Dear Colleagues:

Last week, NAICU wrapped up its three-part “Regulatory Gauntlet” series of webinars focused on the thousands of pages of regulatory guidance issued by the Biden Administration during the past few months.  These regulations will affect every corner of your campus.
Broadly, the three webinars covered:

• Financial value transparency and gainful employment regulations;
• A myriad of additional accountability regulations; and
• The Department of Education’s rationale behind the new regulations and the goals it hopes to achieve as a result.

The three webinar recordings, presentation slides, and other supporting materials can be found on our Advocacy Resources page (log-in required; please email Galen@NAICU.edu if you have problems logging in).  NAICU’s government relations team also created regulatory summaries for both sets of regulations:

• Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment (released on Sept. 30) - NAICU regulatory summary
• Accountability regulations (released on Oct. 24) - NAICU regulatory summary

Finally, NAICU members posed more than two-dozen questions during the most recent webinar with the Department.  Though we were not able to ask each question during the webinar, the Department was gracious enough to answer the unasked questions for us this week.  Here is a transcript of all the questions that were submitted during the webinar.
This week’s Washington Update reports on how three NAICU member presidents are dealing with the FAFSA delay and several efforts in Congress to expand the scope of the private college endowment tax.

Soundbites

• This week, the Department of Education discreetly announced a soft launch of the 2024-25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). This soft launch, anticipated to start shortly prior to the December 31 release date required by law, will allow the Department to monitor the website’s performance, perform planned maintenance, and make necessary updates to improve the user experience of the application. Due to the downtime for this maintenance to occur, the Department is recommending that most applicants delay visiting the website to fill out the FAFSA until January.
• Republicans on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce sent a letter to Secretary Miguel Cardona criticizing the Department of Education’s decision to delay Title VI rules on national origin discrimination and antisemitism for another year. According to the letter, the Department’s “inaction on necessary and defensible rulemaking has left institutions of higher education and schools unprepared for and unwilling to address the fires of antisemitism that have swept campuses this fall.”
• The Department’s previously announced plan to issue guidance on third-party servicers (TPSs) at the beginning of 2024 has been delayed. In a court case involving a challenge to the controversial TPS guidance that was issued and subsequently suspended earlier this year, the Department recently provided a status report to the court indicating that the updated guidance would not be issued within the next 90 days.
• The Department of Treasury held a listening session on the clean energy tax credits created in the Inflation Reduction Act.  Most institutions of higher education are eligible to seek tax credits for clean energy projects under the direct pay provision of the act. Under this provision, if an institution of higher education makes an investment that meets the requirements of one of twelve applicable tax credits, it can receive a direct payment equal to the tax credit it would receive if it were a for-profit taxpayer. More details about direct pay can be found on the IRS’s elective pay and transferability website.

This is our last edition of Washington Update for 2023.  We will be on a two-week break until Congress returns.  Our next issue will be on January 12, 2024.  If breaking news occurs during this time, I will be sure to keep you informed and updated as necessary.

It was a very chaotic end to the year here in Washington as it relates to higher education policies and regulations.  I am extremely proud of the way NAICU members stepped up to advocate for their students, institutions, and our entire sector.  We will need to hold on to that enthusiasm and determination as we hit the ground running in the new year.  Thank you for all you do on behalf of independent higher education.

I wish you, your family, and your campus community a very happy holiday season and a safe and happy New Year!  I look forward to seeing you in 2024!