Hello Folks!

I hope this message finds you well on this cool, rainy day (at least, it's
cool and rainy here in Farmington!). I am writing to inform you of some new
developments regarding the government and our funding. Without further ado:


   - Yesterday's COE weekly update stated that last week, Congress passed
   and the President signed the omnibus appropriations bill that will fund the
   Department of Education (amongst other departments) for FY 2019 (the
   2019-2020 program year). This is the first time since 1996 this bill has
   been completed before the fiscal year. This legislation included another
   $60 million funding increase for TRIO programs, bringing the overall
   appropriation to $1.07 billion. It also included report language chastising
   the Department's allocation of TRIO funding in FY 2018, which disregarded
   previous report language. (You can view the specific report language here
   <http://t.congressweb.com/l/?VZYUDOORPENGDPQ>.)



   - This omnibus bill also included a "continuing resolution" or "CR" that
   extends current funding through December 7 for the programs in the other FY
   2019 appropriations bills that have not yet been enacted. This now gives
   legislators the opportunity to spend the next several weeks in their home
   States and Districts during the final weeks before the November midterm
   elections. This time represents the perfect opportunity for TRIO supporters
   to connect with their Members of Congress.



   - Additionally, all TRIO programs should have received their GANs by now
   and the Department of Education has decided that *all* TRIO grants,
   whether they accepted or declined the increase in students served, would
   still receive a 4.25% funding increase in their base. I understand this may
   seem curious, and you might be wondering what will come of it if you did
   decide to accept the increase, while those who declined appear to still be
   receiving the increase. I will reach out as soon as I hear anything
   regarding this situation.



   - In other exciting, special news: As you may have heard, thanks to a
   letter penned to Secretary DeVos by Senators Susan Collins, Angus Kind, and
   Representative Chellie Pingree, on behalf of the USM VUB, they have
   received refunding to their grant at almost $300,000 to serve 125 veterans.
   This is a great success!


Thank you all for your time and presumed attention! Feel free to reach out
if you have any questions or concerns and I will be in touch as soon as I
hear more!

Take care and stay warm!

Eric

-- 
*Eric Pratt*
Pronouns: He|Him|His

Academic Counselor
MEEOA Government Relations Chair
Upward Bound | University of Maine at Farmington
252 Main Street
Farmington, ME 04938
C: 207.314.5499 | W: 207.778.7279
Toll Free: 1.888.237.1667
www.upwardbound.umf.maine.edu