Senate Democrats’ Latest COVID Relief Proposal Would Direct $130 Billion to Higher Education – NASFAA
Senate Democrats led by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), ranking member on the Senate education committee, put forward a new coronavirus relief package that would provide additional aid for institutions of higher education and impose a number of restrictions on the Department of Education’s (ED) authority in implementation of the new bill.
The Coronavirus Child Care and Education Relief Act (CCCERA), which totals $430 billion, would allocate $132 billion for higher education to help colleges and universities — including historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), tribal colleges, and minority-serving institutions (MSIs) — deliver education-based initiatives, implement public health protocols, and provide emergency financial aid to students for expenses like food, housing, child care, and technology. Notably, the bill would change the allocation formula used in the CARES Act to distribute funds using student headcount, instead of full-time enrollment, in order to “ensure community colleges that enroll more part-time students receive more equitable support.”
“Democrats are laying out a path to save millions of child care slots, nearly two million education jobs, and keep this pandemic from widening disparities that already harm students of color disproportionately — because we believe doing so is essential if we hope to come back from this difficult time stronger,” Murray said. “I hope Republicans agree.”