OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Legislation and Policy Report
April 2008
WASHINGTON, D. C.
During May members focused on the FY2008 supplemental budget bill, the FY2009 budget resolution, and Higher Education Act reauthorization activities before recessing for a district work period during the week of May 26. The hospitalizations of Senators Robert Byrd (D-WV) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) have placed some uncertainty on the timetables for moving appropriations and education legislation.
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Budget and Appropriations:
FY2008 Supplemental – Congress is currently debating a $180+ billion 2008 and 2009 supplemental appropriations bill, primarily to pay for ongoing war costs. The House and Senate are currently considering separate versions with the hope of negotiating a compromise version in early June for final Congressional approval. The supplemental is required because of the ongoing practice of paying for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan outside the regular appropriations process. The current supplemental would try to move slightly ahead of the game by allocating nearly $70 billion in FY09 war funding to pay for at least a few months of next year’s war costs in advance, in addition to the $100 billion in FY08 war funding to pay for this year’s costs.
Although supplementals normally pay for emergencies and other short-term expenses, there is considerable R&D funding in both the House and Senate versions of the supplemental bill. The House would provide $2.4 billion in R&D funding for FY08 and FY09 to the Department of Defense (DOD), almost entirely for development funding with a small portion for research. The House would not give domestic agencies any supplemental funding.
The Senate would provide $900 million in FY08 funding to domestic science programs, most of which would fund R&D. The Senate’s version would give the National Institutes of Health (NIH) $400 million, the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science $100 million, NASA $200 million, and the National Science Foundation (NSF) $200 million. On the defense side, the Senate supplemental would give DOD $2.5 billion in R&D funding in FY08 and FY09, almost entirely for development with a small portion for research.
The Senate’s domestic science funding may not survive during the next few weeks. The House supplemental does not include domestic science funding, and the President has threatened to veto any supplemental bill that includes significant non-war funding. Both the House and the President would have to agree with the Senate in the next few weeks for the science appropriations to become law.
FY2009 – Congress reached agreement on May 20 on a final FY2009 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 70) and expects to gain final approval from both the House and Senate before the Memorial Day recess, which will allow the Appropriations Committee to begin work on FY09 appropriations bills. The budget resolution is an annual Congressional document that represents the Congressional response to the President’s February budget request and provides a big-picture framework for all later Congressional budget decisions. The FY09 budget resolution allocates$1,013 billion for regular FY09 appropriations, which is $21 billion more than the President’s request, which will be directed to funding for nondefense programs. The additional dollars would allow nondefense programs overall to increase slightly ahead of inflation, instead of declining as in the President’s request. Historically, federal R&D investment has been approximately 1 of every 7 discretionary dollars, so the budget resolution could realize $3 billion or so more than the request for federal R&D programs on the domestic side.
These additional allocations depend on the President’s willingness to sign appropriations bills containing these additional funds into law.
The Appropriations Committees will begin drafting and approving appropriations bills in the coming weeks, but none, or at most one or two, of the 12 FY2009 appropriations bills will be signed into law by October 1, the start of the FY09 fiscal year. It is increasingly likely that the 2009 appropriations process will carry over into calendar year 2009 and the next presidential administration.
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Department of Defense:
The House version of the Defense authorization bill directs the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study the indirect costs of Defense contracts and grants. The language is viewed positively by the research community as a comprehensive review of indirect costs will show lawmakers that university reimbursements are reasonable expenses for the government to cover and that federal agencies use specific, well-documented processes to calculate indirect cost rates and to audit reimbursements. In previous studies the GAO has produced fair and balanced presentation of the facts related to indirect costs. An example is the agency’s review of indirect costs at the National Institutes of Health for Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) in 2007.
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Department of Energy:
The Department of Energy (DOE) has backed out of the FutureGen Project citing huge cost overruns and technological advances. A non-profit consortium of multinational coal and energy companies and DOE called The FutureGen Alliance was to carry out the project with 74 percent of the $1.8 billion price tag coming from DOE. The plant was to be built in Mattoon, IL.
It was expected that by 2013 the FutureGen plant would produce electricity from gasified coal with almost no pollutants and only 10 percent of the carbon dioxide as compared to existing coal-fired plants. The “living laboratory” expected to capture and store carbon dioxide in a liquid from deep underground. The decision by DOE is a blow to coal producers and utilities, which had hoped to use the demonstration plant to test new “clean coal” technologies. Instead, the Department is budgeting $241 million for a few commercial power-plant projects that will capture and store a smaller share of emissions.
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Higher Education:
Higher Education Act Reauthorization – The draft conference agreement on the reauthorization legislation fails to address several of the specific concerns raised by the higher education community. The serious illness of Senate Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), who chairs the Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, makes the timetable for completing the bill uncertain. Congress passed another extension of existing law through the end of June. There is speculation whether the process will be completed at that time or whether another extension through the end of July will be necessary. Senator Kennedy has asked Senator Barbra Mikulski (D-MD) to work with Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT), the second highest ranking member of the Committee, to finish the bill.
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Homeland Security:
REAL ID – The REAL ID Act of 2005 took effect on May 1, 2008 with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issuing guidelines on states’ implementation of the act on January 11, 2008. The final rules require states to ensure that all applicants are legally in the country and to verify applicants’ documents using electronic databases, some of which are still under development. States are required to store copies of the documents and to make the department of motor vehicles (DMV) data-bases available to all other states. States must conduct background checks on certain DMV staff and secure the facilities where licenses are produced and where information and materials are stored.
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Veterans:
Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) has introduced S. 22, Post 9/11 Veterans Education Assistance Act of 2007. The bill would allow veterans, including activated reservists and National Guard, who have served in the military for at least three years to receive tuition up to the cost of attending the most expensive public college or university in their state. Veterans would receive a monthly stipend for housing costs. For veterans attending private institutions, the measure would match dollar-for-dollar any aid provided by the institutions above the cost of the most expensive public institution in the state.
A preliminary analysis by the Congressional Budget Office estimates that this expansion of the GI Bill would cost $728 million over two years, with a 10-year cost in mandatory spending of more than $51 billion.
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Comings and Goings:
Francis Collins will step down as director of the National Institutes of Health National Human Genomic Research Institute on August 1. Dr. Collins has served in the position since 1993.
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THE BUCKEYE STATE
The General Assembly recessed at the end of May but will return on June 10 to complete unfinished business, including the FY2009-2010 Biennial Capital Budget Bill, before leaving Columbus for the summer. It is unclear whether legislators will return after Labor Day for a brief session or wait until after the November election for a lame duck session.
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Legislation:
Conceal and carry -The General Assembly passed a bill that expands the conceal and carry weapons law. The changes will allow a gun owner to have an empty gun and ammunition in plain sight in a vehicle, and with a concealed-carry license they can keep a loaded gun in an unlocked glove box. Special deputy police who work in bars and bar owners can carry weapons. Individuals with licenses may now carry guns in state park shelters, public restroom and parking garages. Another provision blocks landlords from barring tenants from owning and carrying guns. The legislation was approved although the relaxed rules were opposed by police officers, county sheriffs and Ohio police chief groups. However, the Ohio State Highway Patrol did not object. Governor Strickland has signaled that he will sign the legislation.
Cuyahoga County governance reform – An amendment that would allow Cuyahoga County Commissioners to place a government restructuring plan on the ballot as soon as November was incorporated into the House passed version of the Biennial Capital Budget bill. A restructured county government plan would:
- Retain the three county commissioners as elected positions.
- Eliminate auditor, recorder, treasurer, coroner, engineer and sheriff as elected positions. Some would be consolidated and commissioners would appoint department heads.
- County auditor, recorder and treasurer positions would be combined into the position of county fiscal officer with a five-year appointment.
- Coroner’s office would be converted to the department of medical examiner.
- Engineer’s office would become public works department.
- Sheriff’s office would become corrections department.
- Clerk of courts, now elected, would be appointed by the chief administrative judge in Common Pleas Court.
The fate of the amendment is unknown. The Ohio Senate stripped the amendment in its version of the Capital Budget bill. A conference committee will determine whether the amendment remains in the final version of the legislation.
FY 2009-2010 Biennial Capital Budget Bill - The House and Senate approved different versions of the legislation and conferees are now meeting to negotiate compromises in areas where there are disagreements. The bill is expected to be completed on June 10 when members return for a one-day session to complete unfinished business.
H.B. 554 – Jobs/Economic Stimulus – The General Assembly has passed legislation that will provide economic stimulus and help create jobs. (For details, see April 2008 report.) Although the approved package is not identical to the introduced legislation the basic program areas and their funding levels remain the same. Revenue sources for the some of the programs have been altered and the Advanced Energy projects program will be managed by the Third Frontier Commission rather than the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority as introduced. An amendment to the bill was approved on the Senate floor which would ban all scientific cloning and embryonic research. The House concurred and the amendment remains in the final bill sent to Governor Strickland for signature. The Governor is expected to line item veto that provision in the legislation when it reaches his desk in June.
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Odds and Ends:
Casino Ballot Initiative – Lakes Entertainment from Minnetonka, MN is partnering with MyOhioNow.com to ask voters to approve a referendum to change the Ohio Constitution to allow a $600 million casino and resort in Clinton County, half-way between Columbus and Cincinnati. If approved, all 88 Ohio counties would share in an annual split of the earnings, estimated to be about $211 million, to be divided by county based on county population. Many pundits give the referendum little chance of passage since Ohioans have defeated three previous gambling proposals since 1990.
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Comings and Goings:
Ohio Attorney Marc Dann resigned. Nancy Rogers, dean of the Ohio State University College of Law, has been appointed to serve on a temporary basis. Ohioans will elect someone to complete the final two years of Mr. Dann’s four-year term in November. Ms. Rogers has stated that she is not a candidate. Republican and Democratic parties must select their candidates for the November election by August 20.
Possible Democratic candidates include Ohio Treasurer Richard Cordray, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason and Montgomery County Prosecutor Matt Heck. Republican names being floated are Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien and former U. S. Senator and former Ohio Lt. Governor Mike DeWine. Another Republican, Rob Portman, who served in the US House, as Director of the White House’s Office of Budget and Management and as chief U.S. Trade Representative, has been mentioned as a possible candidate. Mr. Portman also has been rumored as a possible vice-presidential candidate on Senator John McCain’s ticket.
Susan Zelman, State Superintendent of Education, is stepping down. She has served in the role since 1999.
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LOCALLY… Cuyahoga County Recorder Patrick O’Malley resigned on May 15. Mr. O’Malley’s Chief of Staff Thomas Roche is serving as interim director. County Democrats have 45 days to name a permanent replacement.
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Sources of information for this report include the Association
of American Universities, American Institute of Physics, the
Chronicle of Higher Education, the Association of Independent
Colleges and Universities of Ohio’s updates and reports,
newspapers, political and legislative wire services, and others.
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