Compliance Alert – April 2023
- April 26th, 2023
- in Newsletter
Legislative Updates
HB7 Relating to education; to provide prohibitions on the promotion, endorsement, and affirmation of certain divisive concepts in certain public settings; and to authorize certain penalties for violation.
HB261 Relating to two-year and four-year public institutions of higher education; to amend Section 16-1-52, Code of Alabama 1975, to prohibit a biological male from participating on an athletic team or sport designated for females; to prohibit a biological female from participating on an athletic team or sport designated for males; to prohibit adverse action against a public K-12 school or public two-year or four-year institution of higher education for complying with this act; to prohibit adverse action or retaliation against a student who reports a violation of this act; and to provide a remedy for any student who suffers harm as a result of a violation of this act.
HB152 Relating to public institutions of higher education; to add Section 16-22-1.1 to the Code of Alabama 1975; to authorize public institutions of higher education that employ campus police officers to also employ reserve police officers; and to specify the qualifications and duties of reserve campus police officers.
SB176 To create the Students Right to Know Act of 2023; to require the Alabama Commission on Higher Education to collect data and create an interactive online tool for students for use in making informed decisions relating to education and professions; and to require the commission and Workforce Division of the Department of Commerce to share data and information as necessary to comply with this act.
HB265 Relating to state holidays; to amend Section 1-3-8, Code of Alabama 1975, to add Juneteenth as a state holiday; and to delete duplicative language and make non-substantive, technical revisions to update the existing code language to current style.
HB27 Relating to state holidays; to amend Section 1-3-8, Code of Alabama 1975, to remove Jefferson Davis’ birthday and add State Employee Appreciation Day as a state holiday; and to delete duplicative language and make non-substantive, technical revisions to update the existing code language to current style.
SB87 To make supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2023, from the Education Trust Fund to various agencies and entities a total amount of $2,787,667,309.
Final Rules
Procedures for the Handling of Retaliation Complaints Under the Taxpayer First Act (TFA)
On March 7, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) of the U.S. Department of Labor (Department) issued an interim final rule (IFR) that provided procedures for the Department’s processing of complaints under the employee protection (retaliation or whistleblower) provisions of Section 7623(d) of the Taxpayer First Act (TFA or Act). The IFR established procedures and time frames for the handling of retaliation complaints under TFA, including procedures and time frames for employee complaints to OSHA, investigations by OSHA, appeals of OSHA determinations to an administrative law judge (ALJ) for a hearing de novo, hearings by ALJs, review of ALJ decisions by the Administrative Review Board (ARB) (acting on behalf of the Secretary of Labor) and judicial review of the Secretary’s final decision. It also set forth the Department’s interpretations of the TFA whistleblower provisions on certain matters. This final rule adopts the IFR with one technical change.
Federal Agency: Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Labor
Affected Area: HR, Legal
Rights to Federally Funded Inventions and Licensing of Government Owned Inventions
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announces revisions to regulations in order to make several technical corrections; reorganize certain subsections; remove outdated and/or unnecessary sections; institute a reporting requirement on federal agencies; and provide clarifications on definitions, communications, process for exercising march-in rights, filing of provisional patent applications, electronic filing of Bayh-Dole related reporting, the purpose of royalties on licenses from the Federal Government, and the processes for granting exclusive, co-exclusive, and partially exclusive licenses and for appeals. NIST has not adopted in this final rule a provision in the proposed rule regarding exercising march-in rights on the sole basis of product pricing. Instead, NIST intends to engage with stakeholders and agencies with the goal of developing a comprehensive framework for agencies considering the use of march-in provisions.
Federal Agency: National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), United States Department of Commerce
Affected Area: ORED, Legal
Proposed Rules
The Secretary proposes to amend the regulations that govern the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) Fellowship Program and the Faculty Research Abroad (FRA) Fellowship Program. The proposed changes would revise language proficiency qualifications for DDRA and FRA applicants and clarify the Secretary’s discretionary use of eligibility criteria.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Capstone International
Negotiated Rulemaking Committee; Public Hearings
We announce our intention to establish one or more negotiated rulemaking committee(s), which may include a subcommittee, to prepare proposed regulations for the Federal Student Aid programs authorized under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). The committee will include representatives of organizations or groups with interests that are significantly affected by the subject matter of the proposed regulations. We also announce three public hearings at which interested parties may comment on the topics suggested by the Department and may suggest additional topics that we should consider for action by the negotiating committee. In addition, we announce that the Department will accept written comments on the topics suggested by the Department and suggestions for additional topics that we should consider for action by the negotiating committee.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) proposes to amend its regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) to set out a standard that would govern a recipient’s adoption or application of sex-related criteria that would limit or deny a student’s eligibility to participate on a male or female athletic team consistent with their gender identity. The proposed regulation would clarify Title IX’s application to such sex-related criteria and the obligation of schools and other recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Department (referred to below as “recipients” or “schools”) that adopt or apply such criteria to do so consistent with Title IX’s nondiscrimination mandate.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Title IX, Athletics
Comments Due: 5/15/2023
Notices
This new collection will be used to gather information available to participating institutions of higher education (IHE) which is required to fully calculate eligibility for title IV student financial aid for applicants under the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). The FAFSA Simplification Act (Pub. L. 116-260) introduced a change to the manner in which the Department of Education (ED) may obtain the amount of income an applicant has earned from work under the Federal Work Study (FWS) Program, for the purposes of calculating the applicant’s student aid index (SAI) and determine their eligibility for certain Title IV aid. Pursuant to section 483(a)(2)(F) of the FAFSA Simplification Act, ED is required to collect an applicant’s income earned under the FWS program from the IHE participating in the FWS program and can no longer add additional questions to the FAFSA to obtain this information from the FAFSA applicant.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
Agency Information Collection Activities; Occupational Exposure to Noise Standard (29 CFR 1910.95)
The purpose of the Occupational Noise Standard and its information collection requirements are to provide protection to workers from adverse health effects associated with occupational exposure to noise. The standard requires employers to establish and maintain accurate records of worker exposure to noise and audiometric testing performed in compliance with this standard. For additional substantive information about this ICR, see the related notice published in the Federal Register on December 12, 2022 (87 FR 78127).
Federal Agency: Department of Labor
Affected Area: EHS
This ICR seeks to extend PRA authority for the Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. 793. Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, prohibits employment discrimination against applicants and employees because of physical or mental disability and requires contractors and subcontractors to take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with disabilities. Section 503 applies to Federal contractors and subcontractors with contracts in excess of $15,000. For additional substantive information about this ICR, see the related notice published in the Federal Register on November 16, 2022 (87 FR 68743).
Federal Agency: Department of Labor
Affected Area: HR
Section 483, of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), mandates that the Secretary of Education “. . . shall produce, distribute, and process free of charge common financial reporting forms as described in this subsection to be used for application and reapplication to determine the need and eligibility of a student for financial assistance . . .”. The determination of need and eligibility are for the following Title IV, HEA, federal student financial assistance programs: the Federal Pell Grant Program; the Campus-Based programs (Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) and Federal Work-Study (FWS)),; the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program; the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant; the Children of Fallen Heroes Scholarship; and the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant. Federal Student Aid (FSA), an office of the U.S. Department of Education, subsequently developed an application process to collect and process the data necessary to determine a student’s eligibility to receive Title IV, HEA program assistance. The application process involves an applicant’s submission of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®). After submission and processing of the FAFSA form, an applicant receives a FAFSA Submission Report, which is a summary of the processed data they submitted on the FAFSA form. The applicant reviews the FAFSA Submission Summary, and, if necessary, will make corrections or updates to their submitted FAFSA data. Institutions of higher education listed by the applicant on the FAFSA form also receive a summary of processed data submitted on the FAFSA form which is called the Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR).
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
The Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships program is authorized by 20 U.S.C. 1121(b) and provides allocations of academic year and summer fellowships to institutions of higher education or consortia of institutions of higher education to assist meritorious undergraduate and graduate students undergoing training in modern foreign languages and related area or international studies. This information collection is a survey of FLAS fellows required by 20 U.S.C. 1121(d) which states “The Secretary shall assist grantees in developing a survey to administer to students who have completed programs under this subchapter to determine postgraduate employment, education, or training. All grantees, where applicable, shall administer such survey once every two years and report survey results to the Secretary.”
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Capstone International, Academic Affairs
Comments Due: 4/24/2023
This request is for a revision of the State Report Card and Institution and Program Report Card required by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended in 2008 by the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). States must report annually on criteria and assessments required for initial teacher credentials using a State Report Card (SRC), and institutions of higher education (IHEs) with teacher preparation programs (TPP), and TPPs outside of IHEs, must report on key program elements on an Institution and Program Report Card (IPRC). IHEs and TPPs outside of IHEs report annually to their states on program elements, including program numbers, type, enrollment figures, demographics, completion rates, goals and assurances to the state. States, in turn, must report on TPP elements to the Secretary of Education in addition to information on assessment pass rates, state standards, initial credential types and requirements, numbers of credentials issued, TPP classification as at-risk or low-performing. The information from states, institutions, and programs is published annually in The Secretary’s Report to Congress on Teacher Quality.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: College of Education
Comments Due: 5/30/2023
34 CFR part 668—Student Assistance General Provisions, Subpart K—Cash Management (§ 668.162) establishes the rules and procedures for a participating institution to request, maintain, disburse, and manage the Title IV (TIV) program funds. Institutions must complete and submit a Form 270 to request TIV program funds while participating under the Reimbursement and Heightened Cash Monitoring payment methods as explained in § 668.162(c) and (d). We are requesting an extension of the currently approved information collection. There have been no changes to the information requested or the form since its prior approval in September 2020.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
Comments Due: 6/5/2023
This request is for an extension of the information collection supporting the policies and reporting requirements contained in subpart E of part 668—Verification and Updating of Student Aid Application Information. Sections 668.53, 668.54, 668.55, 668.56, 668.57, 668.59 and 668.61 contain information collection requirements (OMB control number 1845–0041). This subpart governs the verification and updating of information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) which is used to calculate an applicant’s Expected Family Contribution (EFC) for purposes of determining an applicant’s need for student financial assistance under Title IV of Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA). The collection of this documentation helps ensure that students (and parents in the case of PLUS loans) receive the correct amount of Title IV program assistance by providing accurate information to calculate an applicant’s expected family contribution. There has been no change to the regulatory language since the prior information collection filing.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
Comments Due: 5/15/2023
Items of Interest
Request for Nominations to the Good Neighbor Environmental Board
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invites nominations from a diverse range of qualified candidates to be considered for appointment to its Good Neighbor Environmental Board. Approximately ten vacancies are expected to be filled by December 2023. For appointment consideration, nominations should be submitted by May 31, 2023. Sources in addition to this Federal Register Notice may also be utilized in the solicitation of nominees.
Comments Due: 5/31/2023
The Office of the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is seeking nominations for three individuals to serve as non-federal public members on the Muscular Dystrophy Coordinating Committee.
Comments Due: 4/28/2023
Education Department Will Tap Secret Shoppers
The Education Department is planning to use undercover agents—known as “secret shoppers”—to monitor colleges and universities that receive federal financial aid for potentially deceptive practices.
Request for Nominations to EPA’s National and Governmental Advisory Committees
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) invites nominations from a diverse range of qualified candidates to be considered for approximately 12 vacancies in the National Advisory Committee (NAC) and the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) which advises the U.S. Representative to the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). Vacancies on these two committees are expected to be filled by the fall of 2023. Additional sources may be utilized in the solicitation of nominees.
Comments Due: 5/19/2023
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or “Agency”) is seeking public nominations of scientific and technical experts that EPA can consider for service as ad hoc reviewers assisting the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Scientific Advisory Panel (FIFRA SAP) with the review of the Agency’s reevaluation of 11 atrazine microcosm and mesocosm studies identified by the 2012 FIFRA SAP as warranting further review. EPA currently anticipates selecting approximately 8-12 ad hoc reviewers and plans to make a list of candidates under consideration as prospective ad hoc reviewers for this review available for public comment by late May 2023. EPA is also announcing that a virtual public meeting of the FIFRA SAP is being scheduled in August 2023. In July 2023, EPA plans to release the reevaluation document submitted to the FIFRA SAP for peer review, along with all background documents, related supporting materials and draft charge questions provided to the FIFRA SAP. At that time, EPA will publish a separate document in the Federal Register to announce the availability of and solicit public comment on the draft reevaluation document and provide instructions for submitting comments and registering to provide oral comments at the August 2023 meeting.
National Advisory Council for Healthcare Research and Quality: Request for Nominations for Members
The National Advisory Council for Healthcare Research and Quality (the Council) advises the Secretary of HHS (Secretary) and the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) with respect to activities proposed or undertaken to carry out AHRQ’s statutory mission. AHRQ produces evidence to make health care safer, higher quality, more accessible, equitable, and affordable, and works within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and with other partners to make sure that the evidence is understood and used. Seven new members will be appointed to replace seven current members whose terms will expire in November 2023.
Comments Due: May 26, 2023
The draft is the first glimpse of what the new version of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid will look like when it launches later this year.
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) announces opportunities for individuals to participate in its peer review process for competitive grant funding under the programs administered by OCTAE, OESE, OELA, OPE, and OSERS.
Technical Advisory Committees; Notice of Recruitment of Members
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), Department of Commerce is announcing its recruitment of candidates to serve on one of its six Technical Advisory Committees (“TACs” or “Committees”). TAC members advise the Department of Commerce on the technical parameters for export controls applicable to dual-use items (commodities, software, and technology) and on the administration of those controls. The TACs are composed of representatives from industry, academia, and the U.S. Government and reflect diverse points of view on the concerns of the exporting community. Industry representatives are selected from firms producing a broad range of items currently controlled for national security, non-proliferation, foreign policy, and short supply reasons or that are proposed for such controls. Representation from the private sector is balanced to the extent possible among large and small firms.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) requests that qualified individuals interested in serving on the FEMA National Advisory Council (NAC) apply for appointment as identified in this notice. Pursuant to the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (PKEMRA), the NAC advises the FEMA Administrator on all aspects of emergency management, incorporating input from and ensuring coordination with Tribal, State, Territorial and local governments, and the non-governmental and private sectors. The NAC consists of up to 40 members, all of whom are experts and leaders in their respective fields. FEMA seeks to appoint or reappoint individuals to seven (7) discipline-specific positions on the NAC and up to two (2) members as Administrator Selections. If other positions open during the application and selection period, FEMA may select qualified candidates from the pool of applications.
Comments Due: 5/21/2023