Here’s a quick look at the news from last week (April 29 – May 3) in Washington.

SENATE
The Senate was in recess last week.

On May 9 at 9:30 a.m., the Senate Judiciary Committee will begin to mark up the immigration bill released by the Gang of 8. The bill includes several education-related provisions such as the DREAM Act, STEM education funding, English language skills and education visa requirements. Politico reports that subsequent markup dates have been scheduled on May 14, May 16, and May 20, due to the many amendments the Chairman expects to be filed. All amendments must be filed by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 7, and the amendments will be posted online.

The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will vote on the nomination of Secretary of Labor-Designate Thomas E. Perez on May 8 at 10:00 a.m.

HOUSE
The House was in recess last week.

A group of House Republicans, including Labor/HHS/Education Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Jack Kingston, sent a letter to Education Secretary Arne Duncan last week, expressing concern with the Department’s No Child Left Behind waiver process, and the Department’s practice of tying Race to the Top funds to states’ implementation of the Common Core State Standards.  The letter further expresses concern about the Department’s regulatory changes to the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) in 2011 and the connection between the common core and the implementation of the Statewide Data Systems program. The letter urged the Secretary to work with Congress on a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education.

The House Education and Workforce Committee will hold a full committee hearing  titled “Raising the Bar: Exploring State and Local Efforts to Improve Accountability” on May 7 at 10:00 a.m. Witnesses include the Louisiana State Superintendent of Schools, a district superintendent from MN, the CEO of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, and the Chief Development Officer of EdisonLearning.

ADMINISTRATION
The U.S. Department of Education announced the beginning of the Investing in Innovation competition for scale-up and validation grants. Applications are due July 2, 2013.

The Department of Education announced recalculated sequester related reductions for the amount of aid students would receive under TEACH grants (7.1%) and Iraq/Afganistan Service Grants (10%) for this award year and next award year.

GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
Penn Hill Group provides a weekly list of grant opportunities, and summaries for select grants. Please visit our website for more information.