A quick look back at the news from last week. Compiled by Penn Hill Group

Note: The next “Washington Wrap Up” will be sent on Wednesday, December 22. There will be no “Washington Wrap Up on Friday, December 24, 2021, or Friday, December 31, 2021, due to the Christmas and New Year’s holiday. The “Washington Wrap Up” schedule will resume as normal after the first of the year.

HOUSE and SENATE

The U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee released updated bill text for the Build Back Better Act.

By a vote of 89-10, the Senate passed the version of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) previously approved by the U.S. House of Representatives.

ADMINISTRATION

President Joe Biden signed a bill raising the national debt limit by $2.5 trillion after the Senate passed the measure this week.

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced that it plans to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking on Title IX in April 2022.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that the Biden Administration is providing $1.5 billion to help school meal program operators navigate existing supply chain disruptions.

ED published a notice in the Federal register for comment on its 2021-2022 Civil Rights Data Collection effort after last week’s announcement that it would be replacing previously published documents on this topic.

ED published a notice in the Federal register seeking comment on accrediting agencies currently under review for the purposes of recognition.

ED completed the third and final session of its negotiated rulemaking effort on Affordability and Student Loans.

U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona issued a letter on schools’ ability to use American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds to address teacher shortages.

Secretary Cardona issued a statement on the release of National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) data on mode of instruction and school response to COVID-19.

GRANT OPPORTUNITIES

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