Federal and State Policy Change Updates

Dear Faculty, Staff and Graduate Students,

As President Welsh wrote earlier this week, our highest priority is the safety and well-being of our Texas A&M University community. I am proud of the response of our campus to protect and support our colleagues in Qatar. While we have resumed regular operations for the campus, we recognize individual circumstances of employees, students and their families vary, and we are supporting flexible approaches to teaching and learning during this time. Our colleagues in Qatar are working diligently to support the students there as they navigate the challenges of winding down the campus on top of regional conflict. I thank them for their resilience, grace and dedication. We will continue to keep you all informed about any updates.

We have just a few updates this week as state legislation became law and federal policy changes continued.

State Legislation Approved

This past weekend, Governor Abbott signed over 1,000 pieces of legislation into law. Included among these were Senate Bill 1 (the state budget), Senate Bill 17 (relating to the purchase of land by foreign individuals), Senate Bill 37 (relating to faculty senates and university governance), Senate Bill 2615 (relating to remote work policies for institutions of higher education), and House Bill 5196 (relating to telework policies for state agencies). We are closely monitoring the implementation process and will be communicating with you regarding these changes.

We also are aware that on June 23, the governor announced a special session, limited to 30 days, to begin on July 21, naming several topics for legislative consideration. Currently, none of the proposed topics relate to higher education.

Facilities and Administrative Cost Rate Update

On June 20, a U.S. District Court found that the National Science Foundation’s 15% Facilities and Administrative Cost (F&A) rate cap was “invalid, arbitrary and capricious, and contrary to law.” While the administration may choose to appeal the ruling, the rate cap is not in effect currently. As I have mentioned previously, the group of higher education organizations that make up the Joint Associations Group (JAG) was soliciting feedback on their two proposed FAIR models for calculating indirect cost reimbursements. On June 23, The Texas A&M University System submitted our feedback, and we expect the final model to be determined by the JAG and presented to Congress before the end of the month. Please note that this is only a proposal, and we anticipate more changes in the process as legislators debate this model.

International Student Guidance Updates

We are aware of and communicating with international students about changes announced on June 18 by the Department of State that they are expanding their screening and vetting process for student and exchange visitor visa applicants. If you have concerns or questions, the International Student and Scholar Services office is the best resource for helping our international students and scholars, while international faculty and staff can reach out to Immigration Affairs. Thank you to both of these offices for their outstanding efforts to keep our international community informed and supported.

New Consortium to Create Accreditation Model

Also, we are aware that the Texas A&M System announced that it has joined five other public university systems to establish the Commission for Public Higher Education to develop a new accreditation model for public higher education institutions. We will be working closely with the System on this as we position our university to thrive in the future, continuing to deliver world-class education and research. More information will be provided as it becomes available.