Policy Update: Senate Hearing on Student Visas and National Security

Lewis-Burke Associates LLC – June 6, 2018 On June 6, the Subcommittee on Border Security and Immigration of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary held a hearing entitled, “Student Visa Integrity: Protecting Educational Opportunity and National Security.”  The hearing focused on the potential threats international students and academics, particularly those from China, pose to national … Read more

Policy Update: House Agriculture Committee Approves Farm Bill

On April 18, 2018, the House Agriculture Committee approved H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018 (Farm Bill).  As expected, the markup was extremely partisan in nature with Democratic Members strongly opposing the proposed changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and noting the lack of transparency.  Ranking Member Collin Peterson (D-MN) … Read more

Government Shutdown Update: CR Advances

On Monday afternoon, the Senate voted to advance a Continuing Resolution (CR) to end the three-day federal government shutdown and extend funding for government programs at Fiscal Year 2017 levels through February 8.  The stalemate that led to the shutdown ended after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) gave Democrats assurances that the Senate will … Read more

Agency Update: NSF Seeks Members for STEM Education Advisory Panel

Lewis-Burke Associates, LLC – November 10, 2017 On November 8, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced that it is accepting recommendations for members of a new STEM[1] Education Advisory Panel.  This panel will provide input to the interagency Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Education (CoSTEM), which is made up of agency leads for … Read more

Action Alert – Contact Congress to Prevent Major Tax Increase on Graduate Students

Please read the urgent request below and contact your Member of Congress regarding a harmful provision in a piece of legislation under consideration by Congress. The situation: The U.S. House of Representatives is currently considering tax reform legislation, H.R. 1, that would change the way graduate student income is considered and result in large tax … Read more