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 NIRSA 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 Government News

  • President Biden releases a $6 trillion budget request to Congress
  • The US Department of Education announced their FY2022 spending proposal asking for $102.8 billion
  • US Department of Education announces establishment of federal college financial aid negotiated rulemaking committees
  • US Department of Education’s Office of Postsecondary Education is hosting public hearings on potential changes to financial aid related rules
  • Title IX does not conflict with federal student privacy law according to new analysis conducted by Congressional Research Service (CRS)
  • The Biden Administration announces plans to rewrite a wide range of federal college rules according to POLITICO
  • US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights’ activities this year summarized in article by acting assistant secretary
  • Senate strikes deal on short-term PELL Grants reported by POLITICO

Federal Legislation

  • College funding for Student Veteran Centers bill (HR 3586) introduced
  • College hazing reporting bill, the End All Hazing Act (S 775), gains 2 new cosponsors
  • School student mental health behavioral intervention programs implementation bill, the BIG Act (S 1383), gains a new cosponsor
  • College Athlete Right to Organize Act (S 1929) introduced
  • Institutional Grants for New Infrastructure, Technology, and Education (IGNITE) for HBCU Excellence Act (S 1945) introduced

State and Local Government News

California

  • California college athlete endorsement name, image, and likeness (NIL) compensation bill unanimously passes the state senate and sent to the state assembly

Florida

  • Florida school and colleges sports participation by birth gender amendment added to a charter school bill and signed into law

Iowa

  • Iowa college tenure prohibiting bill fails to pass the legislature before the session ends
  • Iowa school and college first amendment rights bill signed into law

Maryland

  • Maryland college student identification cards crisis information requiring bill signed into law

Montana

  • Montana college campus gun law blocked by state judge

Nevada

  • Nevada student athlete agent bill signed into law

New Jersey

  • New Jersey student IDs to contain suicide prevention hotline bill amended in the state assembly and awaiting amendment approval by the state senate

Ohio

  • Ohio college athlete compensation bill introduced

Oregon

  • Oregon college course material cost transparency bill passes legislature, now before governor
  • Oregon college student government autonomy bill relating to incidental fees passes legislature, now before governor

Texas

  • Texas school and college IDs with National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number bill fails to pass the legislature before the regular session ends
  • Texas school and college IDs with National Suicide Prevention Lifeline number bill passes the state legislature and sent to the governor
  • Texas college athlete compensation NIL bill passes legislature, now before governor
  • Texas college mental health task force bill fails to pass the legislature before the regular session ends

West Virginia

  • West Virginia school and college sports participation by birth sex bill signed into law

Wisconsin

  • Wisconsin college sports participation by biological sex bills have hearing

Other News

  • COVID-19 vaccination policy at Indiana University is concerning Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita and other state house Republicans according to The Statehouse File
  • Free college for Rhode Island is slowly becoming a reality according to Higher Ed Dive
  • Public college state spending has not returned to pre-2007 recession levels according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO)
  • College funding directly impacts student success study conducted by the State Higher Education Executive Officer Association (SHEEO)
  • College virtual campus tours are becoming more popular according to educational technology company EAB
  • Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) risk in collision sports not linked to player’s position according to a recent study out of Canada
  • Transgender athletes should play on teams that match their sex assigned at birth according to most Americans per a Gallup survey
  • Transgender athletes competing in track and field races opinion piece by USA Today
  • Sexual misconduct allegations from six different women against one Louisiana college student, yet no one connected the dots according to USA TODAY
  • Title IX office at Eastern Michigan University accused of covering up pattern of student rapes according to lawsuit
  • Transgender athlete banning from participating in sports teams legislation gaining support in several states

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.

  • For more information, please contact NIRSA Director of Advocacy & Strategic Partnerships Erin O’Sullivan.
Headshot of Erin O'Sullivan
Director of Advocacy & Strategic Partnerships at | NIRSA Profile

Erin O'Sullivan is currently the Director of Advocacy & Strategic Partnerships at NIRSA.