DC Insight - 1/6/2023

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These Five Senators Brought Home Earmarks for Higher Education
Forbes – December 26, 2022
Over a dozen different Missouri institutions received more than $185 million from Sen. Blunt’s designated projects. Topping the list was the University of Missouri with $69 million, followed by Missouri State University with $39.5 million, and the Missouri University of Science and Technology at $26 million.

Congresswoman Bush Delivers $18.4M for St. Louis Local Community Projects
Congresswoman Cori Bush Press Release – December 23, 2022
Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01) delivered $18,362,457 in Community Project Funding that she secured for St. Louis in this year's 2023 government funding package. This funding responds directly to some of the most pressing needs in St. Louis, including housing, violence prevention, economic development, public health, substance use treatment, and youth engagement.

Rep. Cleaver Secures More Than $91 Million for Local Projects Across MO-05 in Final Government Funding Package
Congressman Emanuel Cleaver – December 23, 2022
U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO) announced that he has successfully secured $91.85 million in Community Project Funding for local projects across the Fifth Congressional District of Missouri in the year-end government funding package. From infrastructure improvements to housing initiatives and job training programs, the funding responds directly to some of the most pressing needs throughout Cleaver’s congressional district.

Live updates: House votes in 13th vote round for speaker as McCarthy picks up more support
CNBC – January 6, 2023
The U.S. House of Representatives entered its fourth day of voting to elect a new speaker on Friday, falling on the grim two-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The U.S. House adjourned Thursday for a third night in a row without a speaker — the longest the chamber has gone leaderless in a century — after GOP leader Kevin McCarthy lost an 11th vote and scrambled to work out a deal with a group of 20 far-right Republicans who have blocked his bid for the top job in the House.

Biden administration launches pilot program for COVID-19 telehealth care
The Hill – January 5, 2023
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) on Thursday announced the launch of a pilot program that will allow people to receive free testing, consultation and treatment for COVID-19 from their homes.The NIH estimated up to 8,000 eligible individuals will participate in the pilot program, called the Home Test to Treat program, which will be led by local and state officials in Berks County, Pennsylvania.

More Money for Pell Grants, Research
Inside Higher Ed – January 3, 2023
Congress is sending more than $1.5 billion to colleges and universities thanks to earmarks and pouring millions more into student success grant programs as part of the $1.7 trillion spending package for fiscal year 2023 that lawmakers approved late last month. The bill signed into law by President Biden increases the maximum annual Pell Grant award to $7,395—a $500 increase that will begin in the 2023–24 award year. It’s the second increase in as many fiscal years and the largest in a decade. Advocates and higher education groups said the $500 bump is significant and will help more students afford a college education.