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ADVOCACY & POLICY UPDATE - October 21, 2024

Biden Announces Student Debt Relief for Public Service Workers


Washington Update


WIOA/House Education and the Workforce Committee 

Congressman Tim Walberg (MI), who lost his bid to lead the House Education and the Workforce Committee nearly two years ago to Congresswoman Virginia Foxx after she secured a rare party waiver for a third term as chair, plans to make another attempt at the committee’s top spot. Walberg feels his experience and tenure of more than a decade on the committee could give him the edge over his newest challenger — Congressman Burgess Owens (UT). Although he isn’t as vocal as other GOP members on the committee, he does tout his designation as Michigan’s most conservative member of Congress, while also emphasizing his ability to be bipartisan and effective — pointing out he is ‘good friends’ with committee ranking member Congressman Bobby Scott (VA).

During her tenure, Foxx’s main focus was education,while a Walberg-led committee would emphasize strengthening the relationship between education and work. Walberg wants to bolster school choice, make college more affordable, boost apprenticeships and internships, pass a bipartisan short-term Pell Grant bill for workforce training programs and reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).


Department of Education/PSLF

On Thursday, October 17, the Biden Administration announced the cancellation of $4.5 billion in student debt for over 60,000 borrowers through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) programing. The debt relief is the result of adjustments and improvements the administration has made to the PSLF program. In total, the Biden-Harris Administration has approved $175 billion in student debt relief for nearly 5 million borrowers through various actions. President Biden’s student debt agenda has repeatedly faced legal challenges by Republicans. 

Click here to read the press release.


U.S. Department of Labor Subpoena

On Wednesday, October 18, House Education and the Workforce Chair Virginia Foxx (NC) sent a letter to U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Acting Secretary Julie Su asserting that her agency’s recent response to the Committee’s subpoena requests seeking information on DOL’s efforts to regulate independent contractors effectively amounted to a failure to comply.

Foxx gave DOL until October 30 to provide the committee with materials addressing the questions outlined in its subpoena from last month. 

Click here to access the letter.


Potential Department of Labor Leadership

Predictions are already underway on who might lead the U.S. Department of Labor following the November  elections, as Acting Secretary Julie Su’s status as a non-confirmed agency head means Republicans are likely to vote down her nomination to lead the agency should Vice President Kamala Harris win. A Trump win would mean he could potentially take the Department in a pro-business direction, and if Harris wins she could tap Senator Laphonza Butler (CA) — whose past experience includes being a former leader at the Service Employee International Union (SEIU). Also potentially in the running is Maryland Department of Labor Secretary Portia Wu, who built her national profile by standing up a paid leave system for workers impacted by the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. Wu also worked in the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) at DOL under Obama.

Trump might appoint Patrick Pizzella, a pro-business figure who previously served as DOL’s deputy Labor Secretary should he return to the White House. He could also select Virginia Labor Secretary Bryan Slater, who served as a labor liaison in the Bush administration and also worked in Trump’s Transportation Department.


House Education and the Workforce Committee

On Tuesday, October 15, House Education and the Workforce Chair Virginia Foxx (NC) and Congressman Aaron Bean sent a letter to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona opposing proposed revisions to the department’s collection of data on student participation in career and technical education (CTE), the use of Perkins V funds for those programs, and accountability measures for state-determined performance levels under the federal law. The letter expressed concerns that the revisions will place major burdens on state education and related agencies, school districts, and postsecondary institutions that implement CTE programs. 

The Department’s proposal would amend the State Plan Guide that dictates what must be included in each state’s Perkins V plan and the report that states submit each year, and could also require every state to submit a new Perkins V plan by the spring of 2026 and make changes to the structure of measures within their Perkins accountability system. Foxx and Bean argue that requiring a new plan before fiscal year 2026 “will effectively push Perkins V out of alignment with the four-year planning cycle in the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act,” and it will impose new burdens for states that want to align their CTE initiatives with other programs under WIOA. The letter concludes by urging the Department to withdraw the proposed revisions.


Click here to access the full letter.


Mental Health

On Thursday, October 17, the Biden Administration announced an additional investment of $70 million to expand student access to school-based mental health services across the nation. The investment will allow more institutions and schools to train and hire mental health professionals, especially in underserved communities. These grants are expected to help train and hire an additional 4,000 mental health professionals across the country.

Click here to access the press release.


SNAP

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released an assessment, as requested by House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (TX), that said an increase in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits in 2021 has likely resulted in fewer people working. The increase three years ago in the value of the Thrifty Food Plan, which increased SNAP benefits, also increased transfer income people receive when not working. SNAP assistance “reduces the incentive to work,” CBO Director Phillip Swagel wrote to Arrington.

Click here to access the assessment.


USCM WDC Fall Meeting Highlights

On September 12th and 13th, the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) Workforce Development Council (WDC) held its 2024 Fall Board Meeting & Peer Best Practice Forum in Las Vegas, NV. Current USCM WDC President Jaime Cruz hosted the group for the two-day meeting. 

Click here to access the highlights video of the 2024 USCM WDC meeting in Las Vegas.


Initial Jobless Claims

In the week ending October 12, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 241,000, a decrease of 19,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 258,000 to 260,000. The 4-week moving average was 236,250, an increase of 4,750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 500 from 231,000 to 231,500. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2 percent for the week ending October 5, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate.

Click here to access the report.


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