Federal and state policy and legislative updates

NIRSA’s Government Affairs Committee stays up-to-date on the latest federal and state policy and legislative news through a variety of scanning tools. One particular resource they use is the bi-weekly Policy Pages provided by Active Policy Solutions. (For more on partnership, along with other SAHEC associations, have with Active Policy Solutions, see below.)

The policy issues included in the Policy Pages document are highlights of a point in time. They are by no means exhaustive and change continually – so matters discussed in the last issue normally will not carry over to the next unless there is some updated action to be discussed.

The Committee encourages NIRSA members to keep themselves informed on federal and state policy issues affecting their work as professionals on campuses. These issues could be specific to higher education, physical activity, or NIRSA’s strategic value areas. If you have an issue that is of concern to your campus, reach out the Government Affairs Committee.

Policy Page documents will be stored, as a resource for NRISA members, in the NIRSA Connect Community library. You can find them within the “Member Benefits” folder in a subfolder titled “Federal and State Policy Pages.”

In this issue:

Government Updates

Federal Education

• College rankings publication draws complaints from Education Secretary Cardona reports The Washington Post
• College professor sues in federal court to stop student’s preferred pronoun use in classroom according to The College Fix

Federal Legislation

• Abortion travel funding prohibition bill “No Federal Funds for Abortion Travel Expenses Act” (HR 8776) introduced
• Foster and homeless youth college recognition bill “Fostering Postsecondary Success for Foster and Homeless Youth Act” (S 4795) introduced
• College hazing reporting bill, “Report and Educate about Campus Hazing Act” (HR 2525/S 744), awaits committee consideration and receives news coverage

Other Federal News

• LGBTQ+ college student group support at Yeshiva University temporarily stopped by US Supreme Court according to The Week

State and Local Government

California

• California college sorority and fraternity recognition policy setting bill, the “Campus-Affiliated Sorority and Fraternity Transparency Act,” passes the state legislature and sent to the governor
• California mental health crisis hotline implementing bill passes the state legislature and sent to the governor

Michigan

• Michigan abortion ban from 1931 declared unconstitutional by state judge reports The Hill

North Carolina

• North Carolina to provide updated COVID-19 vaccine boosters to everyone age 12 years and older according to NCDHHS press release

Funding

• CDC announces 6 additional Comprehensive Suicide Prevention program funding awards

Education

• College students with family income up to $100K will be able to receive full tuition and housing aid from Princeton University reports The Hill
• College transfer enrollments continued to decline during 2021-22 academic year according to Inside Higher Ed
• Flagship universities’ enrollment by out-of-state college students increases according to Inside Higher Ed5 Graduate school students with disabilities’ online resources subject of article from the National Center for Educational Statistics
• High school students want to attend diverse colleges according to survey results from Inside Higher Ed

Health & Wellness

• College students uncertain over access to reproductive care as they return to campus reports PBS
• College campuses COVID-19 case numbers rise as new semester begins according to Inside Higher Ed
• College student health immunization practices subject of report from the American College Health Foundation

About NIRSA’s partnership with Active Policy Solutions

As an association, NIRSA strives to monitor and track policy and legislative issues with the potential to impact our members or the campus communities they serve. These issues are wide ranging and may pertain to higher education, employment law, physical fitness, or our strategic values areas.

NIRSA has joined with a subset of SAHEC members (ACUHO-I, ACPA, ASCA, NASPA, and NIRSA) in hiring Active Policy Solutions to assist with monitoring, tracking, analyzing, and determining appropriate action on issues relevant to our associations. Through our partnership with SAHEC, NIRSA continues to monitor policy, legislation, and advocacy work that affects both the higher education and physical activity space. Active Policy Solutions provides government relations and advocacy support to NIRSA and the Association’s SAHEC partners.