ICCTA Action Alert Nov. 11, 2002 Federal Legislative Update The following information was compiled from the American Association of Community Colleges. FY 2003 Budget Congress is in a Pro Forma session until tomorrow, November 12, when a lame-duck session is set to begin. When the 107th Congress reconvenes it must either pass all 11 remaining appropriations bills by November 22, when the current continuing resolution expires, or at a minimum pass another continuing resolution into FY 2003. To date the Senate appropriators passed their Labor-HHS-Education bill out of committee in late July, but the House has taken no action on labor and education funding. If Congress decides to finish the 2003 appropriations cycle by November 22, one option would be to pass all 11 unfinished bills as part of an Omnibus Appropriations bill -- an option that provides the best chances for FY 2003 funding increases. Any long-term resolutions will most likely result in level FY 2002 funding. TEACH Act President Bush signed the Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization (TEACH) Act into law on November 2. Passage of the TEACH Act, which allows educators to make use of copyrighted works in online courses comparable to what is allowed in the traditional classroom, has long been a priority for AACC. The TEACH Act will pave the way for richer content in digital courses while protecting the copyright owners' interests. ICCTA Federal Fly-In ICCTA has scheduled its 2003 Legislative Fly-In for February 11-12, 2003, following the AACC/Association of Community College Trustees' February 9 - 11 National Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C. Registration is $50 for ICCTA members and includes a luncheon with invited guests U.S. Senators Richard Durbin and Peter Fitzgerald. A block of hotel rooms has been set aside at the J.W. Marriott for NLS and Fly-In participants. These rooms will sell out fast -- make your reservations early by calling the JW Marriott directly at 202-393-2000. If you are attending BOTH the ICCTA Fly-In and the AACC/ACCT National Legislative Summit, please ask the JW Marriott to reserve your room from ACCT’s block of rooms (not ICCTA’s block). If you are attending ONLY the ICCTA Fly-In, please ask the JW Marriott to reserve your room from ICCTA’s block of rooms (not ACCT’s block). If you have any questions or problems concerning hotel arrangements for the ICCTA Fly-In, please call ICCTA meeting planner Barbara Hale at 217-546-4841. For additional information on state legislative issues, contact ICCTA at 1-800-454-2282. Illinois Community College Trustees Association 401 E. Capitol Ave., Suite 200 Springfield, IL 62701-1711 217-528-2858 (phone) 217-528-8662 (fax) ICCTA@communitycolleges.org (e-mail) http://www.communitycolleges.org | Home | News | Events | Links |