SUNY Federal Relations Update Friday, January 23, 2009  
FEDERAL ECONOMIC STIMULUS UPDATE 
In the previous SUNY Federal Relations Update I shared with you the official summary document of 
the House economic stimulus legislation, the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009". I 
have a copy of the House legislation, as well as the report language that accompanies the legislation.  
Please just let me know if you are interested in receiving copies of these documents and I will forward 
them to you. 
The House this week marked-up in Committee its various components of the legislation. 
  However, we have not yet seen the details of the Senate legislation. We are all anxiously awaiting its 
availability.  It is important to remember that that House version of the bill is not necessarily the final 
version and there are still many steps in this process.  Congressional leaders and the Administration still 
hope to see final passage of the legislation by mid-February. 
In the meantime, the House version of the legislation is scheduled to go to the floor of the US House of 
Representatives for a vote on January 28th. I have written to legislative staff across the NYS delegation to 
highlight some of the provisions that will affect our colleges and universities.  You may wish to use some 
of these talking points during your conversations with congressional offices; I have included them below. 
There are many provisions of interest to our campuses across several different sections of the legislation.   
We should be pleased with the attention the legislation gives to public higher education. Among other 
items, the bill includes "$39 billion to local school districts and public colleges and universities distributed 
through existing state and federal formulas" apparently spread over two years. This is a complicated 
provision but these allocations will certainly help New York State address its higher education budget 
needs. 
The bill also provides $6 billion for public and private higher education "renovation and modernization, 
including technology upgrades and energy efficiency improvements". It is very important to note that this 
fund does not allow for new construction. 
There is also funding to increase important student aid programs and federal support for research 
in several key agencies, including NSF, NIH, and the Department of Energy. 
Below is a more detailed look at the provisions we are particularly interested in at SUNY.  Please let 
me know if you have any questions, concerns or would like any supplemental information. Please 
also let me know if there are other provisions that are not mentioned below that have come to your 
attention and are important to your campus. 
Liz 
Liz Clark, Director of Federal Relations State 
University of New York (SUNY) Washington, 
DC Office 
444 North Capitol Street, NW; Suite 221 Washington, DC 20001 Office:  (202) 220-1315 / Cell:  (202) 384-4171 
The State University of New York and the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Bill of 2009" 
EDUCATION 
? 	$6 billion for higher education, for renovation and modernization, including technology 
upgrades and energy efficiency improvements 
Across New York State, SUNY has identified $1.5 billion in campus capital projects at our State Operated 
Campuses and $453 million in campus capital projects at SUNY Community Colleges that could benefit 
from such funding. 
We are somewhat disappointed that the House language prohibits spending these funds on new 
construction.  Funding deferred maintenance is indeed critical, however we also believe building much 
needed classrooms and research facilities would have both immediate and long-term impacts on economic 
activity by creating jobs, producing more graduates, and contributing to the nation's workforce needs. 
? 	$79 billion in state fiscal relief, including: $39 billion to local school districts and 
public colleges and universities distributed through existing state and federal 
formulas; and $25 billion to states for other high priority needs such as public 
safety and other critical services, which may include education. 
In addition to the $210 million in cuts SUNY faced over the last year, the 2009-2010 Executive Budget 
proposes additional reductions in State support.  It is our belief that any funds made available to NYS 
through this provision will help stem some of the projected budget cuts we may face in the final 2009-
2010 NYS Budget. 
? 	Pell Grants: $15.6 billion to increase the maximum Pell Grant by $500, from $4,850 to 
$5,350. 
During the 2006-2007 academic year, more than 121,000 SUNY students benefited from the Pell Grant 
program, the cornerstone to lower-income students' financial aid packages.  In addition to the provision 
which increases the maximum Pell Grant, we are also supportive of other student aid-related provisions, 
including: 
? 	College Work-Study: $490 million to support undergraduate and graduate students 
who work. 
? 	Student Loan Limit Increase: Increases limits on unsubsidized Stafford loans by $2,000. 
This provision has the potential to increase access for some students.  However, we would have 
preferred to see enhanced funding for Perkins Loans because of the lower interest rate (5%) and other 
flexibilities in the Perkins program. 
SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH 
Targeted support for science can quickly stimulate the economy.  Agencies, such as the National Science 
Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Department of Energy (DOE) Office 
of Science, have backlogs of grants and other projects which can be funded in short order.  Scientific 
grants create both immediate jobs and longer term employment.  Research instrumentation and 
construction leads to not only manufacturing and construction jobs, it is responsible for creating more 
technical and specialized manufacturing and construction, which adds even more to the local, state, and 
national economies. 
In fiscal year 2007, SUNY's Research Foundation (RF) managed more than 7,400 campus-based 
research and grant programs.  That same year, SUNY faculty filed 284 new invention disclosures, filed 
193 patent applications, executed 45 licensing and option agreements and generated $10.8 million in 
royalties from licensing SUNY inventions. The RF also received 33 
U.S. patents, raising the total number of patents issued to the RF to more than 750.  Any investments the 
federal government can make that ultimately keeps SUNY faculty engaged in cutting-edge scientific 
research can ultimately promote the state's economic development and job growth and contribute to 
innovation and industrial competitiveness. 
? 	National Science Foundation: $3 billion, including $2 billion for expanding employment 
opportunities in fundamental science and engineering to meet environmental challenges 
and to improve global economic competitiveness, $400 million to build major research 
facilities that perform cutting edge science, $300 million for major research equipment 
shared by institutions of higher education and other scientists, $200 million to repair and modernize 
science and engineering research facilities at the nation's institutions of higher education 
and other science labs, and $100 million is also included to improve instruction in science, math and 
engineering. 
? 	National Institutes of Health Biomedical Research: $2 billion, including $1.5 billion for 
expanding good jobs in biomedical research to study diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, 
cancer, and heart disease - NIH is currently able to fund less than 20% of approved applications - 
and $500 million to implement the repair and improvement strategic plan developed by the NIH for 
its campuses. 
? 	University Research Facilities: $1.5 billion for NIH to renovate university research 
facilities and help them compete for biomedical research grants. The National Science 
Foundation estimates a maintenance backlog of $3.9 billion in biological science research space. 
Funds are awarded competitively. 
? 	Department of Energy: $1.9 billion for basic research into the physical sciences including high-
energy physics, nuclear physics, and fusion energy sciences and improvements to DOE laboratories 
and scientific facilities. $400 million is for the Advanced Research Project Agency - Energy to support 
high-risk, high-payoff research into energy sources and energy efficiency. 
? 	NASA: $600 million, including $400 million to put more scientists to work doing climate change 
research, including Earth science research recommended by the National Academies 
? 	National Institute of Standards and Technology: $300 million for competitive 
construction grants for research science buildings at colleges, universities, and other 
research organizations 
CLEAN, EFFICIENT, AMERICAN ENERGY 
As with the scientific research provisions, we believe these provisions have the potential to be 
competitively awarded to colleges and universities: 
? 	Reliable, Efficient Electricity Grid: $11 billion for research and development, pilot projects, and 
federal matching funds for the Smart Grid Investment Program to modernize the electricity grid 
making it more efficient, secure, and reliable and build new power lines to transmit clean, renewable 
energy from sources throughout the nation. 
? 	Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Research: $2 billion for energy efficiency and 
renewable energy research, development, demonstration, and deployment activities to foster energy 
independence, reduce carbon emissions, and cut utility bills. Funds are awarded on a competitive basis 
to universities, companies, and national laboratories. 
? 	Energy Efficiency Grants and Loans for Institutions: $1.5 billion for energy sustainability and 
efficiency grants and loans to help school districts, institutes of higher 
education, local governments, and municipal utilities implement projects that will make them more 
energy efficient. 
? 	Department of Defense Research: $350 million for research into using renewable energy to 
power weapons systems and military bases. 
HEALTHCARE 
SUNY's Academic Medical Centers at the University at Buffalo and Stony Brook University, Downstate 
Medical Center, and Upstate Medical University, as well as the SUNY College of Optometry are vital the 
State and their local communities, educating the next generation of physicians, researchers, and other 
health practitioners to care for the citizens of New York.  These healthcare-related provisions in the 
legislation have the potential to contribute to the fiscal health of these institutions: 
? 	Health Information Technology: $20 billion to jumpstart efforts to computerize health records to 
cut costs and reduce medical errors. 
? 	Medicaid Aid to States (FMAP): $87 billion to states, increasing through the end of FY 2010 the 
share of Medicaid costs the Federal government reimburses all states by 4.8 percent, with additional 
relief tied to rates of unemployment. This approach has been used in previous recessions to prevent 
cuts to health benefits for their increased low income patient loads at a time when state revenues are 
declining. 
? 	Medicare and Medicaid Regulations: The bill extends the moratorium on Medicaid and Medicare 
regulations through October 1, 2009.