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DOE negotiators narrow focus on workforce Pell rules and set deadline for new proposals
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Summary
On day three of negotiated rulemaking, Department staff focused negotiators on Topic 7 (gaining and losing Workforce Pell eligibility), asked for substantive proposal text by 7:30 a.m. the next day, and signaled plans to publish department reactions and use nonbinding pulse checks as the group narrows regulatory options.
Department of Education negotiators used the third day of a week‑long rulemaking to tighten the timetable for finalizing regulatory text for the Workforce Pell provisions and to walk participants through several substantive edits the agency proposes.
Facilitator Kayla Mack opened the session with attendance and procedural notes and the department outlined an expedited schedule for Topic 7, which covers how programs gain and lose eligibility for Workforce Pell. Department staff told negotiators they want substantive new proposals submitted by 7:30 a.m. the next morning so analysts can evaluate changes and the committee can aim for a possible Friday consensus vote on workforce Pell provisions.
The department framed the day as one of narrowing choices. Staff previewed edits to proposed regulatory language that would require states to publish approval methodologies and to review high‑wage/high‑skill occupational determinations at least every two years, tied to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) state plan cycle. The department also explained it removed prescriptive “designee” language from the regulatory text and plans to address how governors may use other state agencies in subregulatory guidance.
Negotiators asked for operational clarifications about the timing and scope of required documents, the format of evidence institutions must submit to show programs award academic credit, and how the department will coordinate with Department of Labor and state higher‑education agencies. The session included a technical exchange on how program‑level data will flow from state systems into federal eligibility determinations and whether Partner Connect or other FSA data extracts can supply program‑level details.
The session closed with Department staff noting corrected language had been circulated and that the afternoon would open for broader comments before running ‘‘pulse checks’’ — nonbinding indicators of where participants stand on each topic.
The committee reconvened after lunch to continue Topic 7 deliberations.
