r111kLYGMn
Last year, the House of Representatives passed the “Jobs for Main Street Act of 2010” by a 217-212 vote. The act provides $154 billion for a number of programs. Most importantly, $23 billion will be available to states as part of an “Education Jobs Fund” over the next two years. 95% of the funds will be allocated by states to school districts and public institutions of higher education to retain or create jobs that provide educational services and to modernize, renovate, and repair public education facilities.
The bill provides $750 million in competitive grants to train workers for jobs in high-growth fields. The bill also provides $300 million for the Federal Work Study Program.
The summary of the bill can be found here: http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/Jobs_for_Main_Street_Act_of_2010_Summary.pdf.
The bill can be found here: http://appropriations.house.gov/pdf/2010_Jobs_For_Main_Street_Bill_Text.pdf. Read more!
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