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• The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) declined to appeal a court-ordered injunction prohibiting its unlawful presence policy, thereby preventing the agency from enforcing it. The rule would have barred international students from entering the country for up to 10 years for any unknowing visa violation.
• Dr. Kerri Dugan has been appointed acting director of the Biological Technologies Office at DARPA; she has served as deputy director since August 2019. Dugan replaces Brad Ringeisen, who is leaving the agency after four years in the director role.
• DHS announced the creation of a China Working Group to better counter security threats from the Chinese government. The group will focus on implementing the Administration's visa restrictions for certain Chinese nationals, among other issues.

2020 CAMPAIGN: SCIENCE PROPOSALS

With the 2020 Presidential election less than 100 days away, BU Federal Relations presents a primer on the research policy proposals put forth by President Donald J. Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden.

• Federal Research Spending: Trump has proposed deep cuts to federal research agencies in each of his annual budget requests. Biden would create a $300 billion innovation fund for extramural research and research infrastructure through the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, and DARPA.
• Research Priorities: The Trump Administration's Industries of the Future initiative focuses on the development of artificial intelligence, quantum information sciences, advanced communications, biotechnology, and advanced manufacturing. Biden proposes targeted research and development programs in 5G, artificial intelligence, advanced materials, biotechnology, and clean vehicles.
• Biomedical Research: Biden would would create a new Advanced Research Projects Agency - Health, and direct significant investment in cancer research. The Trump Administration has prioritized its Childhood Cancer Data Initiative, opioid addiction, and the development of an influenza vaccine.

GRANTS NEWS YOU CAN USE

The Climate Programs Office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released six fiscal year 2021 competitions:

• Emissions, Air Quality, and Heat in Urban Areas
• Atmospheric impacts due to changes in anthropogenic activity during the COVID-19 pandemic
• New Climate Monitoring Approaches and Products for Areas of Climate Risk
• Process-Oriented Diagnostics for Climate Model Improvement and Applications
• Innovative Ocean Dataset/Product Analysis and Development for Support of the NOAA Observing and Climate Modeling Communities,
• Advancing Climate Adaptation and Coastal Community Resilience

Letters of intent are due by August 17, and full proposals for five of the competitions are due by November 30.

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A Note to Our Readers: Due to the Congressional District Work Period, Beltway BUzz will be on hiatus for the rest of August. Should a deal be reached on a new pandemic relief bill, we will resume publication and post updates on our web site in order to bring you the details.

Next COVID-19 Relief Package Remains in Limbo

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Dorothy Robyn of the Institute for Sustainable Energy moderated a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine workshop on enhancing federal clean energy investments on July 29.

NEXT COVID-19 RELIEF PACKAGE REMAINS IN LIMBO

On Monday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) introduced the HEALS Act, a proposed fifth COVID-19 relief bill from Congress. The proposal would provide $29 billion for student aid and colleges; $15.5 billion for the National Institutes of Health for recovering lost research productivity, bolstering training grants, and conducting COVID-19 research; an expanded employee retention tax credit for employers; and a temporary liability shield for universities. Senate Republicans, Congressional Democrats, and the Trump Administration all quickly criticized the proposal, which would need to be reconciled with the HEROES Act passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May. With the unemployment benefits provided in this spring's CARES Act set to expire, the pressure is on for Congress to act on COVID-19 relief prior to a planned August recess.

Read the Senate proposal

BUZZ BITS...

• The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Tuesday that it will no longer accept new applications for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program and will only renew existing approvals for one year, rather than the current two-year period. Lawsuits are likely to be filed against the new policy, which follows a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court in June that the Trump Administration improperly terminated DACA.
• The National Institutes of Health has named Dr. Michael Chiang as the next director of the National Eye Institute (NEI). Dr. Chiang, who is currently a professor at Oregon Health & Science University, is expected to join NEI in late 2020.
• The U.S. Department of Energy released a blueprint on how to build a national quantum internet. The roadmap lays out research and development priorities for ensuring that the U.S. remains competitive in developing quantum computing technologies.

2020 CAMPAIGN: EDUCATION PROPOSALS

With the 2020 Presidential election less than 100 days away, BU Federal Relations presents a primer on the higher education proposals put forth by President Donald J. Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden. 

• Affordability: Trump has proposed deep cuts to federal student financial aid programs in his annual budget requests. Biden would make two years of community college debt-free for all and make public colleges tuition-free for families making less than $125,000.
• Pell Grants: Trump has proposed expanding Pell eligibility to students in "short-term programs that provide... a credential, certification, or license in an in-demand field." Biden proposes doubling the maximum individual Pell Grant award and expanding eligibility to formerly incarcerated students and Dreamers.
• Student debt: Biden would lower student loan payments to five percent of discretionary income over $25,000, and forgive the remainder of student debt after 20 years of payments. Trump also supports an income-driven payment plan, capping payment at 12.5% of income and providing forgiveness after 15 years for undergraduate loans and 20 years for graduate loans.

Defense Policy Bill Moves Through Congress

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Tuhina Neogi of the School of Medicine and the School of Public Health participated in an Axios briefing on the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on chronic pain on July 22.

DEFENSE POLICY BILL MOVES THROUGH CONGRESS

This week, both chambers of Congress passed their respective versions of the National Defense Authorization Act, an annual bill that sets policy for the U.S. Department of Defense. The bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives includes a provision championed by Representatives Ayanna Pressley (D) and Seth Moulton (D) of Massachusetts that ensures international students can enter and remain in the U.S. for the duration of the COVID-19 public health emergency, regardless of their college's instruction modality. The bill also would support defense research programs, create a special immigration category for individuals who plan to join the defense workforce, and establish a traineeship program to grow domestic science talent. The two chambers will work to negotiate a final bill this fall.

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BUZZ BITS...

• The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Wednesday on "Protecting the Integrity of College Athletics." Witnesses discussed issues ranging from athletes' "name, image, and likeness" rights to betting on college sports, and Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-SC) indicated he would like to introduce a bipartisan bill by September 15.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has selected Dr. Parag Chitnis to serve as acting director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), the USDA's research arm. Dr. Chitnis is a biologist who worked at the National Science Foundation prior to joining NIFA in 2014.
• The U.S. Senate confirmed Russell Vought as the next director of the White House Office of Management and Budget. Mr. Vought has led the agency, which oversees all federal budgets, in an interim capacity for over a year.

DOE SEEKING FEEDBACK ON ENERGY STORAGE

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued a request for information on its recently released draft roadmap for its Energy Storage Grand Challenge. The agency is seeking feedback on five roadmap tracks: technology development, manufacturing and supply chain, technology transition, policy and valuation, and workforce development. DOE has also identified six use cases to use as a framework, including: facilitating an evolving grid; serving remote communities; electrified mobility; interdependent network infrastructure; critical services; and facility flexibility, efficiency, and value enhancement. Responses may be used to help shape future funding opportunities in this area, and will be accepted through August 21. 

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Administration Rescinds International Student Rule

ADMINISTRATION RESCINDS INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RULE

In response to multiple lawsuits and bipartisan opposition, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement withdrew a proposal on Tuesday that would have required international students whose institutions offer exclusively online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic to leave the U.S. The agency will instead continue to follow their March guidance that permitted significant flexibility for international students while the pandemic continues. Boston University joined a chorus of universities and policymakers celebrating the reversal, while advocating for clarity on how the March guidance will apply to students who are not currently present in the United States.

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COMMITTEE PASSES RESEARCH, STUDENT AID INCREASES

While Congress continues to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic, the House Appropriations Committee recently started the annual Congressional budget process by passing several spending bills that would increase research and student aid spending over their current levels in fiscal year 2021. The Committee-passed bills would provide:

• National Institutes of Health: $47 billion, a 13% increase
• National Science Foundation: $8.5 billion, a 3.3% increase
• NASA Science: $7.1 billion, a 0.6% decrease
• Department of Defense Basic Research: $2.62 billion, a 0.7% increase
• DARPA: $3.5 billion, a 1.5% increase
• Department of Energy Office of Science: $7.05 billion, a 0.7% increase
• Pell Grants: $6,495 maximum award, a 2.4% increase
• Federal Work Study: $1.2 billion, a 2.5% increase
• National Endowments for the Arts and the Humanities: $170 million each, a 4.8% increase

Since the Senate has not begun work on its annual spending bills, it is likely that a continuing resolution to fund federal agencies past the end of the current fiscal year on September 30th will be needed.

BUZZ BITS...

• On Wednesday, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal (D-MA) called on the U.S. Treasury Department to reject President Donald J. Trump's "unlawful" proposal to take away the tax-exempt status of universities and schools the President believes engage in "Radical Left Indoctrination."
• On Monday, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) designated Michael Kratsios as the acting DOD undersecretary for research and engineering. Mr. Kratsios is currently the chief technology officer of the United States, and previously worked in Silicon Valley.
• The U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced last week that Kenneth Marcus, the leader of ED's Office of Civil Rights, will depart at the end of July. Mr. Marcus led the agency's overhaul of campus sexual misconduct rules and changes to the Department's definition of anti-Semitism. Kimberly Richey will oversee the Office in an interim capacity.