Contributing Editor: Jarret Cummings, Senior Advisor for Policy and Government Relations, EDUCAUSE
In early 2024, the Senate garnered enough support to potentially pass the Kids Online Safety Act—a major privacy law focused on content moderation for minors. Though the bill does not seem to cover higher education institutions, the EDUCAUSE Policy team will be asking for clarification about whether certain scenarios would create compliance concerns for colleges and universities.
EDUCAUSE responded to three major comment processes in the first quarter of 2024, all of which have significant implications for research cybersecurity.
In November 2023, the Federal Communications Commission issued a proposed rule to reclassify broadband internet access as a telecommunications service under Title II of the Communications Act, thus reestablishing its 2015 net neutrality regulations. EDUCAUSE and the Association for Research Libraries submitted joint comments in December 2023 expressing the associations' support for an open internet.
The Biden administration released its Fall 2023 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions in December 2023. The Regulatory Agenda provides insights on the regulatory activities under development across federal departments and agencies and includes updates to several regulations EDUCAUSE has been following.
The Federal Trade Commission released its final breach reporting requirements under the latest revision of the Safeguards Rule. The reporting requirements take effect on May 13, 2024.
The U.S. Department of Justice released its long-anticipated proposed regulation outlining web accessibility requirements under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. EDUCAUSE submitted comments to DOJ on October 3, 2023.
Federal Student Aid (FSA) has released a new version of its Student Aid Internet Gateway Agreement. The new version omits a NIST SP 800-171 compliance requirement, but FSA cites a provision of the agreement as the basis for its controlled unclassified information marking guidance regarding Federal Tax Information. FSA is urging institutions to sign the new agreement as soon as possible to avoid a delay in receiving 2024-25 FAFSA data from students and their families.
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced funding for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, a major broadband access program originally introduced in the 2022 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. States have been tasked with outlining how they plan to use their funding to ensure equitable access to high-speed internet.
On May 18, the U.S. Supreme Court issued decisions in two cases related to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The decisions leave Section 230 protections unchanged for now, but they also allow for potential future litigation.
EDUCAUSE responded to the National Science Foundation (NSF) request for comment on the formation of a research security and integrity information sharing and analysis organization. Among other recommendations, EDUCAUSE called for NSF to collaborate fully with REN-ISAC.
