January 2015 Government & Community Relations Update

UO urges lawmakers to prevent the return of sequestration in FY2016


The UO joined other higher education organizations in signing onto the Non-Defense Discretionary (NDD) United letter regarding sequestration. NDD United is a coalition of groups interested in protecting non-defense discretionary programs from budget cuts.
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UO leaders join march and event on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day


On January 19, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Eugene-Springfield branch of the NAACP organized a civil rights march from the PK Park to the Shedd Institute. The march first followed Eugene's Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, named in honor of the civil rights leader, and culminated with a program at the Shedd. The UO was one of the event sponsors.
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Proposed state budget invests in higher education


The co-chairs of the Oregon Legislature’s budget writing committee, State Senator Richard Devlin (D-Tualatin) and State Representative Peter Buckley (D-Ashland), released a budget framework in late January that would begin a modest reinvestment in Oregon's public universities and community colleges.
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President Barack Obama's State of the Union address focuses on education


President Barack Obama mentioned higher education several times in his January 20 State of the Union address. The President's sixth State of the Union address, given to a joint session of Congress, struck an optimistic note about the state of the country and its economy while outlining plans for reducing income inequality.
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Financial Aid Simplification and Transparency Act introduced in Congress


On January 7, US Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tennessee), the new chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, introduced the Financial Aid Simplification and Transparency (FAST) Act. The FAST Act, cosponsored by US Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO), was also introduced  last summer.
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