Compliance Alert – March 2022
- March 30th, 2022
- in Compliance, Newsletter, Regulations
Legislative Updates
HB46: This bill would establish the State Seal of Biliteracy program to recognize graduates who have attained a high level of proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing in one or more languages in addition to English, and would provide for the seal to be awarded to the graduate by the State Department of Education. Last Action: 2022-03-17 – Forwarded to Executive Department
HB138: Appropriations, supplemental appropriations, from the Education Trust Fund to various agencies and entities for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2022. Last Action: 2022-03-10 – Read for the first time and referred to the Senate committee on Finance and Taxation Education
HB267: Appropriations, supplemental appropriations for fiscal year ending September 30, 2022, from the Education Trust Fund Advancement and Technology Fund to various school systems and colleges and universities, and other entities. Last Action: 2022-03-10 – Read for the first time and referred to the Senate committee on Finance and Taxation Education.
HB312: Education and training, divisive concepts, prohibits teaching of the concepts under certain circumstances, allows teaching of the concepts in public institutions of higher education as long as assent to the concept is not compelled. Last Action: 2022-03-17 – Read for the first time and referred to the Senate committee on Governmental Affairs
HB307: Education, issuance of professional educator certificate to individuals completing approved alternative teacher preparation programs, Sec. 16-23-3.01 added; Sec. 16-23-3 am’d. Last Action: 2022-03-17
HB395: Alcoholic beverage licenses, Hospitality Management Program license created at certain state universities, activities under license authorized. Last Action: 2022-03-17 – Pending third reading on day 24 Favorable from Judiciary
SB292: Education and training, divisive concepts, prohibits teaching of the concepts under certain circumstances, allows teaching of the concepts in public institutions of higher education as long as assent to the concept is not compelled. Last Action: Introduced on March 3, 2022
SB313: Colleges and universities, local boards of education, schools prohibited from using public funds to advocate for or against ballot measures. Status: Last Action: 2022-03-17 – Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development first Substitute Offered
HB135: Education budget, appropriations for the support, maintenance, and development of public education. This bill makes appropriations for the support, maintenance, and development of public education in Alabama, for debt service, and for capital outlay for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2023. Last Action: 2022-03-08 – Engrossed
SB15: State Textbook Committee, publishers permitted to provide standards correlation evidence to State Dept. of Education, State Superintendent of Education to convene other instructional materials review committees to review and rate materials and to establish evaluation criteria, Sec. 16-36-73 added; Secs. 16-36-60, 16-36-60.1, 16-36-65 am’d. Last Action: 2022-03-03 – Assigned Act No. 2022-80.
SB119: Colleges and Universities, Alabama G.I. and Dependents’ Educational Benefit Act, use of scholarship benefits at 2 year or 4 year public or private institutions of higher education physically located in state provided, Sec. 31-6-8 repealed; Secs. 31-6-2, 31-6-2.1, 31-6-3, 31-6-4, 31-6-5, 31-6-6, 31-6-9, 31-6-11, 31-6-12, 31-6-13, 31-6-14, 31-6-15, 31-6-15.1, 31-6-16 am’d. Last Action: 2022-03-01 – Assigned Act No. 2022-91.
Final Rules
DoD is issuing a final rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to implement a section of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 that modifies the criteria required to exempt from competition certain follow-on production contracts.
Federal Agency: Defense Acquisition Regulations System, Department of Defense (DoD)
Affected Area: Procurement
In response to EPA’s August 2021 final rule revoking all tolerances for the insecticide chlorpyrifos under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), several objections, hearing requests, and requests for stay were filed by numerous parties representing a wide variety of growers and pesticide users. In this Order, EPA denies all objections to, requests for hearing on those objections, as well as requests for stay of the final rule.
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) is amending the animal drug regulations to reflect application-related actions for new animal drug applications (NADAs), abbreviated new animal drug applications (ANADAs), and a conditionally approved new animal drug application (cNADA) during July, August, and September 2021. FDA is informing the public of the availability of summaries of the basis of approval and of environmental review documents, where applicable. The animal drug regulations are also being amended to improve the accuracy of the regulations.
Federal Agency: Food and Drug Administration, HHS
Affected Area: ORED, Animal Care
Russian Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Regulations
The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is adding regulations to implement an April 15, 2021 Russia-related Executive order. OFAC intends to supplement these regulations with a more comprehensive set of regulations, which may include additional interpretive guidance and definitions, general licenses, and other regulatory provisions.
Federal Agency: Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury
Affected Area: ORED
Federal Acquisition Regulation: Amendments to the FAR Buy American Act Requirements
This rule increases the domestic content threshold initially from 55 percent to 60 percent, then to 65 percent in calendar year 2024 and to 75 percent in calendar year 2029. See FAR 25.101(a)(2)(i) and 25.201(b)(2)(i). The initial increase to 60 percent will occur several months from publication of the final rule, to allow industry time to plan for the new threshold and to provide workforce training on the new fallback threshold. The increase of the domestic content threshold ultimately to 75 percent is consistent with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Pub. L. 117-58) (IIJA) which was enacted on November 15, 2021. Section 70921 of this statute includes a “sense of Congress” that the FAR be amended to increase the domestic content requirements for domestic end products and domestic construction material to 75 percent.
Federal Agency: Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Affected Area: Procurement
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is amending the regulations applicable to phenol, isopropylated phosphate (3:1) (PIP (3:1)) promulgated under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Specifically, EPA is extending the compliance date applicable to the prohibition on processing and distribution in commerce of certain PIP (3:1)-containing articles, and the PIP (3:1) used to make those articles, until October 31, 2024, along with the compliance date for the associated recordkeeping requirements for manufacturers, processors, and distributors of PIP (3:1)-containing articles. This final rule follows issuance of a proposed rule for public comment on October 28, 2021; comments on the proposed rule are responded to in this action.
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS
Standards and Practices for All Appropriate Inquiries
EPA is taking direct final action to amend the Standards and Practices for All Appropriate Inquiries to reference a standard practice recently made available by ASTM International, a widely recognized standards developing organization. Specifically, this direct final rule amends the All Appropriate Inquiries Rule to reference ASTM International’s E1527-21 “Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process” and allow for its use to satisfy the requirements for conducting all appropriate inquiries under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act.
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS, Land Management
Comments Due: 4/13/2022
Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards
The Department of Energy (DOE) publishes a final rule to make technical and administrative changes as a result of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) revisions to its regulations on Grants and Agreements. The changes are required in order to align DOE’s regulations with the revised OMB regulations and to remove reference to an expired statutory cost share pilot program. The final rule also makes technical changes to correct pre-existing numbering errors in the regulatory text.
Federal Agency: Office of Management, U.S. Department of Energy
Affected Area: Grant Accounting
Proposed Rules
Updating the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts Regulations
The Department of Labor (Department) proposes to amend regulations issued under the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts that set forth rules for the administration and enforcement of the Davis-Bacon labor standards that apply to Federal and federally assisted construction projects. As the first comprehensive regulatory review in nearly 40 years, the Department believes that revisions to these regulations are needed to provide greater clarity and enhance their usefulness in the modern economy.
Federal Agency: Wage and Hour Division, Department of Labor
Affected Area: Construction Administration, Procurement
Comments Due: 5/17/2022
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA” or “the Act”), as amended, requires that the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (“NCP”) include a list of national priorities among the known releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants throughout the United States. The National Priorities List (“NPL”) constitutes this list. The NPL is intended primarily to guide the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA” or “the agency”) in determining which sites warrant further investigation. These further investigations will allow the EPA to assess the nature and extent of public health and environmental risks associated with the site and to determine what CERCLA-financed remedial action(s), if any, may be appropriate. This rule proposes to add five sites to the General Superfund section of the NPL. This document also withdraws a previous proposal for NPL addition.
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS
Comments Due: 5/17/2022
To promote the efficient and effective enforcement of laws and regulations applicable to Federal contractors and subcontractors, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) proposes to modify regulations that delineate procedures and standards the agency follows when issuing pre-enforcement notices and securing compliance through conciliation. This proposal would support OFCCP in fulfilling its mission to ensure equal employment opportunity.
Federal Agency: Department of Labor
Affected Area: EEO, Compliance, Legal and HR
Comments Due: 4/21/2022
Notices
In October 2020, the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI), UMass Boston received a five-year cooperative agreement from the Office of Postsecondary Education to serve as the National Coordinating Center (NCC) for colleges and universities implementing inclusive higher education programs for students with intellectual disabilities, including 22 newly-funded model demonstration projects aimed at creating inclusive comprehensive transition and postsecondary programs for students with intellectual disabilities known as Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSIDs). To reduce respondent burden, the NCC has streamlined and simplified the previously approved evaluation system for the TPSID programs. The NCC will enhance the collection and analyses of longitudinal follow-up data from the new 22 TPSID model programs via an already developed and previously OMB approved evaluation system for the TPSID programs. The revised data collection system is part of an evaluation effort. The system will collect program data at the institutions from TPSID program staff via an online, secure data management system.
Federal Agency: Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Department of Education (ED)
Affected Area: Office of Disability Services
Comments Due: 5/3/2022
In October 2020, the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI), UMass Boston received a five-year cooperative agreement from the Office of Postsecondary Education to serve as the National Coordinating Center (NCC) for colleges and universities implementing inclusive higher education programs for students with intellectual disabilities, including 22 newly-funded model demonstration projects aimed at creating inclusive comprehensive transition and postsecondary programs for students with intellectual disabilities known as Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSIDs). To reduce respondent burden, the NCC has streamlined and simplified the previously approved evaluation system for the TPSID programs. The NCC will enhance the collection and analyses of longitudinal follow-up data from the new 22 TPSID model programs via an already developed and previously OMB approved evaluation system for the TPSID programs. The revised data collection system is part of an evaluation effort. The system will collect program data at the institutions from TPSID program staff via an online, secure data management system.
Federal Agency: Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Department of Education (ED)
Affected Area: Office of Disability Services
Comments Due: 5/3/2022
Certain New Chemicals; Receipt and Status Information for January 2022
EPA is required under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to make certain information publicly available and to publish information in the Federal Register pertaining to submissions, including notice of receipt of a Premanufacture notice (PMN), Significant New Use Notice (SNUN) or Microbial Commercial Activity Notice (MCAN), including an amended notice or test information; an exemption application (Biotech exemption); an application for a test marketing exemption (TME), both pending and/or concluded; a notice of commencement (NOC) of manufacture (including import) for new chemical substances; and a periodic status report on new chemical substances that are currently under EPA review or have recently concluded review. This document covers the period from 01/01/2022 to 01/31/2022.
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS
Comments Due: 3/30/2022
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA, Agency, or we) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the Agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), Federal Agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of an existing collection of information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice. This notice solicits comments on the collection of information associated with new animal drug applications and veterinary master files.
Federal Agency: Food and Drug Administration, HHS
Affected Area: ORED, Animal Care
OSHA solicits public comments concerning the proposal to extend the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) approval of the information collection requirements specified in the Construction Standards on Posting Emergency Telephone Numbers and Maximum Safe Floor Load Limits.
Federal Agency: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor
Affected Area: Campus Development, Construction Administration
Comments Due: 5/2/2022
In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit a request to renew and consolidate existing approved Information Collection Requests (ICRs) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Before submitting the consolidated ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection that is summarized in this document. The consolidated ICR is entitled: “Reporting and Recordkeeping Under Section 8 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)” and is identified under EPA ICR No. 2703.01 and OMB Control No. 2070-[NEW]. EPA is consolidating several ICRs covering reporting and recordkeeping activities under TSCA Section 8 to streamline the presentation of the paperwork burden estimates for these various activities and eliminate any duplication, which will in turn is expected to reduce the administrative burden for both the public reviewers and the Agency. The ICR and accompanying materials are available in the docket for public review and comment.
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS
Comments Due: 5/9/2022
On or about March 4, 2022, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is making available to the public, Volumes 1 and 2 of the
Integrated Review Plan for the Lead National Ambient Air Quality Standards
(IRP). The national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for lead (Pb) are set to protect the public health and the public welfare from Pb in ambient air. Volume 1 of the IRP contains contextual background material and the anticipated schedule for the current review of the air quality criteria and NAAQS for Pb. Volume 2 identifies policy-relevant issues in the review and describes key considerations in EPA’s development of the Integrated Science Assessment (ISA). The ISA provides the scientific basis for the EPA’s decisions, in conjunction with additional technical and policy assessments, for the review of the NAAQS, as described in the Clean Air Act, section 108(a).
Federal Agency: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Affected Area: EHS
Comments Due: 4/4/2022
Applications for New Awards; Fulbright-Hays Faculty Research Abroad (FRA) Fellowship Program
The Department of Education (Department) is issuing a notice inviting applications (NIA) for fiscal year (FY) 2022 for the Fulbright-Hays Faculty Research Abroad (FRA) Fellowship Program, Assistance Listing Number 84.019A. This notice relates to the approved information collection under OMB control number 1840-0005.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: OAA, ORED
The Direct Subsidized Loan and Direct Unsubsidized Loan Master Promissory Note (Subsidized/Unsubsidized MPN) serves as the means by which an individual agrees to repay a Direct Subsidized Loan and/or Direct Unsubsidized Loan. The Direct PLUS Loan Master Promissory Note (PLUS Loan MPN) serves as the means by which an individual applies for and agrees to repay a Direct PLUS Loan. If a Direct PLUS Loan applicant is determined to have an adverse credit history, the applicant may qualify for a Direct PLUS Loan by obtaining an endorser who does not have an adverse credit history. The Endorser Addendum serves as the means by which an endorser agrees to repay the Direct PLUS Loan if the borrower does not repay it. An MPN is a promissory note under which a borrower may receive loans for a single or multiple academic years. The MPN explains the terms and conditions of the loans that are made under the MPN.
Federal Agency: Department of Education
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
Comments Due: 5/16/2022
The Department of Education (Department) is requesting an emergency clearance for a new information collection at the same time requesting a 60-day public comment period. This collection will be used to obtain information from federal student loan borrowers to determine eligibility for reconsideration of their Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) or Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness (TEPSLF) denial notification on the basis of payment counts or employer eligibility determinations pursuant to a settlement agreement between the Department and the American Federation of Teachers (ATF) which was signed on October 12, 2021. The settlement between the Department and the AFT requires that “as soon as practicable but no later than April 30, 2022, the Department will establish an interim reconsideration process that will be available to any borrower whose application for PSLF or TEPSLF has been or is denied”. In order to meet the requirements of this settlement, the Department must gather the information needed from the borrowers to reconsider their denial. This collection will allow for the collection and review of such reconsideration requests.
Federal Agency: Federal Student Aid (FSA), Department of Education (ED)
Affected Area: Student Financial Aid
Comments Due: 3/29/2022
Items of Interest
COGR appreciates the opportunity to respond to the Request for Information on Proposed Updates and Long-Term Considerations for the NIH Genomic Data Sharing Policy (“GDS Policy”). COGR and its member institutions recognize the important role that timely and robust data sharing plays in both scientific advances and efforts to promote reproducibility and research integrity. Yet, we also appreciate that the sharing of data, particularly human genomic data, raises complex privacy and consent issues, and we commend NIH for seeing public input in this area.
Federal Agency: National Institutes of Health (NIH)
Affected Area: Privacy, Compliance OIT, ORED, UMC
Lawmakers plan March 8 vote on U.S. government funding
WASHINGTON, March 1 (Reuters) – Congress is expected to vote March 8 on a spending bill to fund U.S. government operations through the end of September, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said on Tuesday.
Biden Puts Biomedical Research at the Heart of His ‘Unity’ Plan
President Joe Biden’s spotlight on his cancer moonshot and a proposed new research entity in the State of the Union address Tuesday signals the White House’s reliance on biomedical innovation as a vehicle to advance bipartisan initiatives through Congress. Lawmakers told Bloomberg Government on Wednesday they’re hoping to fund a new medical research agency as part of a forthcoming FY 2022 spending bill, which must pass by March 11.
The Role Of Research At Universities: Why It Matters
Teaching and learning, research and discovery, synthesis and creativity, understanding and engagement, service and outreach. There are many “core elements” to the mission of a great university. Teaching would seem the most obvious, but for those outside of the university, “research” (taken to include scientific research, scholarship more broadly, as well as creative activity) may be the least well understood. This creates misunderstanding of how universities invest resources, especially those deriving from undergraduate tuition and state (or other public) support, and the misperception that those resources are being diverted away from what is believed should be the core (and sole) focus, teaching. This has led to a loss of trust, confidence, and willingness to continue to invest or otherwise support (especially our public) universities.
For decades, partnerships among government-funded academic institutions and private companies in the United States have led to the discovery and development of innovative medicines that are improving, extending, and saving lives. My company’s treatment for advanced prostate cancer, Xtandi (enzalutamide), which emerged from a public-private collaboration, is an example of how this system works to benefit patients. Yet despite the clear health benefits and broad availability of Xtandi, some individuals and organizations want to use it as a test case for disrupting the technology transfer and medical innovation ecosystem that is the pathway to the treatments of tomorrow.
93 Academic Groups Oppose Measures Contrary to Academic Freedom
Ninety-three academic associations, led by the American Council on Education, have issued a joint statement opposing bills and other measures that would amount to “foreclosing evaluation of complex and challenging ideas.” The statement said, “Controversial and contentious topics deserve a place in the curriculum, but no matter how vigorous the classroom discussion, it should be respectful. Some campus speech is unacceptable, such as speech that violates the law, defames individuals, or threatens violence. Outside a few narrow exceptions, proposals to ban speech based on the idea expressed are not only constitutionally suspect but fundamentally at odds with the values of a free and open society.”
Cybersecurity for Government Contractors—2021 Update
The article looks at President Joe Biden’s May 12, 2021 Executive Order (EO), “Improving the Nation’s Cybersecurity,” which the authors note “seeks to harmonize, enhance, and extend existing cyber and supply chain security requirements across the government while operationalizing several new programs and frameworks to address existing and emerging threats.”
U of North Carolina’s Head of Research Cited for Research Misconduct
The vice chancellor for research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill engaged in research misconduct when he plagiarized in his application for a federal grant for cancer research, according to a recent report from the federal Office of Research Integrity.
Congress poised to boost U.S. science funding, launch new health agency
U.S. research agencies would get budget boosts of roughly 5% this year under a final 2022 spending bill that congressional leaders unveiled early today and hope to pass in the next few days. But those amounts fall far short of aspirational funding levels for several science agencies that Congress is weighing under separate legislation now being negotiated.
Medical Research Funding Survives as Democrats Cut Covid Money
President Joe Biden’s proposed new biomedical research entity would receive $1 billion under the congressional spending plan released Wednesday. The research funding survived a last-minute cut of $15 billion for Covid testing and treatment supplies. The Senate expects to finalize the spending bill (H.R. 2471) next week. The current funding law expires Friday but the House is expected to pass a four-day stopgap to avoid a government shutdown and give the Senate time to deal with the omnibus legislation. The money for the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, or ARPA-H, comes almost a year after Biden first asked for $6.5 billion to fund the new entity over three years. The funding also comes about a week after Biden called on Congress to fund ARPA-H in his State of the Union address.
Everyone’ must prepare for university cyberattacks, says FBI agent
Colleges and universities, which manage federal research data in addition to the personal and financial information of students and staff, continue to face a barrage of ransomware and other cyberattacks, which often disrupt operations. Part of smoothing the response process involves determining an institution’s risk tolerance, which requires input from many offices and departments, said Kim Milford, executive director of the Research and Education Networks Information Sharing and Analysis Center. For example, chief financial officers should be involved in whether universities pay ransoms, she said.
Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Council; Call for Nominations; Extension
The Secretary of the Interior and the Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seek nominations for membership on the Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Council (Council). This is a 15-day extension of the call for nominations published in the Federal Register on February 18, 2022.
Comments Due: 4/1/2022
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency Office of Public Engagement and Environmental Education is soliciting applications for environmental education professionals for consideration to serve on the National Environmental Education Advisory Council (NEEAC). There are multiple vacancies on the Advisory Council that must be filled. Additional avenues and resources may be utilized in the solicitation of applications. “In accordance with Executive Order 14035 (June 25, 2021), EPA values and welcomes opportunities to increase diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility on its federal advisory committees. EPA’s federal advisory committees have a workforce that reflects the diversity of the American people.”
Comments Due: 4/13/2022
Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets
While many activities involving digital assets are within the scope of existing domestic laws and regulations, an area where the United States has been a global leader, growing development and adoption of digital assets and related innovations, as well as inconsistent controls to defend against certain key risks, necessitate an evolution and alignment of the United States Government approach to digital assets. The United States has an interest in responsible financial innovation, expanding access to safe and affordable financial services, and reducing the cost of domestic and cross-border funds transfers and payments, including through the continued modernization of public payment systems. We must take strong steps to reduce the risks that digital assets could pose to consumers, investors, and business protections; financial stability and financial system integrity; combating and preventing crime and illicit finance; national security; the ability to exercise human rights; financial inclusion and equity; and climate change and pollution.
Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., introduced a bill Friday that would force American universities to be more transparent about foreign gifts and contracts. The Education Department in 2019 and 2020 began cracking down on schools’ acceptance of foreign gifts under Section 117 of the Higher Education Act in an effort to track the scope of money from countries like China and Qatar in the U.S. education system. That changed when President Biden took office. U.S. schools reported $1.6 billion in foreign gifts between July 1, 2020, and Jan. 20, 2021. Between Jan. 20, 2021 and November 2021, however, schools reported just $4.3 million in gifts over a longer time period, prompting questions from lawmakers about reporting requirements.