On March 21, the AACC government relations team will provide an overview of issues Congress has been discussing in the first three months of 2012 and what is to come. The team will provide up-to-the-moment information on FY 2013 funding for Pell Grants and other key programs, the second round of TAACCCT program grants, workforce legislation, and more.

1. AACC Feder al Legislative Update
Mar ch 21, 2012
AACC Office of Government Relations and Research
David Baime, Senior Vice President
Jim Hermes, Director
Laurie Quarles, Legislative Associate

2. AACC Legislative Update
• Obama Budget Pr oposals
• FY 2013 Budget
• Wor kfor ce Legislation
• TAACCCT Gr ant Pr ogr am
• Cr edit Hour /State Author ization Legislation (HR
2117)
• Depar tment of Defense MOU/Veter ans Legislation

3. The Year Ahead—Much Talk, Less Action
• Budget I ssues Will Again Dominate Agenda
• Acr oss-the-Boar d Sequestr ation is Looming
• Pr esidential/Congr essional Politics—Congr ess
Knows I t’ s Unpopular and Wants Achievements
• Fiscal Conser vatives Remain Fer vid
• Testy “ Endgame” Seems Likely (Final FY 2013
Appr opr iations, Debt Ceiling I ncr ease, Bush Tax
Cuts, Automatic Cuts)

4. Obama Budget
• Significant Emphasis on Higher Education
and Community Colleges in State of Union
• Campaign Dr iving Pr oposals
• Pr oposals Reflected in FY 2013 Budget
• Long Odds for Full Enactment

5. Community College to Car eer Fund
• $8 Billion Over Thr ee Year s
• Four Maj or Components
– Gr ants to community college par tner ships with
businesses, wor kfor ce system, etc.
– Bonus funding to scale up successful pr ogr ams
– Suppor t for states and localities to attr act j obs
back to Amer ica
– Online Entr epr eneur ship Pr ogr ams

6. Obama Higher Education Pr oposals
• Pr oposals Aimed at Higher Education
Refor m/Containing College Costs
• Most Requir e Congr essional Author ization
and/or Funding
• Five Pr incipal Components
– $1 billion Race to the Top for Higher Education
• Modeled after administr ation’ s signatur e K-12
pr ogr am
• State based, focused on public institutions

7. Obama Higher Education Pr oposals
– $55 million Fir st in the Wor ld gr ant pr ogr am
• Competitive gr ants, includes pr ivate institutions
– Modify Campus-Based (Wor k Study, SEOG,
Per kins Loan) Allocations
• For mula changed to r ewar d institutions that hold
down tuition, gr aduate mor e students, pr ovide
“ gr eater value”
– “ College Scor ecar d” to pr ovide students and
families with mor e infor mation.
• I nfor mation to include ear nings and employment
infor mation; mechanics uncer tain

8. Obama Higher Education Pr oposals
– Pr eventing the student loan inter est r ate fr om
incr easing fr om 3.4% to 6.8%
• Rate incr ease scheduled to take effect July 1
• House and Senate bills intr oduced—H.R. 3826, Rep.
Cour tney (D-CT); S. 2051, Sen. Reed (D-RI )
– Making Amer ican Oppor tunity Tax Cr edit
per manent (Expir es 2012) -- Top AACC
Pr ior ity

9. FY 2013 Budget and Appr opr iations
• House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan (R-WI )
unveiled his FY 2013 budget on Mar ch 20
• Caps agency budgets at $1.028 T or $19 B less than cap set
by the Budget Contr ol Act in August
• Calls for significant spending cuts to domestic pr ogr ams,
while r estr uctur ing some entitlement pr ogr ams and
lower ing tax r ates
• I ncludes budget r econciliation language, but not for
education pr ogr ams
• Senate is not expected to pass a budget r esolution

10. FY 2013 Budget and Appr opr iations
AACC Pr ior ities
• Pell Gr ant Pr ogr am – Maintain Discr etionar y
Maximum Gr ant With No Pr ogr am Cuts (Gr ant
incr eases to $5,645)
• Per kins CTE – Pr ovide $1.27 billion
• Title I I I -A, Str engthening I nstitutions – I ncr ease
funding by $16 m, to $100 million
• Adult Education Act – At least cur r ent $595 m
• Wor kfor ce I nvestment Act – Maintain funding

11. Restor ation of ATB Eligibility
• “ Ability to Benefit” (ATB) Students Taken Out of
All Student Aid Pr ogr ams as of 7/1/12
• ATB Students Lack High School Diploma or GED
• Estimates of I mpact on Community College
Students is Appr oximately 40,000 Nation-wide,
Possibly Mor e
• Your I nput (if I mpacted) is Needed

12. Wor kfor ce I nvestment Act
• House Education and Wor kfor ce Committee
Moving For war d with WI A Reauthor ization
– Final Passage This Year Unlikely
• House Republicans Combining Thr ee Bills
into One New Vehicle
– McKeon Bill
– Foxx Consolidation Bill
– Heck Bill

13. WI A Reauthor ization
• House Democr ats Recently I ntr oduced
Their Own WI A Bill
– Hews fair ly close to cur r ent law
– I ncludes author ization for Obama’ s Community
College to Car eer Fund
• Senate WI A Reauthor ization Effor t is
Stymied

14. TAACCCT Pr ogr am
• Second Round Solicitation for Gr ant
Applications on Febr uar y 24, Pr oposals
Due May 24
• Five Cor e Elements, Some New Emphases
• Gr ants Slightly Smaller Than Last Year
• Fiscal Agents fr om Fir st Round Cannot be
Fiscal Agents in Second Round
• Pr ogr am Reasonably Healthy, Politically

15. H.R. 2117
• House-Passed Bill Repeals Dept. of Education
Regulations on Cr edit Hour and State
Author ization
– Sponsor ed by Rep. Foxx, Chair woman of House
Higher Education subcommittee
– Opposed by most Democr ats
– Suppor ted by higher education, including for -
pr ofits
– No pr ospects in Senate

16. DOD MOU/Veter ans Legislation
• AACC and other Higher Education Gr oups
Wor king with Dept. of Defense to Modify MOU
that all I nstitutions Must Sign in or der to
Par ticipate in Tuition Assistance Pr ogr am
– I ssues in or iginal MOU ar ound cr edit tr ansfer
policies, other institutional pr er ogatives
– Deadline for signing MOU or iginally end of
2011, pushed back to Mar ch 31
– Near ing final r evised MOU – many
impr ovements made

17. Veter ans Pr otection Legislation
• Legislation For thcoming to Requir e VA and
I nstitutions to Pr ovide Substantial I nfor mation
about I nstitutions and Pr ogr ams
– Student outcome and other infor mation to
empower veter ans and member s of ar med for ces
to make infor med choices
– Higher education wor king with bill sponsor s to
minimize impact on institutions, make ED
sour ce for most infor mation

18. Contact I nfor mation
• David Baime
– 202-728-0200 x224, dbaime@aacc.nche.edu
• Jim Her mes
– 202-728-0200 x216, j her mes@aacc.nche.edu
• Laur ie Quar les
– 202-728-0200 x249, lquar les@aacc.nche.edu