Category: Blog Page 1 of 17

Fall 2025 Government Shutdown Updates

On September 29, 2025

November 7, 2:00pm–Shutdown Day 38

Overview

At 38 days and counting, this shutdown is now the longest in U.S. history. Unfortunately, the milestone comes with widening impacts across the country.

Late last week, there were signs that mounting pressures–ranging from the lapse in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding to the start of open enrollment for Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace plans–might spur progress toward a deal. However, negotiations remain slow. Adding to the disruption, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will impose a 10 percent reduction in flights across 40 major airports beginning next week, likely creating widespread travel delays.

Activity in Congress

The Senate continues to explore a bipartisan framework to reopen the government, but talks have yet to produce an agreement. Negotiations are centered on a potential continuing resolution (CR) that would temporarily fund federal agencies while lawmakers work to finalize the 12 appropriations bills for the remainder of the fiscal year. The framework would also guarantee a vote on extending ACA premium tax credits, though the length of the new CR remains under debate–some favoring a short-term measure before the December holidays and others pushing for an extension into January.

While discussions continue, President Trump has called for eliminating the Senate filibuster to lower the vote threshold for passing a CR from 60 to 51. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has said there is not enough support for that approach. The House of Representatives remains in recess and has not voted since September 19—that’s 49 days.

The current House-passed CR, rejected repeatedly in the Senate, expires November 21. A new stopgap funding measure will be required to bridge the impasse and avoid further disruption.

Program Impacts

The ongoing shutdown continues to affect multiple federal programs. SNAP benefits remain suspended in many states, and although the Administration has authorized partial emergency funding, implementation timelines vary widely. The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is being sustained through temporary funding that is expected to last only two to three more weeks.

In the transportation sector, the FAA’s planned flight reductions reflect staffing shortages and delayed pay for air traffic controllers, adding to growing pressure on lawmakers to reach a resolution.

November 5, 1:00pm—Shutdown Day 36

A message from Duke Office for Research & Innovation Vice President, Jennifer Lodge, Ph.D.:

As we move further into the fall, I am writing to acknowledge that this year continues to be a time of significant stress for many across Duke’s research community. The uncertainty due to ongoing changes in the research landscape which have been exacerbated by the continuing federal government shutdown, along with financial, professional, and personal pressures, affects us all. Please know Duke University leadership recognizes the magnitude of the current situation and is actively working to guide our community through these unprecedented challenges.

As the federal government shutdown continues, I know the effects of delayed communications have continued to grow for investigators and administrators. While university leadership continues to monitor developments in Washington, please note the following reminders:

Stay informed: OR&I continues to post updates on myRESEARCHpath and communicate key information via email, including the Duke Research Insider.
Continue work: Active federally sponsored grants and contracts should proceed unless you receive a formal stop work order or suspension notice. If you do, please forward it to grantsupport@duke.edu so the central grants offices may provide clarity and assistance.
Plan ahead: Continue preparing applications and progress reports for on-time submissions. Unless an agency has specifically communicated that a submission system has been affected by the shutdown, it should still be possible to submit grant applications and progress reports; however, online help desks may not be available for assistance. If submission systems are shut down, the agency is likely to communicate extensions to submission deadlines.
Anticipate delays: Please plan for delays in federal agency response times and administrative processing during the shutdown. Please remember central grants offices are affected by these delays and requests submitted through those offices are dependent upon responses from the federal government.

Though the federal government shutdown has certainly magnified the unusual nature of this year, I know the research community has been facing uncertainty for many months. To assist our research community in navigating the evolving federal funding environment, OR&I, in collaboration with the schools and college, departments, and key institutional partners, is advancing a range of initiatives. Among the highlights are these key initiatives:

Bridge funding: Some federal awards have been terminated, expected Notices of Award have been slow to arrive, decisions on awards have been delayed, and paylines at some federal agencies are lower. Although Duke cannot provide resources to support research that is no longer eligible for funding, the university, through OR&I, the Office of the Provost, and the schools are committing substantial resources to bridge researchers and research teams to their next project.
- The Duke Science & Technology (DST) SPARK seed program was repurposed to provide funds (up to $150,000 per year for each project) to enable faculty to develop new avenues of research. These awards have been made and a formal announcement of recipients is forthcoming.
- The Office of the Provost, in collaboration with OR&I and the schools and college, will soon announce a bridge funding program to provide short-term financial support to research projects and associated personnel directly affected by recent federal changes as well as additional opportunities for researchers to initiate new projects. This will include some funding for critical aspects of international projects that have been affected by the changes in federal priorities.
- The New Direction and Delayed Funding Program, currently open to School of Medicine faculty, provides resources for support of at-risk spending (e.g., a delayed NOA), bridging to the next award, winddown funds, and pivot awards. In addition, SoM has reinstated its bridge funding program to assist researchers who have a lapse in funding.
Award management: The Office of Research Support and Office of Research Administration are coordinating with researchers and working with sponsors to successfully re-negotiate awards whose scope, timelines or deliverables have been affected.
Appeal of award terminations: When allowed and reasonable, Duke has facilitated termination appeals in coordination with investigators.
Advocating for research: Duke leadership continues work with our national associations and Congress to advocate for stable, increased federal research funding and policies that recognize the full costs of research, including fair facilities and administrative (F&A) recovery rates.
Enhanced funding opportunities tools and services: OR&I has developed and disseminated tools that make it easier to search for and receive notifications about non-federal funding opportunities from its supported database. Offices specializing in non-federal funding are also working to offer more programs, with further improvements planned.

I recognize these measures will not overcome all the current challenges, but Duke leadership is committed to identifying and advancing initiatives supporting the people and programs that make Duke’s research community exceptional.

I invite you to engage with leadership by sending questions and comments to grantsupport@duke.edu.

Thank you for your dedication, partnership, and perseverance. Your work continues to advance knowledge, serve society, and inspire hope. Together, we will uphold Duke’s mission of discovery and innovation.

November 4, 4:00pm—Shutdown Day 35

Overview

If the government shutdown continues past tonight, it will become the longest in U.S. history. The Senate returned to DC yesterday and failed to pass anything today after a 14th round of voting, while the House remains out of session. Reports this morning suggest there may be tentative progress toward a bipartisan framework to reopen the government. According to Punchbowl News, senators are exploring a potential deal that would reopen federal agencies and later guarantee a vote on extending expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies.

With Election Day today and Congress scheduled to recess through next week, pressure is growing to reach a resolution. Ongoing concerns about the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and ACA open enrollment continue to underscore the shutdown’s broad impact on households nationwide.

Activity in Congress

A bipartisan group of representatives released a “statement of principles” outlining a potential compromise on ACA subsidies. The proposal calls for a two-year extension of the enhanced tax credits, accompanied by adjusted income eligibility limits. It marks the first public, bipartisan effort to address healthcare policy since the shutdown began.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) announced that the Senate will no longer attempt to pass the current House continuing resolution (CR), as its November 21 funding deadline is no longer viable. According to POLITICO, lawmakers are now weighing whether to amend that measure or introduce a new CR–currently debating whether to craft a funding patch that would run through December, the preference of senior appropriators, or January, desired by most Republicans. Democratic leadership has not yet endorsed a deadline.

Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) and colleagues have also voiced support for advancing several appropriations bills alongside a CR, including those covering the Departments of Defense, Labor-HHS-Education, Transportation-HUD, Commerce-Justice-Science, and Interior-Environment.

Program Impacts

The administration announced today that it will partially fund SNAP through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s $4.7 billion emergency contingency fund, following two court rulings that directed the agency to do so. Recipients will receive a portion of their normal benefits while states work to implement new disbursement schedules.

Last week, the Administration also allocated $450 million to sustain the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) for an additional two to three weeks using unused tariff revenue.

Meanwhile, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association has renewed its call for a clean CR to ensure continued pay for its members. The Federal Aviation Administration has warned that continued delays could strain operations due to staffing shortages and fatigue.

October 31, 3:00pm—Shutdown Day 31

Overview

The government shutdown has now reached 31 days, just four days short of becoming the longest in U.S. history.

To avoid disruptions in military pay, the White House has transferred funds from various accounts to ensure service members received their October 31 paychecks, though they cautioned that this approach is not sustainable beyond early November.

Open enrollment for health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace begins tomorrow. Without an extension of the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits, premiums could rise sharply for millions of Americans. Meanwhile, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will lapse on November 1 for the first time in its history, absent congressional action, impacting more than 42 million Americans who rely on the program for food assistance.

Just today, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced that it will call back 200 furloughed employees to resume operations related to visa processing and other immigration-related matters. DOL updated its contingency plan to include workers at the Employment and Training Administration’s Office of Foreign Labor Certification among those exempt from shutdown-related temporary layoffs because their roles are “necessary to perform activities implied by law.”

Activity in Congress

The House of Representatives remains in recess and has not held a vote since September 19. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) reaffirmed this week that he will not bring the chamber back into session until the government is reopened, calling it “a futile exercise.” The current House-passed continuing resolution (CR), which funds the government through November 21, will expire in less than three weeks, likely necessitating another CR with a longer timeline.

In the Senate, discussions between moderate Democrats and Republican leaders are beginning to take shape. According to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), a handful of looming deadlines is sparking bipartisan conversations to develop an “off ramp” to end the shutdown. These conversations are still preliminary, but they signal early bipartisan engagement aimed at reopening the government and addressing key policy disputes. As of last night, the Senate is on recess for the weekend and will reconvene Monday.

October 28, 5:00pm–Shutdown Day 28

The federal government is nearing one month of being shutdown, and this morning the Senate failed for a 13th time to pass a vote for federal funding. As the shutdown’s impact begins to spread across federal agencies and programs, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is reporting a first: the agency has furloughed 1,400 employees, leaving about 400 NNSA staff to maintain minimum safe operating conditions at the nuclear security agency. Duke’s Office of Government Relations (OGR) is closely tracking other agency staffing concerns and any potential impacts on federally related business, such as delays in visa processing or impacts on federal student aid.

October 27, 4:00pm–Shutdown Day 27

As of today, the federal government has been shut down for 27 days, making it the second-longest in U.S. history. The Senate has cast multiple unsuccessful votes on stopgap funding and reconvened this afternoon. No vote is scheduled on the House-passed measure, which has already failed 12 times. According to Punchbowl News, the House hasn’t voted since September 19th–that’s 38 days.

The shutdown’s impacts are deepening across federal agencies and programs. The Department of Agriculture announced that federal food aid through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will stop on November 1, citing that “the well has run dry.” The program supports more than 40 million Americans who rely on SNAP benefits for groceries. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump said that a wealthy private donor has contributed $130 million to the U.S. government to help offset potential shortfalls in military pay resulting from the funding lapse.

In Congress, a GOP-led proposal to pay federal employees and contractors during the shutdown failed to advance last week, though its sponsor, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), continues talks with Democrats. POLITICO reports that Republican leaders may now look toward the next possible funding deadline, as the House has already passed a seven-week measure that would extend operations through November 21. Additional reports from Punchbowl indicate that lawmakers are also beginning to explore narrow “rifle-shot” funding bills that would pay specific federal employees, including military personnel and air traffic controllers. Senate Majority Leader John Thune has signaled that potential votes on these measures could occur as soon as Wednesday, although it remains unclear how Democrats will respond.

For regular updates from the Office of Government Relations (OGR), you can subscribe to our DC Digest newsletter that goes out every Tuesday and Friday with the latest federal activity and policy updates that are of interest to Duke. The archive of the latest newsletters can be found here.

October 13, 3:00pm–Shutdown Day 13

The shutdown is now heading into its third week, and and no end is in sight. The Senate returns for antoher round of voting today, though at the time of this writing, there is no indication it will pass. Current reports from POLITICO say that Senate Republicans are no longer allowing Democrats additional votes on their own alternative continuing resolution and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is sitll keeping members of the House out of session. As a reminder, for info on the shutdown’s impact to federally-funded research go to myRESEARCHPath for more information.

October 10, 12:00pm–Shutdown Day 10

After a seventh vote failed to pass in the Senate, the government shutdown is now expected to extend into next week. Congress still appears to be deadlocked on a funding plan, and the Senate isn’t scheduled to hold any votes until next Tuesday. As the shutdown heads into its third week, a reminder of the federal agency contingency plans are listed below, now including the plan from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Agency	Contingency Plan/Guidance	Last Updated
The National Institutes of Health (NIH)	Information for the NIH Extramural Community During the Lapse of Federal Government Funding	10/1/25
State Department (DoS)	Guidance on Operations During a Lapse in Appropriations	9/30/25
Department of Transportation (DoT)	Plans for Operations During a Lapse in Annual Appropriations By Operating Administration	9/30/25
Department of Agriculture (DoA)	U.S. Department of Agriculture Lapse in Funding Plans	9/30/25
Department of Commerce (DoC)	Plan for Orderly Shutdown Due to Lapse of Congressional Appropriations	9/29/25
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)	NASA Continuity of Appropriations Plan	9/29/25
Department of Justice (DoJ)	U.S. Department of Justice FY 2026 Contingency Plan	9/29/25
Department of Defense (DoD)	Contingency Plan Guidance for Continuation of Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	9/29/25
Department of Homeland Security (DHS)	Guidance for a Lapse in Funding for DHS	9/29/25
Department of Education (DoE)	U.S. Department of Education Contingency Plan for Lapse in Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Appropriations	9/28/25
Department of the Army & US Army Corps of Engineers	Operations in Lapse of Appropriation Guidance	9/26/25
Department of Labor (DoL)	U.S. Department of Labor Plan for the Continuation of Limited Activities during a Lapse in Appropriations	9/26/25
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS); including the NIH	FY 2026 HHS Contingency Staffing Plan for Operations in the Absence of Enacted Annual Appropriations	9/25/25
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)	FDA Contingency Plans	9/25/25
Social Security Administration	Social Security Administration Contingency Plan – Fiscal Year 2026	9/24/25
Department of Energy	Lapse Plan Summary Overview	9/24/25
National Science Foundation (NSF)	Plan for Operations During a Lapse in Appropriations	9/22/25
U.S. Small Business Administration	Plan for Operating in the Event of a Lapse in Appropriations	Sept. 2025
National Endowment for the Humanities	Agency Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	Sept. 2025
Department of the Treasury	Lapse in Appropriations Contingency Plan	Sept. 2025
Department of the Interior (DoI); including US Fish & Wildlife Service, National Park Service	Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	Sept. 2025
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)	VA Agency Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	Sept. 2025
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)	EPA Contingency Plans in the Event of a Lapse in Appropriations	Sept. 2025

October 7, 2:00pm–Shutdown Day 7

The shutdown continues as Senators voted for the fifth time against advancing legislation Monday that would lead to reopening the government. The main sticking point for Senate Dems remains the provisions related to the Affordable Care Act. Votes are set to continue today, though the Senate is expected to once again reject both the GOP’s stopgap CR and the Democratic counterproposal, and negotiations remain stalled.

Below are updates from Duke Visa Services on the impact the shutdown will have immigration services:

This shutdown will have varying levels of impact on immigration as outlined below.

Fee-based immigration processing – including immigration benefits at US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) and visas and passports at the U.S. State Department – should continue, though with potential delays if a shutdown is lengthy.
OPT applications should not be impacted since they are processed by USCIS.
Department of Labor immigration functions such as Labor Condition Applications (LCA), prevailing wage, and PERM processing are suspended until an appropriations bill or stopgap legislation is passed by Congress. The LCA is a required component for certain visa filings (including petitions for H-1B, E-3 and H-1B1 visas) so there will be delays in filing new petitions in those categories during the shutdown.
Customs & Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activities and operations will continue during the shutdown.
The E-Verify system will not be operational during the shutdown, so Duke will not be able to initiate E-Verify queries or resolve tentative non-confirmations. However, Duke will continue to comply with I-9 requirements during the shutdown.
The Conrad 30 program, which allows certain foreign medical graduates to apply for waivers of the two-year home residency requirement, expired as of September 30, 2025. Congress will need to reauthorize it before new waiver applications can be submitted.

October 2, 2:00pm–Shutdown Day 2

Today, Congress is on recess for Yom Kippur. When members return to work tomorrow, it is anticipated another vote will be underway. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has said that it’s “unlikely” senators will be in the Capitol voting this weekend, all but guaranteeing the government shutdown goes into next week.

As Senate Republicans and Democrats continue discussions and votes in the coming days, the Office of Management and Budget chief Russ Vought has stated his intent to execute mass reduction in force (RIF) moves of federal workers. 750,000 federal employees could be furloughed, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Late Wednesday, the Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced that the Department of Energy has canceled more than $7 billion in funding for hundreds of projects that the agency said don’t address the country’s energy needs and aren’t economically viable.

October 1, 2:30pm–Shutdown Day 1

Context and Contingency Plans

As of 12:01am, the government has officially shutdown. At the time of this writing, the Senate has held another round of voting today on a continuing resolution that failed.

Leading up to the shutdown, Congress had been working to move forward on the longer-term appropriations process for fiscal year (FY) 2026. Over the past several weeks, committees have released text, marked up bills, and advanced measures through votes. Below are the statuses of each bill across both chambers:

House:
- Passed Full House: Defense; Military Construction–Veterans Affairs; Energy-Water
- Approved by Full Appropriations Committee: Agriculture; Homeland Security; Interior & Environment; Legislative Branch; State & Foreign Operations; Transportation–HUD; Commerce-Justice-Science; Financial Services; Labor-HHS-Education
Senate:
- Passed Full Senate: Agriculture; Legislative Branch; Military Construction–Veterans Affairs
- Approved by Committee: Commerce-Justice-Science; Defense; Interior & Environment; Labor-HHS-Education; Transportation-HUD

Below is a listing of the available contingency plans for federal agencies. The OGR will continue to provide updates as needed.

Agency	Contingency Plan/Guidance	Last Updated
Department of State (DoS)	Guidance on Operations During a Lapse in Appropriations	9/30/25
Department of Transportation (DoT)	Plans for Operations During a Lapse in Annual Appropriations By Operating Administration	9/30/25
Department of Agriculture (DoA)	U.S. Department of Agriculture Lapse in Funding Plans	9/30/25
Department of Commerce (DoC)	Plan for Orderly Shutdown Due to Lapse of Congressional Appropriations	9/29/25
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)	NASA Continuity of Appropriations Plan	9/29/25
Department of Justice (DoJ)	U.S. Department of Justice FY 2026 Contingency Plan	9/29/25
Department of War (DoW)	Contingency Plan Guidance for Continuation of Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	9/29/25
Department of Homeland Security (DHS)	Guidance for a Lapse in Funding for DHS	9/29/25
Department of Education (DoE)	U.S. Department of Education Contingency Plan for Lapse in Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Appropriations	9/28/25
Department of the Army & US Army Corps of Engineers	Operations in Lapse of Appropriation Guidance	9/26/25
Department of Labor (DoL)	U.S. Department of Labor Plan for the Continuation of Limited Activities during a Lapse in Appropriations	9/26/25
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS); including the NIH	FY 2026 HHS Contingency Staffing Plan for Operations in the Absence of Enacted Annual Appropriations	9/25/25
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)	FDA Contingency Plans	9/25/25
Social Security Administration	Social Security Administration Contingency Plan – Fiscal Year 2026	9/24/25
National Science Foundation (NSF)	Plan for Operations During a Lapse in Appropriations	9/22/25
Department of the Treasury	Lapse in Appropriations Contingency Plan	Sept. 2025
Department of the Interior (DoI); including US Fish & Wildlife Service, National Park Service	Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	Sept. 2025
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)	VA Agency Operations in the Absence of Appropriations	Sept. 2025
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)	EPA Contingency Plans in the Event of a Lapse in Appropriations	Sept. 2025

We will provide updates to agency specific guidance as we receive them.

The OGR is working in close coordination with several key offices, including the Office for Research and Innovation and University Finance, to ensure updates are provided to the Duke community and contingencies are in place.

For updates from Duke’s Office of Research and Innovation, please visit myRESEARCHpath.com

September 30, 8:00pm

The Duke Office of Government Relations (OGR) is closely monitoring developments in Washington as government funding is set to expire today. Unless Congress acts, a federal government shutdown will begin at 12:01 a.m. on October 1.

On September 19, the House passed a continuing resolution (CR) to extend funding through November 21, but the Senate failed to advance its own measures before adjourning for a week-long district work period. Yesterday, Senate and House leaders met with President Trump at the White House in an effort to develop an agreement to keep the government funded beyond today’s deadline, but a deal was not reached.

This afternoon, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), put competing proposals to fund the government on the floor for a vote, but those failed. Barring any last-minute congressional action, a government shutdown is now expected at midnight.

September 29, 2:00pm

The Duke Office of Government Relations (OGR) and Duke Health Government Relations are closely monitoring the budget negotiations in Washington to determine the implications of a possible federal government shutdown on Duke and its activities. If such a shutdown occurs, it will take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, October 1, 2025.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) instructs all federal agencies and congressional offices to prepare and periodically update contingency plans for internal use. These contingency plans are required by law to be updated every two years and will now be found on each agency’s website. The myRESEARCHpath website will provide a listing of plans once publicly available. We are also closely monitoring whether a shutdown could lead to other disruptions, such as additional reductions in force for the federal workforce. We will share relevant information as it becomes available.

The OGR is closely coordinating with several key offices, including the Offices for Research and Innovation and Finance, to provide updates to the Duke community and contingencies that are in place should a shutdown occur. We will continue to monitor developments and communications from the federal agencies. Still, it is possible that official guidance will not become available until after the shutdown takes place. As information becomes available, it will be accessible through Duke Today, the Office of Government Relations blog, and the live updates page of myRESEARCHpath.

Duke Health Government Relations will inform health system leadership about the implications of a shutdown for patients, clinical trials, hospital operations, and medical and nursing education. As with previous shutdowns, we anticipate that the distribution of Social Security and Medicare checks, as well as Medicare payments to hospitals, physicians, and other providers, will continue. All Veterans Health Administration facilities that provide care will remain open and fully functional during a government shutdown. However, there is a patchwork of temporary statutory waivers for telehealth services under Medicare that, unless further action is taken, will expire on September 30. Duke Health Government Relations continues to advocate for the extension of telehealth waivers and any retroactive payments that may be due.

In the meantime, if you have meetings or events scheduled with federal officials in Washington, D.C., or on campus over the next few weeks, please consider alternative arrangements.

The following is a publication from the American Council on Education (ACE) regarding federal government shutdowns that might provide helpful background.

Government Shutdowns and Higher Education (ACE)

Below are some additional resources that will be helpful if a shutdown occurs:

From Duke University on Research Projects:

https://myresearchpath.duke.edu/impact-federal-government-shutdown-academic-research

From the American Immigration Lawyers Association:

https://www.aila.org/advo-media/aila-practice-pointers-and-alerts/government-shuts-down

OGR and Duke Health GR will continue to monitor the situation and update the Duke community as further information becomes available.

Reviewing 2024 Legislative Activity

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On January 10, 2025

In Blog

With 2024 and the 118^th Congress behind us and the Biden administration leaving office soon, we are sharing an update on the state of Duke’s federal priorities and DC-based activities from the last half of 2024.

Let’s start with federal funding.

Budget and Appropriations

Over the summer, there was initial progress on Fiscal Year 2025 (FY 25) appropriations bills. However, momentum stalled once Congress reconvened in September for a short work period before another recess through the election, forcing lawmakers to pass a stopgap funding measure for the current fiscal year through Dec. 20. After coming within hours of missing that deadline, Congress passed, and President Biden signed another continuing resolution to extend government funding through March 14.

Below is the current status of some of Duke’s appropriations priorities:

Research

Research security surrounding collaborations with countries of concern continued to be a focal point for Congress and the administration. In July, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) published its long-awaited guidelines for institutions that receive over $50 million in federal R&D funding to protect research from theft or misappropriation. These institutions are required to enact research security programs that cover the following areas: research security training, foreign travel security, export control training and cybersecurity.

On the congressional side, the National Defense Authorization Act was again the primary vehicle for new legislative provisions related to research security. Of note, the compromise measure approved in December included language that prohibits Department of Defense (DOD) funding to an individual who has a research collaboration with a foreign institution DOD has determined to have engaged in problematic activities. Waivers may be granted if the work is deemed to be in the national security interest of the US.

In late December, the House Bipartisan Task Force on Artificial Intelligence released its long-awaited report. The document, which is a culmination of a nearly year-long effort of capturing stakeholder feedback, established a set of guiding principles, 66 key findings and over 80 recommendations for consideration to help secure the country’s leadership in artificial intelligence.

Higher Education and Student Aid

The Biden administration continued its push for student loan relief throughout the year, despite facing legal challenges. In total, the administration has enacted more than $166 billion in forgiveness for about 4.4 million borrowers, according to recent data from the U.S. Department of Education.

One of the main student aid focuses for the federal government this fall was the updated Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). After an initial rocky rollout in early 2023, the Department of Education took measures to improve the form for the next application cycle, including several rounds of beta testing. Congress eventually passed the FAFSA Deadline Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law. The new law aims to ensure a more consistent timeline for students and educational institutions, requiring the Department to make the FAFSA application available by Oct. 1 each year. Also impacted by the FAFSA rollout was the financial value transparency (FVT) and gainful employment (GE) reporting deadline, which was pushed back twice to January 2025. The Department delayed the deadline as mishaps with the new FAFSA rollout impacted the timeline higher education institutions had to issue financial aid packages.

Before year-end, the Department of Education finalized regulations requiring higher ed institutions to report data on students in distance education receiving federal aid, effective July 1, 2027. President Biden also withdrew two regulatory proposals that have received much scrutiny during his presidency for Title IX athletics policies and student debt forgiveness.

Immigration

In the year’s closing weeks, the Biden administration made several notable visa updates. The State Department updated the countries eligible for the exchange visa skills list. The update, the first since 2009, dropped China, India, and several other countries from the list of ineligible nations. International scholars and researchers from countries on the exchange eligible list may apply for a new work visa without first leaving the U.S. and returning to their home country.

The Department of Homeland Security recently finalized a rule to modernize the H-1B program. The modernization update is intended to streamline the approval process while providing greater flexibility to employers and oversight of the program.

Other Policy Engagement

This fall, the Duke community was quite busy actively engaging with policymakers in Washington, D.C., through a diverse set of programs and convenings. These activities drew expertise from all parts of the university, working to build purposeful partnerships with lawmakers, think tanks and policy professionals to elevate Duke’s presence and impact in D.C.

Here’s a brand-new video highlighting all the ways the Duke in DC office contributes to those types of engagement:

The Duke in DC office was the hub for many of these events, including a roundtable co-hosted with the Office of Representative Valerie Foushee (D-NC) and the Pratt School of Engineering. This discussion explored issues relevant to the House Bipartisan AI Taskforce, of which Congresswoman Foushee is a member, with a particular focus on AI open hardware, software, and infrastructure. Along with Congresswoman Foushee, key speakers included Elizabeth Kelly, director of the US AI Safety Institute, and Lee Tiedrich, a distinguished faculty fellow in ethical technology at Duke. The conversation addressed the need for responsible computing capacity deployment to foster AI competition and access, especially for historically underserved groups, while tackling AI systems’ environmental impacts.

Following two years of hosting successful summits on campus in North Carolina, the Veterans Transition Resource Lab brought the conversation and several years of learning directly to policymakers. Duke University is the only school in the United States to host a lab dedicated to research on enhancing military veteran transitions to the workforce. The lab works to provide unique insights in support of military veterans that can be derived from rigorous academic research.

Rounding out the year at the DC office was Bridging the Divide: A Discussion on Bipartisan Legislating with U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and former U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) in early December. The senators participated in an insightful conversation about health care policy and bipartisanship in today’s Congress. Sanford professor Kate Bundorf and interim dean Manoj Mohanan moderated the discussion on bipartisan achievements and opportunities in the world of health policy, touching on critical issues ranging from the opioid crisis to public health preparedness.

Several undergraduate students were able to travel up for the event and have a lunch roundtable with Senator Burr.

Other student engagement this year included over 60 incoming first-year students who attended the annual Project Citizen orientation trip to Washington, D.C. They participated in a speaker session with White House staff, toured the National Museum of African American History and Culture, and met with alumni at the Duke in DC office.

Students also visited Duke in DC this fall with the annual Kenan Institute’s FOCUS field trip. The experiential learning excursion is specifically designed for students enrolled in the “Focus” program, where they delve into a concentrated theme like ethics, leadership, or global citizenship.

What’s Next?

Keep an eye out for our next legislative update blog, which will focus on looking ahead to what’s next in the new administration and the 119th Congress.

To receive regular updates from our office, sign up for our DC Digest here.

A Year in Review: AI and Cybersecurity @ Duke

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On October 29, 2024

In Blog

The rapid rise of open artificial intelligence tools, like ChatGPT, has brought this cutting-edge technology to the forefront of public attention. Duke University is a home to many leading voices in AI development, application and policy. Over the past year, Duke’s experts from across schools and departments have actively engaged with policymakers, industry professionals and thought leaders to shape the future of AI in ways that promote innovation while addressing societal concerns. Through research, collaboration, and public discourse, Duke is playing a unique role in this public moment helping to pave the way for responsible AI implementation across various sectors.

Over the past year, Duke’s experts have increasingly collaborated with external partners involved in the national effort to advance artificial intelligence technology. One of the first engagements was John Bansemer, Director of the CyberAI Project, moderating a panel at a Cybersecurity Conference with Duke in DC. The event featured topics ranging from cyber national threats to women in cybersecurity to crypto/blockchain as disruptors.

Yiran Chen and Jeffery Krolik from Duke Engineering were among participants from the 25 National Science Foundation’s (NSF) National Artificial Intelligence Research Institutes participating in the NSF AI Showcase last September. This event highlighted their work with Athena, a program centered on edge computing. As an example of this technology, Athena allows first responders to use edge technology to annotate maps of their environment in challenging situations to make them safer. The showcase also included remarks from NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan and Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.).

Panchanathan lauded the efforts of what he said was a decades-long investment into the NSF to develop artificial intelligence research and production. Duke’s engagement with policymakers continued the next day with advocacy meetings where researchers stressed the importance of federal lawmakers increasing funding support for NSF to keep the United States as a leader in AI development.

On October 30, the White House issued a sweeping executive order regulating artificial intelligence. The order “establishes new standards for AI safety and security, protects Americans’ privacy, advances equity and civil rights, stands up for consumers and workers, promotes innovation and competition, advances American leadership around the world, and more.”

Duke executive in residence, Lee Tiedrich, spoke to students in Gross Gall about unpacking these new rules. She noted that the speed of governments responding around the world to AI’s development is unprecedented. This, Tiedrich attributes to lessons learned from the light touch approach applied to the emergence of social media in the early 2000s noting, “Now, governments around the world are looking at the potential risks with AI and saying, ‘We don’t want to do that again. We are going to have a seat at the table in developing the standards.’”

Later last fall, Rep. Valarie Foushee acknowledged Duke’s efforts in AI research during a congressional hearing on AI risk management. She emphasized that NSF funding is crucial to continue researching this emerging field. She subsequently joined Rep. Deborah Ross for an AI Roundtable back in Durham to discuss federal guardrails and ways to support innovation, which featured Duke Engineering faculty Cynthia Rudin and Shaundra (Shani) Daily.

Around this time, Rep. Ross also cosponsored HR 5077 Create AI Act, which authorizes the construction of the National Artificial Intelligence Research Resource and democratizes AI use for all.

A month later, in Washington, DC, Syracuse held an inaugural meeting for the Academic Alliance on AI Policy. Yiran Chen from Duke Engineering served with many other esteemed colleagues on the steering committee. Duke’s role in this academic advisory board is significant, as it is formed to serve as a resource for lawmakers, policymakers, and others seeking to regulate and better understand AI. The symposium’s topics were the new alliance and AI policy, how AI will affect the future of work, and its impact on the 2024 presidential election.

Most recently, the Duke in DC office hosted a roundtable in partnership with the Office of Congresswoman Valerie Foushee (NC-04) on AI open hardware, open software and infrastructure policies. A group of industry stakeholders, including the director of the United States AI Safety Institute and Duke alumna Elizabeth Kelly, discussed the current state of AI policy and how to best ensure that sufficient computing capacity is deployed responsibly to promote AI competition and access throughout society, and made accessible to groups that historically have faced challenges obtaining capital and other vital resources. Attendees also discussed how to address the growing adverse environmental impacts of AI systems.

After the roundtable, Duke in DC also served as a convener for a gathering hosted by the Pratt School of Engineering, Global Partnership on AI (GPAI), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and Inria. The workshop sought to create a foundation for crafting policy, technical, and other solutions that can unlock innovation and promote research and social good, while mitigating risks, including to IP and other rights.

As we look back on the past year, from policy panels and legislative roundtables to innovative research collaborations, Duke continues to play a crucial role in conversations around responsible AI development and its broader implications. Duke is contributing to technological progress and ensuring that AI’s growth is aligned with societal needs and ethical considerations. Looking ahead, the university’s leadership in AI will no doubt continue to influence policy, research, and practice, ensuring a secure and equitable future for all.

By Christina Barrow, October 24, 2024

Duke Cyber Club Wins Back-to-Back International Competitions; Participates in Black Hat

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On October 24, 2024

In Blog

Guest Blog from Duke Cyber Club President Shristi Sharma

On the heels of two first place wins in the 2024 Atlantic Council’s Cyber 9-12 Strategy Challenge (Austin and Washington D.C.), Duke Cyber Club is kicking off its sixth academic year on a very high note. In addition to monetary awards, eight team members received free tickets to Black Hat, one of the most respected cybersecurity international events. Student reflections are noteworthy as the challenges in cybersecurity continue to grow in scope and complexity for the world.

Duke Cyber Club is a student-led organization that began as a small team of very dedicated individuals. In six years, it has grown campus-wide to include undergraduate and graduate students from all disciplines and interests. With support from Pratt’s Cybersecurity Master of Engineering Program and Engineering Alumni Council, Sanford’s School of Public Policy, American Grand Strategy, Duke’s CISO Office and others, Duke Cyber Club offers students opportunities to learn from each other, engage with cybersecurity practitioners in the government and private sector, hone their policy and technical skills in practice sessions and participate in competitions hosted by Duke as well as nationally recognized organizations.

August 2024 was the first time Duke Cyber members participated in the Las Vegas Black Hat Conference and their lessons-learned reflections are noteworthy:

Cutting-edge cyber exploitation techniques destroy our fundamental assumptions of security. For example, presenters demonstrated how answering an innocuous video call on your phone can allow attackers to steal your data. The mere latency of your internet connection can allow observers to discern what website you’re on. It gets even more fundamental: the time it takes for variables to be called from your computer’s memory vs. cache can be exploited to infer the state of variables in compartmented processes.
Companies like Microsoft and Intel proactively red team each other’s products before release, often revealing zero-days and giving dev teams time to patch before their product is ever put into production. This collaborative approach to product security was reassuring and underscored the importance of adversarial testing, like red-teaming.
AI is dramatically reshaping cybersecurity as a business, offering blue-teamers powerful tools for threat detection and automated response. However, it also introduces new risks, as attackers are increasingly using AI to create more sophisticated and elusive threats (particularly at the level of social engineering). The evolution of phishing techniques, from traditional wide-net phishing to highly targeted spear phishing now enhanced by AI, was both alarming and intriguing. The sophistication of these attacks, driven by AI’s ability to tailor messages to individuals and craft convincing narratives, highlighted the growing challenges in cybersecurity. One student watched a handful of talks about these new campaigns, and often left with an uneasy feeling, as many of the scenarios felt like ploys they would fall for, even as someone who’s keenly aware of phishing.
The rise of generative AI has introduced new attack vectors, and it was interesting to observe how different speakers had varying perspectives on how to secure against these emerging AI threats. Some speakers implored that we not fight AI with AI, as the issues present in the products we attempt to secure would also be present in the security solutions, while others took the perspective that AI security products are the only match for an adversary equipped with AI. The diversity of opinions emphasized the complexity and unchartedness of addressing AI-related security challenges.
Cybersecurity Startups are gaining lots of attention in cybersecurity innovation, particularly in areas like cloud security, threat intelligence, and zero-trust architectures. The conference emphasized that agility and niche problem-solving are key for new companies to succeed, but one student was still somewhat skeptical about how much value-added some startups are creating. It often seemed as though some created problems for themselves to solve rather than addressing real market needs.
Zero-Day Exploits – Another student learned that zero-day vulnerabilities aren’t just for seasoned professionals to find — students with a strong technical foundation and curiosity can also discover them. By participating in bug bounty programs, seeking academic incentives, or staying active in cybersecurity communities, even newcomers can make meaningful contributions.

Learn more about Duke Cyber at https://duke.campusgroups.com/dukecyber/home/.

Experts Share Insights on North Carolina’s Place as a Global Economic Leader

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On August 8, 2024

In Blog

Federal policymakers, North Carolina companies and other entities with a vested interest in North Carolina’s economy convened for a recent discussion at the Duke in DC office. Highlighting the importance of a research-based economy, the conversation emphasized the work occurring statewide to maintain North Carolina’s economic competitiveness as a global leader in recruiting and retaining industries and the positive return for investing in those practices.

The panel discussion, moderated by Duke University’s Vice President for Government Relations Chris Simmons, featured comments from Provost Alec Gallimore, Chris Chung from the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina and Sara Lawrence, Director, Economic Development, RTI International.

NC in DC: Bolstering Global Competitiveness through a Research-Based Economy panel discussion at the Duke in DC office. Speakers include Chris Chung, Chief Executive Officer, Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina; Alec Gallimore, Provost and Chief Academic Officer, Duke University; and Sara Lawrence, Director, Economic Development, RTI International; moderated by Chris Simmons, Vice President for Government Relations, Duke University (Jared Lazarus)

As a world leader in biotechnology, national security, agriculture, healthcare, energy, and more, North Carolina’s strategic research collaborations propel it to the forefront of the global economy.

North Carolina currently ranks among the top 25 economies in the world. Recent data highlights that Duke University alone spends more than $1 billion annually with over 4,000 North Carolina-based vendors and contractors. In FY22, Duke ranked 9th in the nation for total research and development expenditures, surpassing $1.39 billion.

The focus of the panel and dinner discussion was to underscore for federal policymakers the crucial role of industry-academia partnerships in maintaining North Carolina’s research economy. The discussion also highlighted the need for state and federal support to reinforce these efforts.

The conversation explored why industries, ranging from electric vehicle manufacturers to life sciences leaders and more, new expansion opportunities in North Carolina., one expert Given the number of higher education institutions across the state, the panel agreed North Carolina is well-positioned to says it comes down to the abilityallow employers to find a qualified , upskill and retain a workforce, what policymakers can do to help those processes, the answer includes removing the barriers to the workforce, such as: access to childcare and trainings that might help employees succeed.

The panel also discussed how investing in talent impacts not only the large metro areas of North Carolina, but also extends into the most rural communities. North Carolina provides numerous opportunities to examine similar communities and their successes and implement successful economic models across the state. The panel of experts reinforced the need to share research, data and talent to help make North Carolina the next industry hotspot.

The conclusion of NC in DC highlighted the power of Duke University as a convener as attendees engaged in meaningful conversations and connections extending beyond the panel. Through programs like this, Duke remains a purposeful partner in showcasing that businesses, policymakers, and higher education professionals alike are working together to bolster North Carolina’s global competitiveness through a research-based economy.

Provost Alec Gallimore Visits Washington D.C.

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On July 10, 2024

In Blog

Provost Alec Gallimore traveled to Washington at the end of June to advocate for federal research funding, global education, and other pressing issues with federal policymakers.

Gallimore met with a number of officials, alumni and others to discuss a wide range of issues, including funding for scientific research, immigration and international engagement. He was joined by Vice President for Government Relations Chris Simmons and Associate Vice President for Government Relations Melissa Vetterkind. In addition to meetings with staff at the White House Office of Science and Technology, the Duke delegation also spent time with officials from the State Department and the National Science Foundation.

Duke Provost Alec Gallimore speaks with
Melissa Vetterkind, associate vice president of the office of government relations, and Chris Simmons, vice president for government relations, outside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, DC.

Vetterkind said that Gallimore’s scientific expertise allowed for robust conversations on the current state of the nation’s global leadership in science and technology, saying, “Global competitiveness is top of mind in DC these days, and this was a great opportunity to have Provost Gallimore lend his voice and expertise in making the case that strong federal investments in fundamental research and policies that encourage international collaborations are core elements of the country’s economic engine and global leadership.”

Also during the trip, Gallimore participated in a panel discussion at Duke in DC, “NC in DC: Bolstering Global Competitiveness through a Research-Based Economy.”The discussion was moderated by Simmons and included leaders from North Carolina’s economic development sector, including Chris Chung, CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina, and Sara Lawrence, Director of Economic Development at RTI International. Participants discussed how North Carolina’s commitment to academic excellence fuels its dynamic research-based economy and helps strengthen the state’s economic competitiveness on both a national and global scale.

For the remainder of the week, the provost attended the New Global Universities Summit, also held at Duke in DC. The event, which was organized by Vice Provost Yakut Gazi and Associate Provost Noah Pickus, convened leaders of universities launched in the last 25 years, including founders, presidents, and provosts from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America and the Middle East.

Regarding the trip and the meetings and events in Washington, Gallimore said, “My visit to Washington was an excellent opportunity to engage with key experts and decision-makers and discuss how we can work together on funding for scientific research, economic development in North Carolina, global education, and other strategic priorities. Our strong presence in the nation’s capital, including Duke in DC, is a tremendous asset in developing these important relationships.”

Beyond Talking Points: Climate Financing and the Role of Federal Incentives

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On April 19, 2024

In Blog

Duke in DC’s latest Beyond Talking Points program featured discussion about climate financing and the role of federal incentives in the wake of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which some argue is the largest investment by the federal government into climate resilience efforts.

Our panel of Duke experts, including the Nicholas Institute’s Jackson Ewing, the Pratt School for Engineering’s Judy Ledlee, Duke Law’s Lee Reiners and moderated by the Nicholas School for Environment’s Interim Dean Lori Bennear, discussed what we mean when we say climate finance, the work already being done in the public and private sectors and how crucial incentivizing investment at the policy-making level will be to the future of planet earth.

Recommendations to policymakers as conversations continue about climate financing:

Judy Ledlee

“Continue funding, research funding, and translational funding that brings communities to the table, as part of the solutions development. I think making this, climate tech revolution more equitable and bringing more people to the table would be my dream.”

Jackson Ewing

“Improve implementation capacity at your subnational levels, which is the jurisdictions that you’re operating within. We need more people and resources at the state and municipal levels to implement these policies.”

Lee Reiners

“I do think, climate risk is financial risk, and it is important for companies to disclose this information. It is relevant.”

On the Inflation Reduction Act and mobilizing its capital:

Lee Reiners

“These funds will be delivered through a mix of tax incentives, grants, and loan guarantees. Clean electricity and transmission command the biggest slice of those incentives followed by clean transportation, including, electric vehicle incentives. In terms of incentives for private investment, the biggest are, the investment tax credit and the production tax credit, both of which have been around for a while. And the IRA extended them through the end of 2024 and then created two, technology-neutral credits to replace them for projects placed in service starting in 2025.”

On the complications of implementing the IRA:

Jackson Ewing

“We’ve been talking a lot about the incentives that make up the bulk of the IRA, which are enormously important. They are only as strong as kind of the regulatory and business environment in which they’re operating. And so you still have the existence of bottlenecks that limit the amount of infrastructure that can be built. And so by extension, the amount of finance that can be deployed for that purpose. I think that the top of that list is permitting. And so, you know, when I mentioned previously that if we really are serious about scaling up our domestic production and deployment of many of these industries and technologies from batteries to solar, to wind, to larger transportation, electrification, etcetera, that we’re going to have to, move away from our sources of the minerals and metals and other inputs, that we currently use, for those products and start to develop more of them here in the US.”

Judy Ledlee

“Getting this additional funding into research is really, catalyzing and inspiring a lot of research in crucial areas like energy storage, hydrogen, even fusion, grid management. So getting this research and these innovations, the core technologies developed is incredibly powerful. And then secondly, helping these translational efforts going beyond research into actually, creating companies and around implementing these technologies and getting them out in the real world. And so what’s really important here is actually having government funding, like was mentioned earlier, de-risk some of these solutions so that, you know, private funding can come in afterward. And it’s so important as we think about climate tech, it’s hard tech and requires so much capital to start up and also long-term stability for these fundings so that people can develop plans around them. You know, starting with Solar Jet takes years in order to just set the groundwork for it, you know, so long-term funding, probably a lot of funding, and examples of this that I’ve seen, you know, coming from even the Chips Act is this new, NSF regional engine program that is, an exciting way of spring economic growth and localized communities actually, providing like $160,000,000 for up to 10 years for regional innovation ecosystems. And this isn’t particular to climate tech, but it’s, a really good mechanism to inspire climate tech because it has that large, large dollar amount and longer timeline as well.”

On public-private sector investments:

Lee Reiners

“It’s probably not an either-or, it’s probably a both. And so what circumstances make sense for federal investment versus private sector investment? Yeah. It’s definitely a both. So the reality is that given, the scale of the of the issue, you know, this is not something that the government can solve on its own, certainly given, debt constraints, and it’s something that the private sector can’t solve on its own. So you really need both the government and the private sector working together, and that’s what you see, with those capital flowing into clean power and deep capital flowing into clean power and decarbonization, but there’s not because of risk-return profiles, you know, don’t meet investors’ criteria. So, you know, the end goal really is so, you know, these IRA programs are designed to either increase returns, right, for, private capital providers, reduce risk, or both with, you know, the hope that it sort of crowds in. Private capital is a term you hear a lot. And so, hopefully, you know, once that happens, you will drive down the cost of these projects and technologies so they get to the point of what we call bankability, simply meaning that these projects and technologies can get private capital on their own and kind of stand on their own two feet.”

On equitable access to climate financing solutions:

Judy Ledlee

“How can we actually ensure that those climate tech solutions are equitable and accessible to all communities, particularly to marginalized or vulnerable populations? With climate tech, while the core technologies can be used anywhere, actually implementing these solutions will require localized special knowledge because they have to interact with the natural environment in any different location is gonna have its own nuances there. So it’s a way that we can really bring a lot of people to the table that weren’t necessarily part of the digital revolution. And so I hear like I want to encourage policymakers and, funders to really prioritize efforts that bring diverse groups of communities to the table for these tech transfer and commercialization opportunities. We want to create a new generation of leaders who can, help champion their solutions in their particular locations as well as also bring in, communities who who weren’t at the table for part of it and, for, like, the digital revolution.”

Jackson Ewing

“Historically, we’ve seen, you know, it’s been easier to cite certain types of facilities in places that, have lower socioeconomic status or, are, linguistically isolated. And one of the goals or the hopes with the clean energy transition is that we’ll be able to reduce that kind of energy injustice, the so-called energy sacrifice zones. But the sort of permitting issues that you’re talking about now perhaps suggest that we could end up repeating some of those mistakes.”

Jackson Ewing | Director of Energy and Climate Policy | Nicholas School of the Environment

Jackson Ewing is director of energy and climate policy at the Nicholas Institute of Energy, Environment & Sustainability at Duke University. He is also an adjunct associate professor at the Nicholas School of the Environment and a faculty affiliate with the Duke Center for International Development at the Sanford School of Public Policy. He works closely with the Duke Kunshan University Environmental Research Center and International Masters of Environmental Policy programs to build policy research collaboration across Duke platforms in the United States and China. He holds a doctorate in environmental security and master’s degree in international relations from Australia’s Bond University, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the College of Charleston.

Judy Ledlee |Executive Director of Design Climate | Nicholas School of the Environment

Judy Ledlee, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of Design Climate and is passionate about cleantech innovation and commercialization. Judy developed her passion for cleantech innovation during her doctoral studies at Duke University where she researched emerging water treatment technologies. From her work, she co-founded a startup for hydraulic fracturing wastewater recycling. After graduating, she continued her cleantech career in the water industry working for Evoqua (now Dupont and Xylem), Black & Veatch, and ZwitterCo. Throughout her career, she’s continued working on entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial activities and is excited to return to Duke and create opportunities for new generations of students to develop innovations for addressing climate challenges. She holds a Ph.D. and Masters from Duke University and her Bachelor of Science from Tufts University.

Lee Reiners |Lecturing Fellow, Financial Economics Center and School of Law

Lee Reiners is a lecturing fellow at the Duke Financial Economics Center and at Duke Law. At Duke, Reiners has taught classes on FinTech Law and Policy, Cryptocurrency Law and Policy, Financial Regulatory Policy, Climate Change and Financial Markets, and Cybersecurity Law and Policy. His broad research agenda focuses on how new financial technologies and climate change fit within existing regulatory frameworks. He holds a master’s in Public Policy from Duke University.

Moderated by:

Lori Bennear | Professor of Energy Economics and Policy | Stanback Dean of the Nicholas School of the Environment

Lori Bennear’s research focuses on evaluating environmental policies and improving methods and techniques for conducting evaluations. While the field of policy evaluation is a broad one, her specific niche is in bringing rigorous quantitative methods to evaluate environmental policy innovations along four dimensions (1) Evaluating the effectiveness of environmental policies and programs, (2) Evaluating strategic behavioral responses to non-traditional regulatory regimes, (3) Assessing the distributional impacts of these new regulatory regimes and (4) Evaluating the role of program evaluation in environmental policy. She holds a Ph.D. from Harvard and Masters from Yale University.

In case you missed it, watch the full conversation here.

Legislative Activity in Washington DC: Reviewing 2023 and Looking Ahead to 2024

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On January 11, 2024

In Blog

As Congress returns to session in the new year, let us catch you up to speed on where they and the rest of the federal government left off at the end of 2023.

We shared our last legislative activity updates in April and, since that time, Congress was simultaneously very busy while not being overly productive regarding appropriations—it averted two potential shutdowns, elected a new House Speaker and saw new federal appointments.

Let’s start with appropriations.

Budget and Appropriations

In March 2023, President Joe Biden released his FY24 budget proposal, which was expected to launch the year-long federal appropriations process.

That process was complicated by stalemates in both the House and the Senate, bringing forth the first government shutdown threat in October. It was narrowly avoided when Congress passed a continuing resolution (CR) that allowed elected officials to continue conversations and negotiations about funding bills with the hope of reaching a consensus before the CR ran out on November 17^th. The process was further slowed by the election of new House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) following the ousting of former Congressman Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).

Congress passed a second CR, this time a two-tiered approach. The House and Senate have until January 19 to work out an agreement on the Agriculture-FDA, Energy-Water, Military Construction-VA and Transportation-HUD spending bills. The remaining eight spending bills— Commerce-Justice-Science, Defense, Financial Services, Homeland Security, Interior-Environment, Labor-HHS-Education, Legislative Branch and State-Foreign Operations—have funding until February 2.

Congressional leaders recently struck an agreement on the topline funding levels for the FY 24 bills, which will provide the framework for appropriations leaders to negotiate and finalize spending bills. However, another CR will most likely be needed to provide time for the final bills to be written.

Here’s a breakdown of where things stand for programs of interest to the Duke community:

Research

The second half of 2023 saw a notable focus in the federal government toward the nation’s research initiatives, including artificial intelligence (AI), quantum, and efforts to fund the CHIPS and Science Act fully.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) announced initial plans over the summer to start regulating AI and hosted a series of forums during the fall to help educate senators and staff on the wide-ranging aspects of AI. President Biden also issued the first-ever executive order on AI, which puts forward new standards for AI safety and security, privacy protection and more.

In the early part of the year, The Biden-Harris administration, through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology, launched the first CHIPS for America funding opportunity for manufacturing incentives to restore U.S. leadership in semiconductor manufacturing. The CHIPS and Science Act was originally signed into law in August of 2022. The Department of Defense announced that under the CHIPS and Science Act, “the award of nearly $240 million to eight regional ‘innovation hubs’ around the United States which will be a part of the Microelectronics Commons.” One of the hubs is slated to come to North Carolina.

While the progress is commendable, more can be done to further the efforts of the CHIPS and Science Act by fully funding the science portion of the law. Duke President Vincent Price wrote on the subject in an op-ed for the Raleigh News and Observer.

Foreign Influences and Research Security

The House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) issued a list last month outlining a potential blueprint that would help the United States “reset” its economic relationship with China through updated research security measures and tightening the export of technology.

The Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act was passed by the House in December. This legislation would greatly expand disclosure requirements under Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, which governs the disclosure of foreign gifts and contracts by institutions of higher education. The American Council on Education (ACE) wrote a letter in opposition to the DETERRENT Act, citing concerns that, “we believe the DETERRENT Act is duplicative of existing interagency efforts, unnecessary, and puts in place a problematic expansion of the data collection by the U.S. Department of Education that will broadly curtail important needed international research collaboration and academic and cultural exchanges.”

Student Aid

One major development that occurred in the latter half of 2023: the Bipartisan Workforce Pell Act. The House Education and Workforce Committee recently passed the act with the goal of allowing students to use their Pell eligibility to support endeavors in short-term training.

It would be an unprecedented step to deny students access to federal programs based on the institution they chose to attend.

Duke supports the creation of the short-term Pell as it is likely to be accessed by many in Durham and across North Carolina and provide thousands of individuals with important training needed for crucial careers in our growing economy.

If the bill becomes law, over 3,400 Duke students will lose access to these loans – and likely forced to borrow from bank-based lending programs that are more expensive and sometimes hard to access. These programs also lack income-based repayment plans or access to other benefits seen in the federal programs. Duke University School of Medicine Dean Mary E. Klotman and Duke University School of Nursing Interim Dean Michael Relf highlight just what kind of impact that can have on the future of our workforce.

Of other items related to student aid, the Department of Education announced along with its regulatory agenda at the end of 2023 that the final regulations on two Title IX rules would be once again delayed to March of next year. The ED had initially proposed the updates in July of 2022 but was inundated with public comment delaying a decision.

Also facing roadblocks: President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program. The House voted to repeal President Joe Biden’s student loan repayment plan in early December, with a vote to withdraw the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, an income-driven repayment plan for student loans.

After several delays and setbacks, the Education Department officially released the new FAFSA application form in the final hours of 2023, three months later than its typical October 1 release. Despite this announcement, another hurdle is expected to come in the form of processing delays.

Immigration

Just before Thanksgiving, more than 64 higher education institutions signed a letter urging the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security to extend the visa interview waiver authorities. The waivers allow for authorities to forego in-person interviews for “certain low-risk visa applications.” Thankfully, the Department of State confirmed its plans to extend the waivers, which were set to expire on December 31, 2023.

The Department of State also announced at the end of the year its plans for a pilot program that will allow domestic visa renewals for qualified H–1B nonimmigrant visa applicants who meet certain requirements. The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant work visa that allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers with specialized skills to work in the United States for a specific period of time. Typically, the roles require a bachelor’s degree or equivalent. The pilot program resurrects one that had previously ended in 2004 and allows certain H-1B visa holders to renew their applications domestically in the U.S. without having to travel abroad to a consulate.

Federal Appointments and Roles

Biden Administration

Several Duke Alumni have been appointed to positions in President Biden’s administration, including Stefanie Feldman PPS’10 who was named director of the new White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. Kate Klimczak MPP’12 was appointed as the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Associate Director for Legislative Policy and Analysis and Director of the NIH Office of Legislative Policy and Analysis (OLPA).

Another appointment of note includes Dr. Monica Bertagnolli, who now serves as the newest director of the NIH. She succeeds Francis Collins who stepped down in 2021.

Congress

In case you missed it—here are the Congressional appointments for the 118^th Congress as of our last update.

Other Congressional Engagement

Duke professors were well-represented on the Hill last year, with several traveling to Washington D.C. to participate in showcases, meet with staffers and testify before congressional committees.

Professors Yiran Chen and Jeffrey Krolik participated in the National Science Foundation (NSF) Artificial Intelligence Showcase, highlighting their work with the Pratt School of Engineering’s Athena program. Chen and Krolik also met with congressional staffers as part of a Coalition for National Science Funding advocacy day. Chen was also appointed to serve on the first steering committee for the Academic Alliance for AI Policy, led by Syracuse University.

In the Senate’s AI Insight Forums, Professor Cynthia Rudin provided testimony at the seventh event focused on transparency, explainability, intellectual property and copyright. Professor Jian Pei, chair of Duke’s Computer Science Department, traveled to Washington as part of an advocacy fly-in sponsored by the Computing Research Association.

Other faculty testimonies can be found here, including Jimmie Lenz’s on “Modernizing Financial Services Through Innovation and Competition,” and Stephen Roady’s at a legislative hearing for the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries.

Back in Durham, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy launched his “We Are Made to Connect” tour of college campuses at Duke “to share inspiration and resources aimed at helping students and others connect with each other.”

Also in Durham, the Office of Government Relations hosted its first State and District Congressional Staff Day since 2019. The traditional biennial gathering helps showcase Duke University and Duke Health experts and programs impacting North Carolinians to staff serving our state’s congressional delegation. With a community of over 45,000 employees, Duke is the largest homegrown private employer and the second largest private employer overall in the state.

Duke’s Veterans Transition Resource Lab: From Inception to the Future

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On November 16, 2023

In Blog

A mission some ten years in the making, the Veterans Transition Resource Lab has grown from an engaged initiative to a full-blown, funded research lab aimed at improving employment outcomes for military veterans and their families.

The Veteran Transitions Research Lab (VTRL) conducts research through the Fuqua School of Business that helps to encourage other leaders in this field of research to launch investigations of this topic using their unique expertise. on enhancing veterans’ transition to the workforce. The VTRL’s work has received national attention and sponsorship from Microsoft, Amazon, LinkedIn, CVS Health, the Call of Duty Endowment, USAA and several U.S. universities.

Aaron C. Kay, the J. Rex Fuqua Professor of International Management at the Duke Fuqua School of Business, Sean Kelley, Duke Fuqua School of Business Executive in Residence and David Sherman, professor of social psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), co-lead the VRTL’s research efforts,

In honor of Veterans Day and the important work the VTRL does for veterans, we highlighted the journey of VTRL from its inception into looking toward its future.

We are building a completely new field of academically rigorous research focused on areas of persistent challenge in military transition: underemployment, challenges with belongingness, and issues related to stereotyping of veterans and bias faced in employment. With over 150,000 veterans transitioning each year, we have an opportunity to improve many lives through applied research generated by the VTRL and our partners.
Sean Kelley

Kelley said he and Kay originally met in 2013 and began an exploration of this specific research with a gift of $250,000 from Microsoft, where Kelley worked at the time. Kay and his primary collaborator, Dr. David Sherman, worked on a number of research efforts, after which Kelley joined as an Executive in Residence in 2020. This formed the Veteran Transitions Research Project, the earliest iteration of the VTRL.

Kelley said he and his team sought to fill what they saw as a gap in academic research centered on military veterans and their families. He said through corporate sponsorships and non-government organizations, they have raised $750,000 to put towards first party research on topics relevant to how veterans experience and adjust to the civilian workforce and the educational settings that facilitate this transition compared to the military, the way society and managers (that control hiring and promotion) view veterans, and, importantly, the interaction of these.

In addition to research, that funding has also supplemented VTRL in hosting two annual summits.

When we hosted the first conference in 2022, we were hopeful but had no idea how the conversations would transpire with such a diverse collection of leaders from academics with no background in veteran research to retired generals to veteran non-profit CEOs and government agency leads, to corporate military affairs leaders. We were blown away with the chemistry, thoughtful dialogue, energy, curiosity and commitment to the ideas we had proposed and the path we were embarking upon.
Sean Kelley

Kelley said at VTRL’s most recent summit they also held their first pitch competition. Seven proposals were awarded a total of $90,000. The first place pitch, Assisting Veterans’ Transition to the Civilian Workforce by Cultivating Opportunities: A Growth-Mindset-of-Opportunity Intervention by Paul A. O’Keefe, University of Exeter Business School, received a total of $20,000.

Kelley said a goal is to implement wise interventions to test program changes with veteran-serving organizations, and in doing so, positively impact outcomes for veteran employment, belongingness and well-being. He said while they are currently working on the academic engagement side of their research, the hope is to eventually engage more on the corporate side through sponsored research projects and program change implementations as well.

VTRL also plans to publish a new video each time it releases research:

“We are building a completely new field of academically rigorous research focused on areas of persistent challenge in military transition: underemployment, challenges with belongingness, and issues related to stereotyping of veterans and bias faced in employment. With over 150,000 veterans transitioning each year, we have an opportunity to improve many lives through applied research generated by the VTRL and our partners.”
Sean Kelley

Protecting Consumers: CFPB’s Legal Battle and Implications

By Elizabeth Scarisbrick

On November 16, 2023

In Blog

Duke in DC’s latest Congressional Briefing featured discussion about the future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) following its recent United States Supreme Court hearing. The CFPB is an independent agency created after the 2008 financial crisis with the role of writing and enforcing rules for financial institutions, examining both bank and non-bank financial institutions, monitoring and reporting on markets, and collecting and tracking consumer complaints. Its most recent challenge in front of the Supreme Court is questioning whether the CFPB’s funding structure, which funnels through the Federal Reserve rather than Congress, is constitutional.

Our panel of Duke experts, including the Sanford School of Policy’s Mallory SoRelle, PhD, and Vicki Bogan, PhD, the Fuqua School of Business’ Manuel Adelino, PhD, and moderated by Duke Law’s Stuart Benjamin, J.D., discussed the implications of these challenges for consumers, particularly those with lower incomes, including their real estate and household finances, as well as the legal implications for administrative law and regulatory agencies.

Recommendations to policymakers as conversations continue about the CFPB:

Mallory SoRelle

“It’s not enough to think about the substance of of regulations, but to think about the implementation, and how visible how visible is an organization like the CFPB is role in implementing these things to the public, because the only way that the public is able to express in a systematic way problems that they have with these products is through an organization like the CFPB. Right? And they can’t do that if they don’t know that the CFPB is responsible. So I would really encourage policymakers and sort of regulators to focus on the ways that we make those points of access.”

Vicki Bogan

“FinTech, you know, the landscape for how consumers engage with financial products is also changing. Products are more complex, but how they access them has been changing as well. And I think that the CFPB has been uniquely positioned to address how that landscape is changing. And it’s not just focused on certain kinds of banks. It’s not just focused on certain financial institutions. And it can look more broadly at how households are engaging through FinTech and what additional protections may be needed in that context as well. And so the fact that, again, we’ll go back to a point that we’ve all made, that there is a kind of central body that’s responsible for looking at the big picture, and developing specific expertise in consumer finance regulation, I think is an important key for people to recognize.”

Manuel Adelino

“Think about where is the what are the priorities in terms of financial products, and then I have to return to this point about priorities in terms of groups that are being potentially harmed. And so here, you know, and this depends now on how you think about your constituency. But indeed, thinking about which demographic groups out there are being harmed by the absence of rule-making and by the absence of protection?”

The CFPB as a legal matter.

Stuart Benjamin

“My own take on this case, is that as a legal matter, it’s not terribly significant. Because it would be so easy for Congress to have annual appropriations. There’s no if tomorrow. I think it’s unlikely the Court were to say that none of these funding mechanisms, you know, for the Fed, for the FDIC for the CFPB was constitutional, Congress can pass legislation responding.”

The CFPB as a political matter.

Mallory SoRelle

“It would present a real challenge for the CFPB. Because what would likely happen if the court sides with the payday lending lobby, in this case, is they would probably say, ‘We’re going to essentially toss this back to Congress and say, you need to come up with another funding mechanism, we will give you some amount of time, maybe a year to do that, we’re not going to go back and sort of get rid of all the regulations the CFPB has done, but you’re gonna have to fix this moving forward.’ The reason that is likely to be really problematic is because of how polarized Congress is right now.

How exactly does the CFPB benefit consumers?

Vicki Bogan

“If you look at some of the key actions that they’ve taken, since inception, they’ve been the CFPB has been very active in enforcement and supervision, which results in has resulted in billions of dollars in monetary compensation, principal reduction, canceled debts and other consumer relief. They have imposed billions in civil money penalties on companies and individuals that have violated laws. They have collected millions of consumer complaints that they pass on to firms on behalf of the consumers. And they have served as a key source of financial education with, you know, a huge database of financial education information, and also answering sort of hundreds of financial questions from people that are just trying to navigate the landscape.”

Manuel Adelino

“If I have to make three decisions over my lifetime, and you’re asking me to how do I choose the right interest rate for me at what loan to value? And what should I do if someone has offered me a hybrid mortgage? It’s unlikely that I will know and I won’t have a chance to learn because the next time I’ll make that decision is 10 or 15 years from now. So the fact that they are very infrequent makes them especially hard to learn about. And the last point I want to make is these decisions matter… making the right choice can be very productive for the household making a wrong choice is very costly. So when you combine these three things, that your decisions are complex, they are infrequent, so they’re hard to learn about. And they really matter. You need to think about whether how do how do you then put this under one agency?”

What makes the CFPB unique?

Mallory SoRelle

“It was the first financial regulator whose primary mission was consumer protection. And it’s centralized a lot of that regulatory authority into one agency. So what ends up happening is not only are the folks in the CFPB, actually, they have expertise in protecting financial institutions. And that’s what they’re supposed to be doing. But it also meant it lowered the cost for public interest groups and sort of ordinary consumers to engage in regulatory politics, because now instead of having to do that, across multiple institutions, there was one very visible institution that you could go to.”

Why so many challenges to the CFPB?

Vicki Bogan

“You might ask yourself, why is there such opposition to the CFPB, kind of in concept, and I think there’s often been kind of confusion on the clientele of the CFPB. Right? the CFPB was designed to serve the public, not the banks, per se. And so Unsurprisingly, the banks and financial institutions often push back on some of the initiatives of the CFPB. You know, the banks, you know, don’t like additional regulation, don’t necessarily don’t welcome additional regulation. And it’s interfere with their ability to satisfy their mission of maximizing shareholder value, and especially when they’re, you know, regulated by an outside firm. So you see, quite a bit of opposition from financial institutions.”

Communication is key.

Mallory SoRelle

The CFPB more recently has started to add language, for example, on the Schumer box of credit card applications. A simple line that just says the CFPB is a regulatory agency that deals with this. If you need help, you can contact us. So I have some work that shows that even something as simple as that making visible, the presence of this agency makes consumers more likely to say they would proactively seek out that agency if they needed information if they needed to file a complaint, right. So something as simple as just being visible in the type of material that’s disclosed to consumers around financial products, makes it easier for them to get information.

Vicki Bogan

“I think, because it’s still new, one of the challenges is I don’t think everybody’s clear on sort of what the CFPB role is, what exactly they do, how they make decisions. And so I think, to the extent that the CFPB seemed as if they were spending a lot of time trying to get their message out about, you know, their goals in how the, you know, their mission, and how they want to make a difference. I mean, I think that at my time there and granted, I would work primarily with the Office of Research, there is quite a bit of energy enthusiasm for kind of communication and reaching out and interacting as much as possible.”

Manuel Adelino

“I think part of this, it certainly is about providing information to consumers. But a lot of it is about designing the products and designing the way they are offered to consumers in a way that allows them to make proper decisions it is about So how do I design, for example, a modification program that allows households to send back the documents, sign them and understand them? How do I design a credit card contract. So you should not have in mind necessarily, the household actively looking for information, but rather a household reacting to things that are offered to them and being able to then make adequate financial decisions.”

Mallory SoRelle, PhD, Assistant Professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy

Vicki Bogan, PhD, Professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy

Manuel Adelino, PhD, Professor of Finance at the Fuqua School of Business

Stuart Benjamin, JD, William Van Alstyne Professor of Law and co-director of the Center for Innovation Policy at Duke Law School