The 114th Congress has officially kicked off!
The week was dominated by swearing-in events, but there is already a lot of legislative activity underway, with the House authorizing the Keystone Pipeline and tweaking the Affordable Care Act. This week, the House unanimously passed a bill that incentivizes hiring veterans sponsored by Illinois Rep. Rodney Davis.
With Sen. Reid injured, Senator Dick Durbin served as de-facto Minority Leader in the upper chamber.
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Out the Gate: Higher Ed Bills
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The new chairman of the Senate education committee—Senator Lamar Alexander—has already introduced some bills that will set the stage for conversations surrounding the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA).
Along with a bipartisan group of Senators, Chairman Alexander re-introduced the six-part Financial Aid Simplification and Transparency (FAST) Act, which made its first debut last June. Among other provisions, the FAST Act would scrap the FAFSA's current form and replace it with a postcard consisting of only two questions for student applicants: family size and household income two years prior.
Chairman Alexander's name was also on another bill that was re-filed this week—the REPAY Act—which would reform federal student loan repayment programs. It calls for consolidating existing repayment programs into two plans: a 10-year fixed repayment plan, and a single, simplified income-driven repayment option.
The first big ticket item on the Committee's agenda will be reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, but the Committee hopes to turn to HEA by late spring.
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Killeen off to Fast Start in DC
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UI President Robert Easter and President-elect Timothy Killeen were in DC to introduce Dr. Killeen to lawmakers and our national higher ed associations. The meetings provided Dr. Killeen with an opportunity to describe his vision for public higher education as an engine for prosperity and economic growth that can build human capital to solve the grand challenges facing Illinois, the nation and the world.
They met with both newly elected and returning Members of the Illinois delegation. Killeen sat down with Senator Dick Durbin, where they discussed Sen. Durbin's commitment to scientific research and potential ways UI can mentor students to achieve higher completion rates. Sen. Durbin applauded UI's tuition freeze announcement in a press release. Killeen met with Rep. Cheri Bustos, where they discussed strategies for economic development in her sprawling congressional district. In a meeting with Rep. Dan Lipinski, Killeen, a former Assistant Director at the National Science Foundation, discussed ways to help the NSF's iCORPS program and stave off budget sequestration.
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Killeen met with Senator Mark Kirk, where they strategized how they could collaborate with Gov.-elect Rauner to keep UI at the forefront of research and innovation. Sen. Kirk tweetedout a photo of their meeting. They also had a chance to visit with Reps. Rodney Davis, John Shimkus and newly elected Mike Bost.
Additionally, Easter and Killeen met with the President of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU),Peter McPherson.
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IL Delegation Signals Support for EDA i6 Challenge Proposal
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An Illinois Regional Proof-of-Concept Network grant proposal for the EDA i6 Challenge—for which UIC and Urbana are core partners—received strong bipartisan support from the Illinois Congressional delegation this week. Reps. Hultgren and Lipinski led a bipartisan support letter to Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker that was signed by Reps. Schock, Kinzinger, Schakowsky, Foster, Bost, Rodney Davis, Duckworth, and Bustos. If successful, the project would provide proof of concept funding to help strengthen the ability of U of I startup companies to bridge the "valley of death" between discovery and commercialization. The effort—spearheaded by the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition and implemented by IllinoisVENTURES—is supported by more than 40 research institutions, companies, and regional economic development organizations in the State of Illinois. Senators Durbin and Kirk are working on a similar letter.
Click here to read Rep. Hultgren's press release.
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Kelly to Chair Health Task Force
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Rep. Robin Kelly has been selected to serve as Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus' Health Braintrust—the Caucus' principal health care advisory task force. As Chair, Rep. Kelly will play a key role in the Caucus' efforts to reduce health disparities—a priority for UI Health. Illinois Reps. Danny Davis and Rep. Bobby Rush also serve on the Caucus.
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UI Leadership to Obama Library: We Want You, We Really Want You
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After news reports cast doubt last week on whether leadership transitions diminished UI's commitment to host the Obama Presidential Library, system and campus leadership moved swiftly to address those concerns, both privately and publicly, and reaffirm UIC's unwavering commitment. Click here to read the recent joint statement released by President Easter and President-elect Killeen.
In a statement to the Chicago Sun-Times, Marty Nesbitt, the Foundation's chair said: “UIC has worked to address any concerns around their proposal. We also believe Mayor Emanuel’s leadership on the City’s effort to work with the two Chicago schools and engage the community is a similarly positive step as the Foundation moves toward a recommendation.”
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Thank you,
Jon Pyatt and Melissa Haas | OGR Federal Relations
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