Contributing Editor: Jarret Cummings, Senior Advisor for Policy and Government Relations, EDUCAUSE
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced funding for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, a major broadband access program originally introduced in the 2022 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. States have been tasked with outlining how they plan to use their funding to ensure equitable access to high-speed internet.
On May 18, the U.S. Supreme Court issued decisions in two cases related to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The decisions leave Section 230 protections unchanged for now, but they also allow for potential future litigation.
EDUCAUSE responded to the National Science Foundation (NSF) request for comment on the formation of a research security and integrity information sharing and analysis organization. Among other recommendations, EDUCAUSE called for NSF to collaborate fully with REN-ISAC.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) requested public input on the research cybersecurity resources it might develop for colleges and universities. EDUCAUSE submitted comments that encouraged NIST to curate existing resources and develop new ones to support the research cybersecurity profession.
EDUCAUSE submitted comments to the Office of Science and Technology Policy concerning the research cybersecurity provisions of its draft requirements for institutional research security programs.
The current Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) Agreement requires higher education institutions to attest to full compliance with new Safeguards Rule provisions. A new version of the SAIG Agreement coming this fall may include new cybersecurity obligations related to the redisclosure of federal tax information to institutions.
The U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid issued an electronic announcement in May regarding changes to the treatment of federal tax information (FTI) that will take effect for the 2024–2025 financial aid award year. In particular, the designation of FTI as controlled unclassified information may hold implications for institutional compliance with NIST SP 800-171.
The federal single audit includes a new Safeguards Rule audit objective for FY23 that incorporates new compliance elements associated with the Federal Trade Commission's updated Safeguards Rule.
The U.S. Departments of Justice and Education issued a joint "Dear Colleague Letter" regarding online accessibility. The letter shares the departments' efforts to address online accessibility issues at colleges, universities, and other institutions of higher education and comes amid forthcoming regulations that would update web accessibility rules pursuant to Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
The U.S. Department of Education issued a "Dear Colleague Letter" (GEN-23-08) that formally removed the effective date of third-party servicer guidance published in GEN-23-03, which was issued in February.
