Washington Insights & Highlights January 23rd

President Trump Signs a Plethora of Executive Orders

After being sworn-in as the 47th President of the United States, President Donald Trump signed 118 executive orders, actions, and memorandums. Some of these executive actions rescind Biden administration policies and programs, direct federal agencies to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, direct federal agencies to begin mass deportation efforts, call for the vetting and screening of foreign nationals, and place a freeze on the issuance of proposed federal rules and regulations.

While the CGS Government Relations and Public Policy Department is currently reviewing relevant executive actions, below are a few orders that may be of interest to the graduate education community. In early February 2025, CGS staff will post summaries of relevant executive actions on the CGS website.

DEI Executive Actions: In the last two days, President Trump signed several executive actions that call for the elimination of all diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) programs in the federal government. The “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” executive action “directs the Attorney General, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management to terminate, to the maximum extent allowed by law all DEI, DEIA, and environmental justice offices and positions, all equity plans, equity initiatives or programs, equity related grants and contracts.”

The full text of the “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” is available here.

The full text of the “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” is available here.

Immigration/Visas Executive Actions: Several of the executive actions signed by President Trump call for the removal of people that are “unlawfully present” from the United States. The executive action, “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats,” directs the Secretaries of State and Homeland Security, Attorney General, and the Director of National Intelligence to vet and screen all aliens seeking entry to the country. The executive action also directs these agency officials to “determine the information needed from any county to adjudicate any visa, admission, or other benefit under the INA for one of its foreign nationals, and to ascertain whether the individual seeking the benefit is who the individual claims to be and is not a security or public threat.” The executive action also calls for the establishment of screening and vetting standards that will be used to “vet and screen to the maximum extent possible all aliens who intend to be admitted, enter, or are already in the United States, particularly those aliens coming from regions or nations with identified security risks.”

The full text of the Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threat is available here.

The full text of the Protecting the American People Against Invasion is available here.

All of the executive actions are currently available on the White House website.

Reopening of Reporting for Gainful Employment and Financial Value Transparency

The U.S. Department of Education has finalized the completers lists for Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment (FVT/GE) reporting, which are now being used to calculate median earnings data. However, to accommodate institutions that faced challenges meeting the original January 15 deadline, the reporting window for debt data has been reopened until February 18, 2025. The Department has also released guidance on common issues experienced during the debt reporting process and provided information on how institutions can address those issues.

Institutions unable to meet the extended deadline will be required to submit explanatory documentation during a future reporting cycle. A standardized process for these explanations could be announced in Spring 2025.

119th Congress Begins Work on Reconciliation Package and FY 25 Spending Bills

Since the start of the 119th Congress, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) have been working to develop a legislative agenda that includes passage of a budget reconciliation package before Memorial Day and final passage of fiscal year 2025. Late last year, the 118th Congress passed a short-term continuing resolution to fund the federal government until March 14, in order to avoid a government shutdown.

Congressional negotiations concerning the budget reconciliation bill and process are well underway. According to media reports, Senate Republicans would like the reconciliation bill to consist of a few smaller bills, while President Trump and House Republicans prefer one large reconciliation bill. Recently, an internal document prepared by House Budget Committee Republicans was made available to the media. The draft document includes funding cuts to dozens of federal programs that could affect higher education. The draft document includes provisions the calls for the sunsetting of the GRAD and Parent PLUS Loan programs, setting loan limits for undergraduate and graduate loans, reforming Gainful Employment, expanding the endowment tax to 14 percent, taxing all scholarship and fellowship income, and other issues that could affect graduate education.

DHS Rescind Protections for “Sensitive Areas” in New Directives

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has issued two new directives altering the approach to immigration enforcement in the United States, which could affect Dreamers and DACA students. The first directive rescinds the Biden Administration’s guidelines that previously restricted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operations in or near so-called “sensitive” areas, which included schools, churches, and colleges. On January 21, the U.S. Department of Justice issued an internal memo instructing U.S. attorneys around the country to investigate law enforcement officials who decline to enforce immigration policies.

Congress Passes the Laken Riley Act

On January 22, the 119th Congress passed the Laken Riley Act (S.5), which is expected to be signed into law by President Donald Trump. The bill introduces two significant changes to immigration policy. The bill mandates the detention of undocumented immigrants charged with offenses like burglary, minor theft, and larceny, expanding beyond the current policy of targeting serious crimes such as rape, murder, and drug offenses.

Second, the bill grants state attorneys general the authority to sue the federal government over specific immigration decisions and “alleged failures,” enabling broad visa bans on countries refusing deportees, such as China and India. This could impact individuals and institutions with many international students, complicating visa access for their families and potentially discouraging academic or research pursuits in the United States.