Defund National Endowment for the Humanities Act of 2025This bill prohibits the use of any funds that are made available to the National Endowment for the Humanities of the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities to carry out the functions, programs, or activities of such endowment.
Impact
This bill would directly affect how the federal government manages its debt obligations, aiming to streamline the payment process and enhance the predictability of federal finances. By categorizing obligations into tiers, the bill intends to prevent any potential default that could arise from political stalemate or budgetary constraints. This structured approach could result in tighter government financial discipline and enhance transparency regarding federal debt management, creating an environment where financial obligations are met timely.
Summary
House Bill 182, known as the Default Prevention Act, aims to secure the payment of interest and principal on the national debt of the United States. The bill delineates a structured payment system for federal obligations into five tiers, prioritizing essential payments while ensuring compliance with the legal debt limit. The legislation mandates the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury to meet these obligations as they become due, thereby preventing a governmental default that could undermine public trust in federal financial practices.
Contention
Points of contention surrounding HB 182 include concerns about the prioritization of certain federal obligations at the potential expense of others and the broader implications this prioritization may have during budgetary debates. Critics argue that such categorization could potentially shield specific programs from cuts, complicating future budget negotiations. Proponents, however, contend that the bill is necessary to protect the integrity of federal debt payments and maintain the credibility of the United States in the global financial market.
Endowment Tax Fairness ActThis bill increases the excise tax on the net investment income of certain private university and college endowments. Under current law, certain private universities and colleges with 500 or more tuition-paying students (of which more than 50% are located in the United States) and endowments that are at least $500,000 per student pay an excise tax in the amount of 1.4% on the net investment income from such endowments.The bill increases the amount of the excise tax to 21% of the net investment income from such university and college endowments. Further, the bill provides that amounts collected from the increase to the excise tax on the net investment income from such university and college endowments are (1) to be deposited into the general fund of the Treasury; and (2) used to reduce the national deficit and, subsequently, the national debt.
No Subsidies for Wealthy Universities ActThis bill limits the indirect costs that are allowable under federal research awards to institutions of higher education (IHEs) with endowments above specified thresholds. (Generally, indirect costs represent expenses that are not specific to a research project but are needed to maintain the infrastructure and administrative support for federally funded research.)Specifically, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) must annually collect information regarding the endowments of each IHE that has entered into a program participation agreement with the Department of Education.With this collected information, NCES must identify and make lists of (1) each IHE with an endowment of more than $5 billion, and (2) each IHE with an endowment of more than $2 billion (but not more than $5 billion). NCES must submit these lists to the Office of Management and Budget, which must then distribute the lists to federal agencies, Congress, and the public.The bill establishes the following limits on the indirect costs allowable under federal research awards:for an IHE with an endowment of more than $5 billion, the IHE is prohibited from using these awards for indirect costs;for an IHE with an endowment of more than $2 billion (but not more than $5 billion), the IHE is limited to an indirect cost rate of 8%; andfor all other IHEs, an indirect cost rate of 15%.The Government Accountability Office must annually report to Congress on indirect cost reimbursement on federal research awards for IHEs.
Establishing the endow Kansas tax credit act to provide tax credits for endowment gifts to certain endowment funds held by qualified community foundations.