Union Calendar No. 624
118th CONGRESS 2d Session |
[Report No. 118–739]
To lower the cost of postsecondary education for students and families.
January 11, 2024
Ms. Foxx (for herself, Mr. Owens, Mr. Grothman, Mr. Allen, Mr. Smucker, Mrs. McClain, Mrs. Steel, and Mr. Williams of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
November 18, 2024
Additional sponsors: Mrs. Houchin, Ms. Stefanik, Mr. Moran, Mr. James, Mrs. Chavez-DeRemer, Mr. Bentz, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Wilson of South Carolina, Mr. Estes, Mr. Mann, Mr. Reschenthaler, Mr. Sessions, Mr. Banks, Mr. Carter of Texas, Mr. Bean of Florida, Mrs. Miller of Illinois, Mr. Comer, Mr. Kiley, Mr. Weber of Texas, Mr. Finstad, Mr. Amodei, Mr. Rogers of Alabama, Mr. Rouzer, Mr. Edwards, Ms. Tenney, Mr. Webster of Florida, Mr. Van Orden, Mr. Burgess, Mr. LaMalfa, Mr. Curtis, Mr. Yakym, Mr. LaTurner, Mr. Smith of Nebraska, Mr. Van Drew, Mr. Pence, Mr. Bilirakis, Mr. Moolenaar, Mr. Fleischmann, Mr. Austin Scott of Georgia, Mr. Duarte, Mr. Timmons, Mr. Loudermilk, Mrs. Harshbarger, Mr. Posey, Mr. Hudson, Ms. Malliotakis, Mr. Scott Franklin of Florida, Mr. Meuser, Mrs. Hinson, Mr. Langworthy, Mr. Cline, Mr. Lamborn, Mrs. Miller of West Virginia, Mrs. Luna, Mr. Rutherford, Mr. Fry, Mr. Ferguson, Mr. Calvert, Mr. Johnson of South Dakota, Mr. Mills, Mr. Tony Gonzales of Texas, Mr. Duncan, Mr. Scalise, Mr. Mooney, Mr. Rogers of Kentucky, Mr. Arrington, Mr. Hern, Mr. Dunn of Florida, Mr. Alford, Mr. Jackson of Texas, Mrs. Bice, Mr. Tiffany, Mr. Emmer, Mr. Ciscomani, Mr. Smith of Missouri, Mr. Aderholt, Mr. McHenry, Mr. Guthrie, Mr. D'Esposito, Ms. Maloy, Mrs. Cammack, Mr. Pfluger, Ms. Van Duyne, Mr. Zinke, Mr. Kustoff, Mr. Kelly of Pennsylvania, Mr. Fulcher, Mr. Luetkemeyer, Mr. Issa, Mr. Baird, Mr. Waltz, Mrs. Rodgers of Washington, Mr. DesJarlais, Mr. McClintock, Mr. Rose, Mr. Jordan, Mr. Clyde, Mr. Norman, Mr. Westerman, Ms. Granger, Mr. Nehls, Mr. Donalds, Mr. Brecheen, Mr. Green of Tennessee, Mr. Good of Virginia, Mr. Bishop of North Carolina, Mr. Harris, Mr. Ellzey, Mr. Bergman, Mr. Graves of Missouri, Mr. McCormick, Mr. Valadao, Mr. Stauber, Mr. Fallon, Mr. Fong, Mr. Williams of Texas, Mr. LaLota, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Moore of Alabama, Mr. Gooden of Texas, Mrs. Kiggans of Virginia, Ms. Hageman, Mr. Kelly of Mississippi, Mr. LaHood, Mr. Self, Mr. Hill, Mr. Steube, Mr. Burchett, Mr. Schweikert, Mr. Obernolte, Mrs. Lesko, Mr. Buchanan, Mr. Fitzgerald, Mr. Burlison, Mr. Cloud, Mr. Ogles, Mr. Gaetz, Mr. Wenstrup, Mr. Lopez, Mr. Mast, Mr. Griffith, Mr. Hunt, Mr. Joyce of Ohio, Mr. Rulli, Mr. Crenshaw, and Ms. Boebert
November 18, 2024
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 11, 2024]
To lower the cost of postsecondary education for students and families.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
(b) Table of contents.—The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. References.
Sec. 101. Definitions.
Sec. 111. Financial aid offers.
Sec. 112. College scorecard website.
Sec. 113. Postsecondary student data system.
Sec. 114. Database of student information prohibited.
Sec. 201. Amount of need; cost of attendance; median cost of college.
Sec. 211. Federal Pell Grant program.
Sec. 212. Campus-based aid programs.
Sec. 221. Loan limits.
Sec. 222. Loan repayment.
Sec. 223. Loan rehabilitation.
Sec. 224. Interest capitalization.
Sec. 225. Origination fees.
Sec. 301. Agreements with institutions.
Sec. 302. Regulatory relief.
Sec. 303. Limitation on authority of Secretary to propose or issue regulations and Executive actions.
Sec. 304. Office of Federal Student Aid.
Sec. 311. Accrediting agency recognition.
Sec. 312. National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI).
Sec. 313. Alternative quality assurance experimental site initiative.
Sec. 321. Postsecondary student success grants.
Sec. 322. Reverse Transfer Efficiency Act.
Sec. 323. Transparent and fair transfer of credit policies.
(a) Higher Education Act of 1965.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).
(b) FAFSA Simplification Act.—Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act a reference to a section or other provision of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) refers to such section or other provision as amended or added by the FAFSA Simplification Act, the reference shall be considered to be made to the section or other provision as amended or added by—
(1) title VII of division FF of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (title VII of division FF of Public Law 116–260), subject to the effective date of section 701(b) of such Act, as amended by section 102(a) of the FAFSA Simplification Act Technical Corrections Act (division R of Public Law 117–103) (including the authorization provided under section 102(c)(1)(A) of such Act); and
(2) the FAFSA Simplification Act Technical Corrections Act (division R of Public Law 117–103).
(a) Definitions.—Section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1003) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(25) CIP CODE.—The term ‘CIP code’ means the six-digit taxonomic identification code assigned by an institution of higher education to a specific program of study at the institution, determined by the institution in accordance with the Classification of Instructional Programs published by the National Center for Education Statistics.
“(26) CREDENTIAL LEVEL.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘credential level’ means the level of the degree or other credential awarded by an institution of higher education to students who complete a program of study of the institution. Each degree or other credential awarded by an institution shall be categorized by the institution as either undergraduate credential level or graduate credential level.
“(27) PROGRAM OF STUDY.—The term ‘program of study’ means an academic program of study offered to students by an institution of higher education that—
“(A) upon completion of the program, results in the award of a credential to a student, including a degree, diploma, or certificate, for one credential level;
“(28) PROGRAM LENGTH.—The term ‘program length’ means the minimum amount of time in weeks, months, or years that is specified in the catalog, marketing materials, or other official publications of an institution of higher education for a full-time student to complete the requirements for a specific program of study and to obtain the degree or credential awarded by such program.
“(29) TIME TO CREDENTIAL.—The term ‘time to credential’ means, with respect to a student, the actual amount of time in weeks, months, or years it takes the student to complete the requirements for a specific program of study and to obtain the degree or credential awarded by such program.
“(30) VALUE-ADDED EARNINGS.—
“(A) CALCULATION.—With respect to a student who received Federal financial aid under title IV and who completed a program of study offered by an institution of higher education, the term ‘value-added earnings’ means—
“(i) the annual earnings of such student measured during the applicable earnings measurement period for such program (as determined under subparagraph (C)); minus
“(ii) in the case of a student who completed a program of study that awards—
“(I) an undergraduate credential (other than such a credential awarded by a qualifying undergraduate program as defined in section 455(a)(4)(B)(ii)), 150 percent of the poverty line applicable to a single individual as determined under section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) for such year; or
“(II) a graduate credential or an undergraduate credential awarded by a qualifying undergraduate program as defined in section 455(a)(4)(B)(ii), 300 percent of the poverty line applicable to a single individual as determined under section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) for such year.
“(B) GEOGRAPHIC ADJUSTMENT.—
“(C) EARNINGS MEASUREMENT PERIOD.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of calculating the value-added earnings of a student, except as provided in clause (ii), the annual earnings of a student shall be measured—
“(I) in the case of a program of study that awards an undergraduate certificate, post baccalaureate certificate, or graduate certificate, one year after the student completes such program;
“(ii) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may, as the Secretary determines appropriate based on the characteristics of a program of study, extend an earnings measurement period described in clause (i) for a program of study that—
“(I) requires completion of an additional educational program after completion of the program of study in order to obtain a licensure associated with the credential awarded for such program of study; and
“(II) when combined with the program length of such additional educational program for licensure, has a total program length that exceeds the relevant earnings measurement period prescribed for such program of study under clause (i),
except that in no case shall the annual earnings of a student be measured more than 5 years after the student completes a program of study.”.
(a) Institution financial aid offer.—Part B of title I of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“SEC. 124. Institution financial aid offer form.
“(a) Standard form and terminology.—The Secretary, in consultation with the heads of relevant Federal agencies, shall develop standard terminology and a standard form for financial aid offers based on recommendations from representatives of students, veterans, servicemembers, families of students, institutions of higher education (including community colleges, for-profit institutions, four-year public institutions, and four-year private nonprofit institutions), financial aid experts, secondary school and postsecondary counselors, college access professionals, nonprofit organizations, and consumer groups.
“(b) Key required contents for aid offer.—The standard form developed pursuant to subsection (a) shall be titled ‘Financial Aid Offer’ and shall include the following items in a consumer-friendly manner that is simple and understandable, with costs listed first, followed by grants and scholarships, clearly separated from each other with separate headings:
“(1) COST INFORMATION.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—Information on the student’s estimated cost of attendance, including the following:
“(i) DIRECT COSTS.—The total cost of all items described in section 472 that are billed to the student by the institution or otherwise required by the institution for enrollment, including such total cost disaggregated by the cost of each such item, including, as determined under such section—
“(ii) INDIRECT COSTS.—The total cost (including such total cost disaggregated by the cost of each item) as determined under section 472, of—
“(I) housing and food for a student not electing institutionally owned or operated food services and not living in institutionally owned or operated housing;
“(B) The academic period covered by the financial aid offer, and an explanation that the amount of financial aid offered may differ—
“(2) GRANTS AND SCHOLARSHIPS.—The aggregate amount of grants and scholarships, differentiated by source, that the student does not have to repay, such as grant aid offered under title IV, grant aid offered through other Federal programs, grant aid offered by the institution, grant aid offered by the State, and, if known, grant aid or scholarship from an outside source to the student for such academic period, including a disclosure that the grants and scholarships do not have to be repaid, except that institutions shall be authorized to list individual grants and scholarships by name at the discretion of the institution.
“(3) NET PRICE.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—The net price that the student, is estimated to have to pay for the student to attend the institution for such academic period, including the following:
“(i) MINIMUM AMOUNT COVERED BY STUDENT FOR ENROLLMENT.—The net price of tuition and fees (and other required expenses), which is equal to—
“(4) LOANS.—
“(5) STUDENT EMPLOYMENT.—Information on work-study employment opportunities (including work-study programs under part C of title IV, institutional work-study programs, or State work-study programs), including—
“(6) PROCESS FOR ACCEPTING, ADJUSTING, OR DECLINING AID AND NEXT STEPS.—
“(B) Information on when and how costs described in paragraph (1)(A)(i) must be paid, including a clear indication of whether each such cost is required or optional for the student.
“(C) A disclosure that verification of information provided on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid may require the student to submit further documentation.
“(7) NET PRICE CALCULATOR.—A link to the universal net price calculator website described in section 132(c)(4).
“(8) QUICK REFERENCE BOX.—A standardized quick reference box to enable students to compare information on the costs and financial aid described in paragraphs (1) and (2). The quick reference box shall include the following two data elements:
“(9) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—Any other information the Secretary, in consultation with the heads of relevant Federal agencies, including the Secretary of the Treasury and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, determines necessary, based on the results and input of the consumer testing under subsection (h)(2), and limited only to effectively communicating college costs and financial aid eligibility to students and parents.
“(c) Other required contents for aid offer.—The standard form developed under subsection (a) shall include, in addition to the information described in subsection (b), the following information in a concise format determined by the Secretary, in consultation with the heads of relevant Federal agencies and the individuals and entities described in subsection (a):
“(1) Additional options and potential resources for paying for the amount listed in subsection (b)(3), such as tuition payment plans.
“(2) The following information relating to private student loans and Federal Direct PLUS Loans:
“(A) A disclosure that Federal Direct PLUS Loans, private education loans, or income share agreements may be available to cover remaining need, except that the institution may not include Federal Direct PLUS Loans or private education loans other than under the conditions described in subsection (b)(4)(C) and must include a disclosure that such loans—
“(B) A statement that students considering borrowing to cover the cost of attendance should consider available Federal student loans prior to applying for private education loans, including an explanation that Federal student loans offer generally more favorable terms and beneficial repayment options than private loans.
“(d) Additional formatting requirements for financial aid offer.—The financial aid offer shall meet the following requirements:
“(1) Clearly distinguish between the aid offered under paragraphs (2) and (4) of subsection (b), by including a subtotal for the aid offered in each of such paragraphs and by refraining from commingling the different types of aid described in such paragraphs.
“(e) Additional requirements for electronic financial aid offers.—In the case of an electronic financial aid offer that includes a requirement that a student confirm receipt of such offer, such confirmation may not be considered an acceptance or rejection of such offer.
“(f) Supplemental content and disclosures to be provided.—In addition to the standard form described under subsection (a), institutions shall provide, in supplemental documents or through easily accessible weblinks to the institution’s portal or a website, the following:
“(1) The renewability requirements and conditions under which the student can expect to receive similar amounts of such financial aid for each academic period the student is enrolled at the institution.
“(2) Whether the aid offer may change if aid from outside sources is applied after the student receives the initial aid offer, and, if applicable, how that aid will change.
“(3) If loans under part D or part E of title IV or other education loans offered through Federal programs are included—
“(A) a disclosure that the interest rates and fees on such loans are set annually and affect total cost over time, and a link to any website that includes current information on interest rates and fees; and
“(B) if an institution’s recommended Federal student loan aid offered in subsection (b)(4) is less than the Federal maximum available to the student, the institution shall provide additional information on Federal student loans including the types and amounts for which the student is eligible and the process for requesting higher loan amounts if offered loan amounts were included.
“(g) Standard information established by Secretary.—
“(1) STANDARD TERMINOLOGY.—Not later than 3 months after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the heads of relevant Federal agencies, and the individuals and entities described in subsection (a) shall establish standard terminology and definitions for the terms described in subsection (b).
“(h) Additional information; removal of information.—Nothing in this section shall preclude an institution from—
“(i) Development of financial aid offer.—
“(1) DRAFT FORM.—Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the heads of relevant Federal agencies and the individuals and entities described in subsection (a) shall design and produce multiple draft financial aid offers for consumer testing with postsecondary students or prospective students. In developing that form, the Secretary shall ensure that—
“(A) the headings described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (b) are in the same font, appears in the same order, and are displayed prominently on the financial aid offer, such that none of that information is inappropriately omitted or deemphasized;
“(2) CONSUMER TESTING.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the heads of relevant Federal agencies, shall establish a process to submit the financial aid offer drafts developed under paragraph (1) for consumer testing among representatives of students (including low-income students, first generation college students, adult students, veterans, servicemembers, and prospective students), students’ families (including low-income families, families with first generation college students, and families with prospective students), institutions of higher education, secondary school and postsecondary counselors, and nonprofit consumer groups.
“(B) LENGTH OF CONSUMER TESTING.—The Secretary shall ensure that the consumer testing under this paragraph lasts not longer than 8 months after the process for consumer testing is developed under subparagraph (A).
“(C) NONAPPLICATION OF PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT.—Subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, shall not apply to the consumer testing process under this paragraph.
“(3) FINAL FORM.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—The results of consumer testing under paragraph (2) shall be used in the development of the finalized standard financial aid offer required under subsection (f)(2).
“(4) AUTHORITY TO MODIFY.—The Secretary may modify or remove the definitions, terms, formatting, and design of the financial aid offer based on the results of consumer testing required under this subsection and before finalizing the form, or in subsequent consumer testing. The Secretary may also recommend additional changes to Congress.
“(j) Cost of attendance defined.—In this section, the term ‘cost of attendance’ has the meaning given such term in section 472.
“(k) Use of mandatory financial aid offer and terms.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each institution of higher education that receives Federal financial assistance under this Act shall—
“(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The requirements under this section shall take effect on the first date on which the Secretary releases the Free Application for Federal Student Aid for the applicable award year associated with that application, if such date occurs not less than 1 year after the Secretary of Education finalizes the standard terminology and form developed in accordance with this section.
“(3) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall not have the authority to prescribe regulations to carry out this section, including with respect to the definition of ‘income share agreement’ or ‘private education loan’ (as such term is defined in section 140(a) of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a))).”.
(b) Relationship to existing law.—Section 484 of the Higher Education Opportunity Act (20 U.S.C. 1092 note) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(c) Sunset.—The authority of the Secretary to carry out this section shall terminate on the date on which the standard form for financial aid offers under section 124 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) is released.”.
(a) College scorecard website.—
(1) DEFINITIONS; CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 132 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015a(a)) is amended—
(A) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
“(a) Definitions.—In this section:
“(1) COLLEGE SCORECARD WEBSITE.—The term ‘College Scorecard website’ means the College Scorecard website required under subsection (c) and includes any successor website.
“(2) COST OF ATTENDANCE.—The term ‘cost of attendance’ has the meaning given such term in section 472.
“(3) TOTAL NET PRICE REQUIRED FOR COMPLETION.—The term ‘total net price required for completion’ means, with respect to the period of completion of a program of study—
(2) SCORECARD AUTHORIZED.—Section 132 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015a) is further amended—
(B) by inserting after subsection (b) (as so redesignated) the following:
“(c) Consumer information.—
“(1) AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION FOR TITLE IV INSTITUTIONS AND PROGRAMS.—Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Secretary shall make publicly available on the College Scorecard website the following aggregated information with respect to each institution of higher education and each program of study at such institution, as applicable, that participates in a program under title IV:
“(C) A link to the website of the institution containing campus safety data with respect to such institution.
“(E) Information on the type of institution, including sector, size, predominant and highest credential awarded, research intensity, programs of study offered, and other characteristics of the institution.
“(F) Information on student enrollment, including the number and percentage of students enrolled full-time, less than full-time, and enrolled in distance education.
“(G) Information on student progression and completion, including time to credential and rates of withdrawal, retention, transfer, or completion.
“(H) Information on college costs and financial aid, including average, median, minimum, and maximum values of—
“(i) the cost of attendance, including such cost disaggregated by the costs described in paragraphs (1) through (14) of section 472(a);
“(ii) the grants and scholarships received by students at the institution and the number and percentage of such students receiving such grants and scholarships, disaggregated by source and whether such aid is need-based, merit-based, an athletic scholarship, or other type of grant or scholarship; and
“(2) DISAGGREGATED INFORMATION.—The Secretary shall ensure the information described in paragraph (1) is disaggregated, as applicable, by the following student characteristics:
“(A) Financial circumstances including—
“(F) Enrollment status, including part-time or full-time enrollment, and status as a distance education student.
“(J) Status as a participant in a program described in section 116(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3131(b)(3)(A)(ii)).
“(3) INSTITUTIONAL AND PROGRAM COMPARISON.—The Secretary shall include on the College Scorecard website a method for users to easily compare institutions and programs, including in a manner that allows for such comparison based on—
“(4) UNIVERSAL NET PRICE CALCULATOR.—
“(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall establish, on a dedicated website of the Department, a Universal Net Price Calculator that provides to an individual, with respect to each institution of higher education and program of study offered by such institution—
“(B) UNIVERSAL NET PRICE CALCULATOR INPUTS.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in clause (ii), the information required under subparagraph (A) shall be generated based on a single set of questions developed by the Secretary for purposes of capturing the information specified in paragraph (2) and using the data elements described in section 132(f)(2)(C)(ii).
“(ii) FAFSA-BASED ESTIMATE.—When an individual submits a Free Application for Federal Student Aid described in section 483, the information required under subparagraph (A) shall be automatically generated based solely on the contents of such application and the data elements described in section 132(f)(2)(C)(ii).
“(5) UPDATES.—
“(6) CONSUMER TESTING.—In developing and maintaining the College Scorecard website, the Secretary, in consultation with appropriate departments and agencies of the Federal Government—
“(A) not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, and not less than once every 3 years thereafter, shall conduct consumer testing with appropriate persons, including current and prospective college students, family members of such students, institutions of higher education, and experts, to ensure that the College Scorecard website is usable and easily understandable and provides useful and relevant information to students and families; and
“(B) prominently shall display on such website in simple, understandable, and unbiased terms for the most recent academic year for which satisfactory data is available, the information described in paragraphs (1) and (2) that was determined to be useful and relevant to students and families based on the consumer testing described in subparagraph (A) for each institution and program of study (as applicable).
“(7) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.—The Secretary, in consultation with each appropriate head of a department or agency of the Federal Government, shall ensure, to the greatest extent practicable, that any information related to higher education that is published by such department or agency is consistent with the information published on the College Scorecard website.
“(8) DATA COLLECTION AND DUPLICATED REPORTING.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, to the extent that another provision of this section requires the same reporting or collection of data that is required under this Act, an institution of higher education, or the Secretary or Commissioner, shall use the reporting or data required under this subsection to satisfy both requirements.
“(9) DATA PRIVACY.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall ensure any information made available under this section is made available in accordance with the privacy laws described in section 132(f)(1)(C)(iv).
“(B) SMALL INSTITUTIONS AND PROGRAM OF STUDY.—For purposes of publishing the information described in paragraphs (1) and (2), for any year for which the number of students is determined by the Secretary to be of insufficient size to maintain the privacy of student data , the Secretary shall—
“(i) aggregate up to 4 years of additional data for such program of study to obtain data for a sufficient number of students to maintain student privacy;
“(ii) in the case of a program of study, if the method described in clause (i) is insufficient to maintain student privacy, aggregate data for students who completed or who were enrolled in, as applicable, similar program of study of the institution to obtain data for a sufficient number of students to maintain student privacy; and
“(iii) in the case of a program of study, if the methods described in clauses (i) and (ii) are insufficient to maintain student privacy, or additional data described in such clauses is not available or can not be aggregated, aggregate data with respect to all students who completed or were enrolled in, as applicable, any program of study of the institution of the same credential level, in lieu of data specific to students in such program of study.”.
(b) Conforming amendments.—The Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), as amended by subsection (a) of this section, is further amended by striking “College Navigator” each place it appears and inserting “College Scorecard”.
(c) References.—Any reference in any law (other than the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.)), regulation, document, record, or other paper of the United States to the College Navigator website shall be considered to be a reference to the College Scorecard website.
Section 132 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015a) is further amended—
(3) by inserting after subsection (e), as so redesignated, the following:
“(f) Postsecondary student data system.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—
“(A) ESTABLISHMENT OF SYSTEM.—Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics (referred to in this subsection as the ‘Commissioner’) in consultation with the Director of the Institute of Education Sciences (referred to as ‘the Director’) shall develop and maintain a secure and privacy-protected postsecondary student-level data system in order to—
“(i) accurately evaluate student enrollment patterns, progression, completion, and postcollegiate outcomes, and higher education costs and financial aid;
“(B) AVOIDING DUPLICATE REPORTING.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, to the extent that another provision of this section requires the same reporting or collection of data that is required under this subsection, an institution of higher education, or the Secretary or Commissioner, shall use the reporting or data required for the postsecondary student data system under this subsection to satisfy both requirements.
“(C) DEVELOPMENT PROCESS.—In developing the postsecondary student data system described in this subsection, the Commissioner, in consultation with the Director, shall—
“(ii) take into consideration, to the extent practicable—
“(iii) use modern, relevant privacy- and security-enhancing technology, and enhance and update the data system as necessary to carry out the purpose of this subsection;
“(iv) ensure data privacy and security is consistent with any relevant Federal law relating to privacy or data security, including—
“(I) the requirements of subchapter II of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, specifying security categorization under the Federal Information Processing Standards or any relevant successor of such standards;
“(II) security requirements that are consistent with the Federal agency responsibilities in section 3554 of title 44, United States Code, or any relevant successor of such responsibilities; and
“(III) security requirements, guidelines, and controls consistent with cybersecurity standards and best practices developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, including frameworks, consistent with section 2(c) of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 U.S.C. 272(c)), or any relevant successor of such frameworks;
“(D) LIMITATION.—The data system developed under this subsection may only include data with respect to—
“(ii) participants in a program described in section 116(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3131(b)(3)(A)(ii)).
“(2) DATA ELEMENTS.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Commissioner, in consultation with the Postsecondary Student Data System Advisory Committee and the Director, established under subparagraph (B), shall determine—
“(B) POSTSECONDARY STUDENT DATA SYSTEM ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—
“(i) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Commissioner, in consultation with the Director, shall establish a Postsecondary Student Data System Advisory Committee (referred to in this subsection as the ‘Advisory Committee’), whose members shall include—
“(I) the Chief Privacy Officer of the Department or an official of the Department delegated the duties of overseeing data privacy at the Department;
“(II) the Chief Security Officer of the Department or an official of the Department delegated the duties of overseeing data security at the Department;
“(III) representatives of diverse institutions of higher education, which shall include equal representation between 2-year and 4-year institutions of higher education, and from public, nonprofit, and proprietary institutions of higher education, including minority-serving institutions;
“(VIII) the individual within a State responsible for administering the statewide, longitudinal data system described in section 208 of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9607(a)); and
“(ii) REQUIREMENTS.—The Commissioner, working with the Director, shall ensure that the Advisory Committee—
“(I) adheres to all requirements under chapter 10 of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the ‘Federal Advisory Committee Act’);
“(C) REQUIRED DATA ELEMENTS.—The data elements in the postsecondary student data system shall include the following:
“(i) Student-level data elements necessary to calculate the information within the surveys designated by the Commissioner as ‘student-related surveys’ in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), as such surveys are in effect on the day before the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, except that in the case that collection of such elements would conflict with the prohibition under subparagraph (F), such elements in conflict with such prohibition shall be included in the aggregate instead of at the student level.
“(ii) Student-level data elements reported by institutions in accordance with section 668.408 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on July 1, 2024.
“(iii) Student-level data elements necessary to allow for reporting student enrollment, persistence, progression (including credit accumulation) retention, transfer, completion, and time and credits to credential measures for all credential levels separately (including certificate, associate, baccalaureate, and advanced degree levels), within and across institutions of higher education (including across all categories of institution level, control, and predominant degree awarded). The data elements shall allow for reporting about all such data disaggregated by the following categories:
“(I) Enrollment status as a first-time student, recent transfer student, or other nonfirst-time student.
“(III) Credential-seeking status, by credential level (including noncredit-seeking and noncredit credentials).
“(IV) Race or ethnicity, in a manner that captures all the racial groups specified in the most recent American Community Survey of the Bureau of the Census.
“(IX) Measures related to college readiness, including participation in postsecondary remedial coursework or gateway course completion.
“(XI) Status as an online education student, whether exclusively or partially enrolled in online education.
“(XII) Military or veteran benefit status (as determined based on receipt of veteran’s education benefits, as defined in section 480(c)).
“(XIII) Federal Pell Grant recipient status under section 401 and Federal loan recipient status under title IV.
“(XIV) Status as a participant in a program described in section 116(b)(3)(A)(ii) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3131(b)(3)(A)(ii)).
“(D) REEVALUATION.—Not less than once every 3 years after the implementation of the postsecondary student data system described in this subsection, the Commissioner, in consultation with the Advisory Committee described in subparagraph (B) and working with the Director, shall report to Congress the data elements included in the postsecondary student data system and recommend any additional data elements to be included in such system.
“(E) PROHIBITIONS.—The postsecondary student data system shall not include individual health data (including data relating to physical health or mental health), student discipline records or data, elementary and secondary education data, an exact address, course grades, postsecondary entrance examination results, political affiliation, religion, or any other data in the postsecondary student data system not described in this subsection.
“(3) PERIODIC MATCHING WITH OTHER FEDERAL DATA SYSTEMS.—
“(A) DATA SHARING AGREEMENTS.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner, in consultation with the Director, shall ensure secure and privacy-protected periodic data matches by entering into data sharing agreements with each of the following Federal agencies and offices:
“(I) The Secretary of the Treasury and the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, in order to calculate aggregate program- and institution-level earnings of postsecondary students described in subparagraph (B)(ii).
“(II) The Secretary of Defense, in order to assess the use of postsecondary educational benefits and the outcomes of servicemembers who are receiving veteran’s education benefits (as defined in section 480(c)).
“(III) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in order to assess the use of postsecondary educational benefits and outcomes of veterans who are receiving veteran’s education benefits (as defined in section 480(c)).
“(IV) The Director of the Bureau of the Census, in order to assess the employment outcomes of former postsecondary education students described in paragraph (1)(D).
“(V) The Chief Operating Officer of the Office of Federal Student Aid, in order to analyze the use of postsecondary educational benefits provided under this Act.
“(B) CATEGORIES OF DATA.—The Commissioner, in consultation with the Director, shall, at a minimum, seek to ensure that the secure and privacy-protected periodic data matches described in subparagraph (A) permit consistent reporting of the following categories of data for students described in paragraph (1)(D) who completed a program of study and who did not complete a program of study:
“(C) PERIODIC DATA MATCH STREAMLINING AND CONFIDENTIALITY.—
“(i) STREAMLINING.—In carrying out the secure and privacy-protected periodic data matches under this paragraph, the Commissioner shall—
“(I) ensure that such matches are not continuous, but occur only periodically at appropriate intervals, as determined by the Commissioner to meet the goals of subparagraph (A); and
“(II) seek to—
“(aa) streamline the data collection and reporting requirements for institutions of higher education;
“(bb) minimize duplicative reporting across or within Federal agencies or departments, including reporting requirements applicable to institutions of higher education under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) and the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006;
“(ii) REVIEW.—Not less often than once every 3 years after the establishment of the postsecondary student data system under this subsection, the Commissioner, in consultation with the Advisory Committee and the Director, shall review methods for streamlining data collection from institutions of higher education and minimizing duplicative reporting within the Department and across Federal agencies that provide data for the postsecondary student data system.
“(iii) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The Commissioner shall ensure that any periodic matching or sharing of data through periodic data system matches established in accordance with this paragraph—
“(I) complies with the security and privacy protections described in paragraph (1)(C)(iv) and other Federal data protection protocols;
“(II) follows industry best practices commensurate with the sensitivity of specific data elements or metrics;
“(iv) CORRECTION.—The Commissioner, in consultation with the Advisory Committee and Director, shall establish a process for students to request access to only their personal information for inspection and request corrections to inaccuracies in a manner that protects the student’s personally identifiable information. The Commissioner shall respond in writing to every request for a correction from a student.
“(4) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner shall make the summary aggregate information described in subparagraph (C), at a minimum, publicly available through a user-friendly consumer information website and analytic tool for institutional and research use that—
“(i) provides appropriate mechanisms for users to customize and filter information by institutional and student characteristics;
“(ii) allows users to build summary aggregate reports of information, including reports that allow comparisons across multiple institutions and programs, subject to subparagraph (B);
“(B) NO PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION AVAILABLE.—The summary aggregate information described in this paragraph shall not include personally identifiable information.
“(C) SUMMARY AGGREGATE INFORMATION AVAILABLE.—The summary aggregate information described in this paragraph shall, at a minimum, include each of the following for each institution of higher education:
“(ii) Measures of student progression, including retention rates and persistence rates, disaggregated by each category described in paragraph (2)(C)(iii).
“(iii) Measures of student completion, including—
“(iv) Measures of student costs, including—
“(D) DEVELOPMENT CRITERIA.—In developing the method and format of making the information described in this paragraph publicly available, the Commissioner shall—
“(i) focus on the needs of the users of the information, which will include students, families of students, potential students, researchers, and other consumers of education data;
“(ii) take into consideration, to the extent practicable, the guidelines described in paragraph (1)(C)(ii)(I), and relevant successor documents or recommendations of such guidelines;
“(iii) use modern, relevant technology and enhance and update the postsecondary student data system with information, as necessary to carry out the purpose of this paragraph;
“(iv) ensure data privacy and security in accordance with standards and guidelines developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and in accordance with any other Federal law relating to privacy or security, including complying with the requirements of subchapter II of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, specifying security categorization under the Federal Information Processing Standards, and security requirements, and setting of National Institute of Standards and Technology security baseline controls at the appropriate level; and
“(5) PERMISSIBLE DISCLOSURES OF DATA.—
“(A) DATA REPORTS AND QUERIES.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Commissioner in consultation with the Director, shall develop and implement a secure and privacy-protected process for making student-level, nonpersonally identifiable information, with direct identifiers removed, from the postsecondary student data system available for vetted research and evaluation purposes approved by the Commissioner in a manner compatible with practices for disclosing National Center for Education Statistics restricted-use survey data as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, or by applying other research and disclosure restrictions to ensure data privacy and security. Such process shall be approved by the National Center for Education Statistics’ Disclosure Review Board (or successor body).
“(ii) PROVIDING DATA REPORTS AND QUERIES TO INSTITUTIONS AND STATES.—
“(I) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner shall provide feedback reports, at least annually, to each institution of higher education, each postsecondary education system that fully participates in the postsecondary student data system, and each State higher education body as designated by the governor.
“(II) FEEDBACK REPORTS.—The feedback reports provided under this clause shall include program-level and institution-level information from the postsecondary student data system regarding students who are associated with the institution or, for State representatives, the institutions within that State, on or before the date of the report, on measures including student mobility (including transfer and completion rates) and workforce outcomes, provided that the feedback aggregate summary reports protect the privacy of individuals.
“(iii) PERMITTING STATE DATA QUERIES.—The Commissioner shall, in consultation with the Advisory Committee and as soon as practicable, create a process through which States may submit lists of secondary school graduates within the State to receive summary aggregate outcomes for those students who enrolled at an institution of higher education, including postsecondary enrollment, retention and transfer, and college completion, provided that those data protect the privacy of individuals and that the State data submitted to the Commissioner are not stored in the postsecondary education system.
“(B) DISCLOSURE LIMITATIONS.—In carrying out the public reporting and disclosure requirements of this subsection, the Commissioner shall use appropriate statistical disclosure limitation techniques necessary to ensure that the data released to the public cannot include personally identifiable information or be used to identify specific individuals.
“(C) SALE OF DATA PROHIBITED.—Data collected under this subsection, including the public-use data set and data comprising the summary aggregate information available under paragraph (4), shall not be sold to any third party by the Commissioner, including any institution of higher education or any other entity.
“(D) LIMITATION ON USE BY OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES.—
“(E) LAW ENFORCEMENT.—Personally identifiable information collected under this subsection shall not be used for any Federal, State, or local law enforcement activity or any other activity that would result in adverse action against any student or a student’s family.
“(F) LIMITATION OF USE FOR FEDERAL RANKINGS OR SUMMATIVE RATING SYSTEM.—The comprehensive data collection and analysis necessary for the postsecondary student data system under this subsection shall not be used by the Secretary or any Federal entity to establish any Federal ranking system of institutions of higher education or a system that results in a summative Federal rating of institutions of higher education.
“(6) SUBMISSION OF DATA.—
“(A) REQUIRED SUBMISSION.—Each institution of higher education participating in a program under title IV, or the assigned agent of such institution, shall, for each instructional program, and in accordance with section 487(a)(17), collect, and submit to the Commissioner, the data requested by the Commissioner to carry out this subsection.
“(B) VOLUNTARY SUBMISSION.—Any institution of higher education not participating in a program under title IV may voluntarily participate in the postsecondary student data system under this subsection by collecting and submitting data to the Commissioner, as the Commissioner may request to carry out this subsection.
“(C) PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION.—In accordance with paragraph (2)(C)(i), if the submission of an element of student-level data is prohibited under paragraph (2)(F) (or otherwise prohibited by law), the institution of higher education shall submit that data to the Commissioner in the aggregate.
“(7) UNLAWFUL WILLFUL DISCLOSURE.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any person who obtains or has access to personally identifiable information in connection with the postsecondary student data system described in this subsection to willfully disclose to any person (except as authorized in this Act or by any Federal law) such personally identifiable information.
“(B) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subparagraph (A) shall be subject to a penalty described under section 3572(f) of title 44, United States Code, and section 183(d)(6) of the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C. 9573(d)(6)).
“(8) DATA SECURITY.—The Commissioner shall produce and update as needed guidance and regulations relating to privacy, security, and access which shall govern the use and disclosure of data collected in connection with the activities authorized in this subsection. The guidance and regulations developed and reviewed shall protect data from unauthorized access, use, and disclosure, and shall include—
“(D) confidentiality protection in accordance with the applicable provisions of subchapter III of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code;
“(9) DATA COLLECTION.—The Commissioner shall ensure that data collection, maintenance, and use under this subsection complies with section 552a of title 5, United States Code.
“(10) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:
“(A) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the meaning given the term in section 102.
(a) In general.—Section 134(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015c(b)) is amended to read as follows:
(b) Program participation agreements.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (17) of section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended to read as follows:
“(17) The institution or the assigned agent of the institution will collect and submit to the Commissioner for Education Statistics data in accordance with section 132(f), the non-student related surveys within the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), or any other Federal institution of higher education data collection effort (as designated by the Secretary), in a timely manner and to the satisfaction of the Secretary.”.
(c) Reporting burden.—The Secretary of Education and the Commissioner for Education Statistics shall take such steps as are necessary to ensure that the development and maintenance of the postsecondary student data system required under section 132(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as added by section 113 of this Act, occurs in a manner that, to the extent practicable, reduces the reporting burden for entities that reported into the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS).
(a) Amount of need.—Section 471 (20 U.S.C. 1087kk), as amended by the FAFSA Simplification Act, is further amended by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
(b) Cost of attendance.—Section 472(c) (20 U.S.C. 1087ll(c)), as amended by the FAFSA Simplification Act, is further amended by striking “of the institution” and inserting “of each program of study at the institution”.
(c) Median cost of college.—Part F of title IV (20 U.S.C. 1087kk), as amended by the FAFSA Simplification Act, is further amended by inserting after section 472, as amended by subsection (b), the following:
“SEC. 472A. Determination of median cost of college.
“For the purpose of this title, the term ‘median cost of college’, when used with respect to a program of study offered by one or more institutions of higher education for an award year, means the median of the cost of attendance (as defined in section 472) for the program of study across all institutions of higher education offering such a program for the preceding award year.”.
Section 401(b)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1070a(b)(3)), as amended by the FAFSA Simplification Act, is further amended to read as follows:
“(3) AWARD MAY NOT EXCEED MEDIAN COST OF COLLEGE.—With respect to award year 2025–2026 and each succeeding award year, no Federal Pell Grant under this subpart shall exceed the median cost of college (as defined in section 472A) for the program at which that student is in attendance. If, with respect to any student, it is determined that the amount of a Federal Pell Grant for that student exceeds the median cost of college for such program for that year, the amount of the Federal Pell Grant shall be reduced until the Federal Pell Grant does not exceed the median cost of college for such program for that year.”.
(a) Termination of certain programs.—Notwithstanding subparts 3 and 4 of part A, or part C, of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.), or any other provision of law, except as expressly authorized by an Act of Congress enacted after the date of enactment of this Act, beginning on October 1, 2026, no funds are authorized to be appropriated, or may be expended, under this Act or any other Act to make payments to States for the Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership Program under subpart 4 of part A of title IV (20 U.S.C. 1070c et seq.), and the authority of the Secretary to carry out such program shall be terminated.
(b) Promise grants.—Subpart 4 of part A of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070c et seq.) is amended to read as follows:
“It is the purpose of this subpart to provide performance-based grants to—
“For award year 2026–2027 and each succeeding award year, from reserved funds remitted to the Secretary in accordance with section 454(d) and additional funds authorized under section 415E, as necessary, the Secretary shall award PROMISE grants to eligible institutions to carry out the purpose of this subpart. PROMISE grants awarded under this subpart shall be performance-based and shall be awarded to each eligible institution for a 6-year period in an amount that is determined in accordance with section 415D.
“SEC. 415C. Eligible institutions; application.
“(a) Eligible institution.—To be eligible for a PROMISE grant under this subpart, an institution shall—
“(b) Application.—An eligible institution seeking a PROMISE grant under this subpart (including a renewal of such a grant) shall submit to the Secretary an application, at such time as the Secretary may require, that contains the information required in this subsection. Such application shall—
“(2) describe how grant funds awarded under this subpart will be used by the institution to carry out the purposes of this Act, including activities related to—
“(A) postsecondary affordability, including—
“(C) postsecondary student success, which may include—
“(i) activities to improve completion rates and reduce time to credential, including the activities described in section 741 of this Act, as amended by the College Cost Reduction Act;
“(ii) activities to align programs of study with the needs of employers, including with respect to in-demand industry sectors or occupations (as defined in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)); and
“(c) Maximum total price guarantee requirements.—As a condition of eligibility for a PROMISE grant under this subpart, an institution shall—
“(1) for each award year beginning after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, not later than one year before the start of each such award year (except that, for the first award year beginning after such date of enactment, the institution shall meet these requirements as soon as practicable such date of enactment)—
“(2) for the award year for which the institution is applying for a PROMISE grant, and at least one award year preceding such award year, provide to each student who first enrolls, or plans to enroll, in the institution during the award year and who receives Federal financial aid under this title a maximum total price guarantee, in accordance with this section, for the minimum guarantee period applicable to the student; and
“(d) Duration of minimum guarantee period.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—The minimum period during which a student shall be provided a guarantee under subsection (c) with respect to the maximum total price for completion of a program of study at an institution shall be the median time to credential of students who completed any undergraduate program of study at the institution during the most recent award year for which data are available, except that such minimum guarantee period shall not be less than the program length of the program of study in which the student is enrolled.
“(e) Determination of maximum total price for completion.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—For the purposes of subsection (c), an institution shall determine, prior to the first award year in which a student enrolls at the institution, the maximum total price that may be charged to the student for completion of a program of study at the institution for the minimum guarantee period applicable to a student, before application of any Federal Pell Grants or other Federal financial aid under this title. Such a maximum total price for completion shall be determined for students in each income category and student aid index category (as determined in accordance with section 132(c)(2)(A)). In determining the maximum total price for completion to be charged to each such category of students, the institution may consider the ability of a category of students to pay tuition and fees (including the required costs described in section 124(b)(3)(A)(i)(I)), but may not include in such consideration any Federal Pell Grants or other Federal financial aid awards that may be available to such category of students under this title.
“(2) MULTIPLE MAXIMUM TOTAL PRICE GUARANTEES.—In the event that a student receives more than one maximum total price guarantee because the student is included in more than one category of students for which the institution determines a maximum total price guarantee amount for the purposes of subsection (c), the maximum total price guarantee applicable to such student for the purposes of this section shall be equal to the lowest such guarantee amount.
“SEC. 415D. Grant amounts; flexible use of funds.
“(a) Grant amount formula.—
“(1) FORMULA.—Subject to subsection (b), the amount of a PROMISE grant for an eligible institution for each year of the grant period shall be determined by the Secretary annually and shall be equal to—
“(A) the amount determined by multiplying—
“(i) the lesser of—
“(I) the difference determined by subtracting one from the quotient of—
“(ii) the average, for the 3 most recent award years, of the total dollar amount of Federal Pell Grants awarded to students enrolled in the institution in each such award year; and
“(iii) the average, for the 3 most recent award years, of the percentage of low-income students who received Federal financial assistance under this title who were enrolled in the institution in each such award year who—
“(I) completed a program of study at the institution within 100 percent of the program length of such program; or
“(b) Maximum grant amount.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), the maximum amount an eligible institution may receive annually for a grant under this subpart shall be the amount equal to—
“(c) Flexible use of funds.—A PROMISE grant awarded under this subpart shall be used by an eligible institution to carry out the purposes of this subpart, including—
“(1) carrying out activities included in the institution’s application for such grant related to postsecondary affordability, access, and student success; and
“(d) Transfer authority.—In order to offer an arrangement of types of aid which best fit the needs of each individual student, an institution may transfer up to 100 percent of the institution’s allotment under subpart 3 of this part or part C of this title (or both) to the institution’s allotment under this section. Funds transferred to an institution's allotment under this section may be used as a part of and for the same purposes as funds allotted under this subpart. The Secretary shall have no control over such transfer, except as specifically authorized, except for the collection and dissemination of information.
“SEC. 415E. Authorization of appropriations.
“(a) Used of reserved funds.—
“(1) PRIMARY FUNDS.—To carry out this subpart, there shall be available to the Secretary any funds remitted to the Secretary as reimbursements in accordance with section 454(d) for any award year; and
“(2) SECONDARY FUNDS.—Beginning award year 2026–2027, if the amounts made available to the Secretary under paragraph (1) to carry out this subpart in any award year are insufficient to fully fund the PROMISE grants awarded under this subpart in such award year, there shall be available to the Secretary, in addition to such amounts, any funds returned to the Secretary under section 484B in the previous award year.
“(b) Insufficient funds.—If the amounts made available to the Secretary under subsection (a) to carry out this subpart for are not sufficient to provide grants to all eligible institutions in the amount determined under this subpart for an award year, the Secretary shall first provide grants to the eligible institutions that have the highest percentage of students who are low-income students (as defined in section 415D).”.
(c) Institutional refunds.—Section 484B of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091b) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(f) Reservation of funds for PROMISE grants.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall reserve the funds returned to the Secretary under this section for 1 year after the return of such funds for the purpose of awarding PROMISE grants in accordance with subpart 4 of part A of this title.”.
(a) Stafford loans.—
(1) AGGREGATE AND ANNUAL LIMITS FOR GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL STUDENTS.—Section 455(a) (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is amended—
(A) in paragraph (3)—
(i) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by inserting before the period at the end the following: “, except that for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, such maximum annual amount shall be determined in accordance with subparagraph (C)”;
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting before the period at the end the following: “for any period of instruction through June 30, 2025”; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
“(C) ANNUAL LIMITS.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, the maximum annual amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans that a graduate or professional student may borrow in any academic year (as defined in section 481(a)(2)) or its equivalent shall be median cost of college (as defined in section 472A) of the program of study in which the student is enrolled, except that the sum of such annual loan amount and other financial assistance (as defined in section 480(i)) that the student receives for such academic year may not exceed the cost of attendance of such student.
“(D) AGGREGATE LIMITS.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, the maximum aggregate amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans that—
“(E) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN STUDENTS.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—The provisions listed in clause (ii) shall not apply with respect to any individual who, as of June 30, 2025, is enrolled in a program of study at an institution of higher education, and has received a loan (or on whose behalf a loan was made) under this part for such program, during the individual’s expected time to completion of such program, as determined by calculating by the difference between—
except that such expected time to completion may not exceed 3 years.
(2) ANNUAL LIMITS FOR UNDERGRADUATE BORROWERS.—Section 455(a) (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
“(4) ANNUAL AND AGGREGATE LOAN LIMITS FOR UNDERGRADUATE AND ALL BORROWERS.—
“(A) UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS.—
“(i) ANNUAL LOAN LIMITS.—
“(I) SUBSIDIZED LOANS.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, the maximum annual amount of Federal Direct Stafford loans that an undergraduate student may borrow in any academic year (as defined in section 481(a)(2)) or its equivalent shall be the difference between—
“(aa) the median cost of college (as defined in section 472A) of the program of study in which the student is enrolled; and
except that (1) the amount of such Federal Direct Stafford loans awarded to the student for such academic year may not exceed the maximum annual limit described in section 428(b)(1) that is applicable to such student; and (2) the sum of such Federal Direct Stafford Loans and the amount of such Federal Pell Grant and other financial assistance (as defined in section 480(i)) that the student receives for such academic year may not exceed the cost of attendance of such student.
“(II) UNSUBSIDIZED LOANS.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, the maximum annual amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans that an undergraduate student may borrow in any academic year (as defined in section 481(a)(2)) or its equivalent shall be the difference between—
“(aa) the median cost of college (as defined in section 472A) of the program of study in which the student is enrolled; and
“(bb) the sum of—
“(AA) the amount of Federal Direct Stafford loans awarded to such student for such academic year; and
“(BB) the amount of the Federal Pell Grant under section 401 awarded to the student for such academic year,
except that the sum of all Federal financial aid under this title and other financial assistance (as defined in section 480(i)) that such student receives for such academic year may not exceed the cost of attendance for such student.
“(ii) AGGREGATE LIMITS.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, with respect to an undergraduate student—
“(I) the maximum aggregate amount of Federal Direct Stafford loans and Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans that may be borrowed shall be $50,000;
“(B) STUDENTS IN A QUALIFYING UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM.—
“(i) AGGREGATE LIMITS.—Notwithstanding the aggregate limits described in subparagraph (A)(ii), a student enrolled in a qualifying undergraduate program shall be subject to the aggregate limits for professional students described in paragraph (3)(D)(ii).
“(ii) QUALIFYING UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM DEFINED.—For purposes of this subparagraph, the term ‘qualifying undergraduate program’ means a program of study—
“(I) for which the total tuition and fees (including the required costs described in section 124(b)(3)(A)(i)(I)) exceeds the aggregate limits for undergraduate students described in subparagraph (A)(ii);
(3) INSTITUTIONALLY DETERMINED LIMITS.—Section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
“(5) INSTITUTIONALLY DETERMINED LIMITS.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, an eligible institution (at the discretion of a financial aid administrator at the institution) may prorate or limit the amount of a loan any student who is enrolled in a program of study for a period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2024, at that institution, may borrow under this part for an academic year—
“(i) if the institution can reasonably demonstrate that outstanding amounts owed of loans made under this title are or would be excessive for students who complete such program, based on the most recently available data from the College Scorecard (or successor website of the Department) on—
“(B) APPLICATION TO ALL STUDENTS.—Any proration or limiting of loan amounts under subparagraph (A) shall be applied in the same manner to all students enrolled in a program of study.
“(C) INCREASES FOR INDIVIDUAL STUDENTS.—Upon the request of a student whose loan amount for an academic year has been prorated or limited under subparagraph (A), an eligible institution (at the discretion of the financial aid administrator at the institution) may increase such loan amount to an amount not exceeding the annual loan amount applicable to such student under this paragraph for such academic year.”.
(b) Termination of authority to make federal direct plus loans to any student or parent borrower.—Section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(6) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY TO MAKE FEDERAL DIRECT PLUS LOANS.—Notwithstanding any provision of this part or part B, except as provided in paragraph (3)(E), for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2025, no Federal Direct PLUS loans may be made to any parent borrower or graduate or professional student borrower.”.
(a) Repayment plans.—Section 455(d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(d)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)(D) by inserting “(including a repayment assistance plan under section 455(e)(9))” after “an income contingent repayment plan”; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(6) REPAYMENT PLANS FOR LOANS MADE ON OR AFTER JULY 1, 2024.—
“(A) DESIGN AND SELECTION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), beginning on July 1, 2024, the Secretary shall offer a borrower of a loan made under this part on or after July 1, 2024, two plans for repayment of such loan, including principal and interest on the loan. The borrower shall be entitled to accelerate, without penalty, repayment on such loans. The borrower may choose—
“(B) SELECTION BY SECRETARY.—If such borrower does not select a repayment plan described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall provide the borrower with the repayment plan described in subparagraph (A)(i).
“(C) CHANGES IN SELECTION.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause (ii), a borrower may change the borrower’s selection of a repayment plan under subparagraph (A), or the Secretary’s selection of a plan for the borrower under subparagraph (B), as the case may be. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the Secretary from encouraging distressed borrowers from enrolling in the repayment assistance plan under section 455(e)(9).
“(ii) SAME REPAYMENT PLAN REQUIRED.—All loans made under this part on or after July 1, 2024, to a borrower shall be repaid under the same repayment plan under subparagraph (A), except that the borrower may repay an excepted PLUS loan or an excepted consolidation loan (as such terms are defined in section 455(e)(9)) separately from other loans made under this part to the borrower.
“(D) REPAYMENT AFTER DEFAULT.—The Secretary may require a borrower who has defaulted on a loan made under this part to—
(b) Repayment assistance plan.—Section 455(e) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(9) REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE PLAN.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, beginning on July 1, 2024, the Secretary shall carry out a repayment assistance program that shall have the terms and conditions of an income-contingent repayment plan described in paragraphs (1) through (8), except that—
“(i) a borrower of any loan made under this part (other than an excepted PLUS loan or excepted consolidation loan), may elect to have the borrower’s aggregate monthly payment for all such loans not exceed the applicable monthly payment for the borrower, except that a borrower may not be precluded from repaying an amount that exceeds such applicable monthly payment for any month;
“(ii) the Secretary shall apply the borrower’s monthly payment under this paragraph first toward interest due on such a loan, next toward any fees due on the loan, and then toward the principal of the loan;
“(v) notwithstanding paragraph (7), the Secretary shall repay or cancel any outstanding balance of principal and interest due on all loans made under this part (other than excepted PLUS loans or excepted consolidation loans) to a borrower—
“(II) whose final monthly payment for such loans prior to the loan cancellation under this clause was made under such repayment assistance plan; and
“(III) who has repaid on such loans (pursuant to a repayment assistance plan under clause (i), a standard repayment plan under subsection (d)(6)(A)(i), or a combination of any such plan or any of the repayment plans listed in clause (ii), (iii), (iv), or (v) of paragraph (7)(B), or, in the case of a consolidation loan, pursuant to a repayment schedule described item (aa)(BB) of this subclause) an amount that is equal to—
“(aa)(AA) the total amount of principal and interest that the borrower would have repaid under a standard repayment plan under paragraph (1)(A) or (6)(A)(i) of subsection (d), based on a 10-year repayment period, when the borrower entered repayment on such loans; or
“(BB) in the case of a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan, the total amount of principal and interest that the borrower would have repaid under the repayment schedule established for the loan under section 428C(c)(2) on the date on which such loan was made; plus
“(bb) an amount equal to the amount of any unpaid interest that has accrued, but was not included in the calculation of the total amount of principal and interest that would have been repaid under the standard repayment plan or schedule described in item (aa)—
“(AA) during any deferment period described in clause (i) or (ii) of subsection (f)(2)(A); or
“(BB) during any forbearance period while serving in a medical or dental internship or residency program as described in section 428(c)(3)(A)(i)(I); and
“(B) REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE FOR DISTRESSED BORROWERS.—
“(i) INTEREST SUBSIDY.—For each month for which a borrower’s aggregate monthly payment under this paragraph is insufficient to pay the total amount of interest that accrues on a loan for the month, the amount of interest accrued and not paid for the month shall be subtracted from the total amount of interest due on such loan for the month.
“(ii) PRINCIPAL SUBSIDY.—For each month for which a borrower’s aggregate monthly payment under this paragraph repays an amount due on an individual loan that is less than twice the total amount of interest that accrues on such loan for the month, the amount of the total principal due on such loan shall be reduced by an amount equal to half of the monthly payment under this paragraph on such loan for the month.
“(C) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph:
“(i) ADJUSTED GROSS INCOME.—The term ‘adjusted gross income’ has the meaning given the term in section 62 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
“(ii) APPLICABLE MONTHLY PAYMENT.—The term ‘applicable monthly payment’ means, when used with respect to a borrower, the amount obtained by dividing by 12, 10 percent of the result obtained by calculating, on at least an annual basis, the amount by which—
“(I) the adjusted gross income of the borrower or, if the borrower is married and files a Federal income tax return jointly with or separately from the borrower’s spouse, the adjusted gross income of the borrower and the borrower’s spouse; exceeds
“(II) 150 percent of the poverty line applicable to the borrower’s family size as determined under section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)).
Section 428F(a)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–6(a)(5)) is amended by striking “one time” and inserting “two times”.
(a) Federal plus loans.—Section 428B(d)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–2(d)(2)) is amended to read as follows:
(b) Federal consolidation loans deferrals.—Section 428C(b)(4)(C)(ii)(III) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–3(b)(4)(C)(III)) is amended by striking “or capitalized,”.
(c) Loan limits for unsubsidized stafford loans.—Section 428H(d)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–8(d)(5)) is amended by inserting “before the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act” after “Interest capitalized”.
(d) Unsubsidized stafford loans for middle income borrowers.—Section 428H(e)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–8(e)(2)) is amended—
(e) Income contingent repayment.—Section 455(e)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(e)(5)) is amended by striking the last sentence and inserting “No interest may be capitalized on such loan on or after the date of the enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, and the Secretary shall promulgate regulations with respect to the treatment of accrued interest that is not capitalized”.
(f) Effect of deferment on principal and interest.—Section 455(f)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(f)(1)(B)) is amended by striking “capitalized or”.
(g) Income-based repayment program.—Section 493C(b)(3)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1098e(b)(3)(B)) is amended by inserting “shall accrue but not” before “be capitalized”.
(a) Repeal of origination fees.—Subsection (c) of section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(c)) is repealed.
(b) Effective date.—The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to loans made under part D of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087a et seq.) for which the first disbursement of principal is made, or, in the case of a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan, the application is received, on or after July 1, 2024.
Section 454 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087d) is amended—
(2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
“(d) Reimbursement requirements.—
“(1) ANNUAL REIMBURSEMENTS REQUIRED.—Beginning in award year 2024–2025, each institution of higher education participating in the direct student loan program under this part shall, for qualifying student loans, remit to the Secretary, at such time as the Secretary may specify, an annual reimbursement for each student cohort of the institution, based on the non-repayment balance of such cohort and calculated in accordance with paragraph (3).
“(2) STUDENT COHORTS.—
“(A) COHORTS ESTABLISHED.—For each institution of higher education, the Secretary shall establish student cohorts, beginning with award year 2023–2024, as follows:
“(i) COMPLETING STUDENT COHORT.—For each program of study at such institution, a student cohort comprised of all students who received Federal financial assistance under this title and who completed such program during such award year.
“(ii) UNDERGRADUATE NON-COMPLETING STUDENT COHORT.—For such institution, a student cohort comprised of all students who received Federal financial assistance under this title, who were enrolled in the institution during the previous award year in a program of study leading to an undergraduate credential, and who at the time the cohort is established—
“(iii) GRADUATE NON-COMPLETING STUDENT COHORT.—For each program of study leading to a graduate credential at such institution, a student cohort comprised of all students who received Federal financial assistance under this title, who were enrolled in such program during the previous award year, and who at the time the cohort is established—
“(B) QUALIFYING STUDENT LOAN.—For the purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualifying student loan’ means a Federal Direct loan, including a Federal Direct Consolidation loan, made under this part that—
“(ii) except in the case of a loan described in clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph (C), is not included in any other student cohort of any institution of higher education;
“(C) SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES.—
“(i) MULTIPLE CREDENTIALS.—In the case of a student who completes two or more programs of study during the same award year, each qualifying student loan of the student shall be included in the student cohort for each of such program of study for such award year.
“(ii) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN CONSOLIDATION LOANS.—A Federal Direct Consolidation loan made under this title shall not be considered a qualifying student loan for a student cohort for an award year if all of the loans included in such consolidation loan are attributable to another student cohort.
“(iii) CONSOLIDATION AFTER INCLUSION IN A STUDENT COHORT.—If a qualifying student loan is consolidated into a consolidation loan under this title after such qualifying student loan has been included in a student cohort, the percentage of the consolidation loan that was attributable to such student cohort at the time of consolidation shall remain attributable to the student cohort for the life of the consolidation loan.
“(3) CALCULATION OF REIMBURSEMENT.—
“(A) REIMBURSEMENT PAYMENT FORMULA.—For each student cohort of an institution of higher education established under this subsection, the annual reimbursement for such cohort shall be equal to—
“(B) REIMBURSEMENT PERCENTAGE.—The reimbursement percentage of a student cohort of an institution shall be determined by the Secretary when the cohort is established, shall remain constant for the life of the student cohort, and shall be determined as follows:
“(i) COMPLETING STUDENT COHORTS.—The reimbursement percentage of a completing student cohort shall be equal to the percentage determined by—
“(ii) SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES FOR COMPLETING STUDENT COHORTS.—
“(iii) NON-COMPLETING STUDENT COHORTS.—The reimbursement percentage of a non-completing student cohort shall be determined based on the most recent data available in the award year in which the cohort is established, and—
“(I) for an undergraduate non-completing student cohort, shall be equal to the percentage of undergraduate students who received Federal financial assistance under this title at such institution who—
“(II) for a graduate non-completing student cohort, shall be equal to the percentage of students who received Federal financial assistance under this title at the institution for the applicable graduate program of study and who did not complete such program of study within 150 percent of the program length.
“(C) NON-REPAYMENT LOAN BALANCE.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—For each award year, the Secretary shall determine the non-repayment loan balance for such award year for each student cohort of an institution of higher education by calculating the sum of—
“(I) for loans in such cohort, the difference between the total amount of payments due from all borrowers on such loans during such year and the total amount of payments made by all such borrowers on such loans during such year; plus
“(ii) SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES.—For the purpose of calculating the non-repayment loan balance of student cohorts under this paragraph, the Secretary shall—
“(I) for each qualifying student loan in a student cohort that is included in another student cohort because the student who borrowed such loan completed two or more programs of study during the same award year, the sum of the amounts described in subclauses (I) through (III) of clause (i) for such qualifying student loan shall be divided equally among each of the student cohorts in which such loan is included; and
“(II) for each consolidation loan in a student cohort—
“(aa) determine the percentage of the outstanding principal balance of the consolidation loan attributable to such student cohort—
“(AA) at the time of that loan was included in such cohort, in the case of a loan consolidated before inclusion in such cohort; or
“(BB) at the time of consolidation, in the case of a loan consolidated after inclusion in such cohort; and
“(bb) include in the calculations under clause (i) for such student cohort only the percentage of the sum of the amounts described in subclauses (I) through (III) of clause (i) for the consolidation loan for such year that is equal to the percentage of the consolidation loan determined under item (aa).
“(D) TOTAL PRICE.—With respect to a student who received Federal financial assistance under this title and who completes a program of study, the term ‘total price’ means the total amount, before Federal financial assistance under this title was applied, a student was required to pay to complete the program of study. A student’s total price shall be calculated by the Secretary as the difference between—
“(4) NOTIFICATION AND REMITTANCE.—Beginning with the first award year for which reimbursements are required under this subsection, and for each succeeding award year, the Secretary shall—
“(5) PENALTY FOR LATE PAYMENTS.—
“(A) THREE-MONTH DELINQUENCY.—If an institution fails to remit to the Secretary a reimbursement for a student cohort as required under this subsection within 90 days of receiving notification from the Secretary in accordance with paragraph (4), the institution shall pay to the Secretary, in addition to such reimbursement, interest on such reimbursement payment, at a rate that is the average rate applicable to the loans in such student cohort.
“(B) TWELVE-MONTH DELINQUENCY.—If an institution fails to remit to the Secretary a reimbursement for a student cohort as required under this subsection, plus interest owed in under subparagraph (A), within 12 months of receiving notification from the Secretary in accordance with paragraph (4), the institution shall be ineligible to make direct loans to any student enrolled in the program of study for which the institution has failed to make the reimbursement payments until such payment is made.
“(C) EIGHTEEN-MONTH DELINQUENCY.—If an institution fails to remit to the Secretary a reimbursement for a student cohort as required under this subsection, plus interest owed under subparagraph (A), within 18 months of receiving notification from the Secretary in accordance with paragraph (4), the institution shall be ineligible to make direct loans or award Federal Pell Grants under section 401 to any student enrolled in the institution until such payment is made.
“(D) TWO-YEAR DELINQUENCY.—If an institution fails to remit to the Secretary a reimbursement for a student cohort as required under this subsection, plus interest owed under subparagraph (A), within 2 years of receiving notification from the Secretary in accordance with paragraph (4), the institution shall be ineligible to participate in any program under this title for a period of not less than 10 years.
“(6) RELIEF FOR VOLUNTARY CESSATION OF FEDERAL DIRECT LOANS FOR A PROGRAM OF STUDY.—The Secretary shall, upon the request of an institution that voluntarily ceases to make Federal direct loans to students enrolled in a specific program of study, reduce the amount of the annual reimbursement owed by the institution for each student cohort associated with such program by 50 percent if the institution assures the Secretary that the institution will not make Federal direct loans to any student enrolled in such program of study (or any substantially similar program of study) for a period of not less than 10 award years, beginning with the first award year that begins after the date on which the Secretary reduces such reimbursement.
“(7) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR PROMISE GRANTS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary shall reserve the funds remitted to the Secretary as reimbursements in accordance with this subsection, and such funds shall be made available to the Secretary only for the purpose of awarding PROMISE grants in accordance with subpart 4 of part A of this title.”.
(a) 90/10.—
(1) REGULATION REPEALED.—Section 668.28 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to the 90/10 rule), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 28, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 65426 et seq.), is repealed and will have no force or effect.
(2) AMENDMENTS.—Section 487 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094) is amended—
(b) Financial value transparency and gainful employment.—
(1) REGULATION REPEALED.—Sections 600.10, 600.21, 668.2, 668.13, 668.43, 668.91, 668.402 through 668.409 (excluding section 668.408), and 668.601 through 668.606 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to financial value transparency and gainful employment), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 10, 2023 (88 FR 70004 et seq.), are repealed and will have no force or effect.
(2) PROHIBITION.—The Secretary of Education shall not, on or after the date of enactment of this Act, promulgate or enforce any regulation or rule with respect to the definition or application of the term “gainful employment” for any purpose under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.).
(c) Changes in ownership.—
(1) REGULATION REPEALED.—Sections 600.2, 600.4, 600.20, 600.21, and 600.31 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to changes in ownership), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 28, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 65426 et seq.), are repealed and will have no force or effect.
(2) AMENDMENTS.—Section 498(i) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099c(i)) is amended—
(B) in paragraph (1)—
(i) by striking “(1) An eligible institution”, and inserting the following: “(1)(A) An eligible institution”;
(ii) by striking “the requirements of section 102 (other than the requirements in subsections (b)(5) and (c)(3))” and inserting “the applicable requirements of section 102 or 103(13)”
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
“(B) (i) Prior to a change in ownership resulting in a change of control, an institution may seek a pretransaction determination about whether the institution will meet the applicable requirements of section 102 or 103(13) and this section after such proposed change in ownership by submitting to the Secretary a materially complete pretransaction review application.
“(ii) In reviewing applications submitted under clause (i), the Secretary shall only provide a comprehensive review of each such application, and may not provide an abbreviated or partial review.
“(iii) If an institution submits a materially complete pretransaction review application at least 90 days prior to the transaction and the Secretary approves the application, the subsequent change in ownership application shall also be approved and the institution shall be certified as meeting the requirements for such transaction, provided that the institution—
(D) by adding at the end the following:
“(5) (A) Subject to subparagraph (B), when any institution submits an application for a change in ownership resulting in a change in control under this section or submits a pretransaction review application under paragraph (1)(B) (other than in the case of a conversion transaction), the institution shall be required to pay to the Secretary an administrative fee that shall—
“(i) be in an amount equal to 0.15 percent of the total institutional revenue derived from this title by such institution for the most fiscal year for which data is available; and
“(ii) be used exclusively for expenses related to the processing of such application, and be available to the Secretary without further appropriation, exclusively for expenses related to the processing of such approval or application.
“(B) In the case of a proprietary institution submitting an application for conversion, or a pretransaction review application for conversion, the institution shall be required to pay to the Secretary an administrative fee that shall—
“(i) be in an amount equal to 0.30 percent of the total institutional revenue derived from this title by such institution for the most fiscal year for which data is available; and
“(ii) be used exclusively for expenses related to the processing of such application, and of which—
“(I) 50 percent shall be available to the Secretary without further appropriation, exclusively for expenses related to the processing of such application; and
“(II) 50 percent shall be remitted by the Secretary to the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue, and shall be available, without further appropriation, to the Commissioner of Internal Revenue exclusively for purposes of determining whether the institution seeking such conversion or pretransaction review is an institution exempt from tax and is otherwise in compliance with applicable requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
“(6) (A) The Secretary shall approve or deny a materially complete application (including pretransaction reviews and conversion applications) submitted under this section as soon as practicable and not later than the 90-day period beginning on the date of receipt of such an application, except that in a case in which the Secretary determines, on a nondelegable basis, that good cause exists to not make the determination during such 90-day period, the Secretary shall notify the institution in writing detailing the reasons for a good cause extension.
“(B) If the Secretary fails to approve or deny a materially complete application during the period described in subparagraph (A) and does not find good cause for extension, the materially complete application shall be deemed approved.
“(C) In no case may the Secretary grant a good cause extension under this section to an institution for more than one month at a time, or for a total of more than more than 12 months.
“(D) To ensure timely submission of all relevant documentation, the Secretary may deny an application if an institution does not make a good faith effort to submit to the Secretary, in a timely manner—
“(E) (i) Upon approving or denying an application under this paragraph, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register the reasoning for such approval or denial, including—
“(II) any analysis regarding how the Secretary determined under paragraph 7(A)(iii) that a director of the institution was an interested or disinterested party to the transaction.
“(ii) The Secretary shall not publish under clause (i) any information that is otherwise exempt from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, United States Code (relating to the Freedom of Information Act), including trade secrets and commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential.
“(7) (A) In the case of a proprietary institution that subsequent to the transaction would be owned and operated by an entity (in this paragraph referred to as the ‘buyer’) seeking to be recognized as a public or other nonprofit institution, the buyer shall meet the definition of a nonprofit institution under section 103(13) if—
“(ii) the buyer pays no more than fair market value for any service or lease contracts, including such service and lease contracts provided by the entity selling the proprietary institution; and
“(iii) to prevent self-dealing in the case where one or more individuals with a substantial ownership or controlling interests in the proprietary institution will also have substantial or controlling interests in the institution seeking to be recognized as a public or other nonprofit institution (meaning that one or more individuals are on both sides of the transaction), the change of control transaction, and any substantial asset acquisition, service, or lease agreements with the proprietary institution shall be approved by a disinterested committee of directors of the entity that seeks to be recognized as a public or other nonprofit institution.
“(B) For the purposes of this paragraph, parties to the transaction are entitled to a rebuttable presumption that the assets, lease contracts, and service contracts that are part of the transaction are purchased at fair market value if—
“(8) (A) An institution that has been approved for conversion by the Secretary shall be subject to a monitoring period for a 5-year period beginning on the day after the date of such approval. In conducting the monitoring of the institution under this paragraph, the Secretary—
“(i) shall only conduct monitoring to ensure that the institution is in compliance with the requirements of section 103(13) and paragraph (7) of this subsection; and
“(ii) may require the institution to submit regular reports or conduct audits of such institution relating to such compliance.
“(B) Each institution that is subject to the monitoring period under this paragraph shall remit an annual fee to the Secretary—
“(i) in an amount equal to 0.15 percent of the total revenue derived from this title by such institution for the most recent fiscal year for which data is available; and
“(ii) that shall be exclusively for expenses related to monitoring of the institution for the period described in subparagraph (A)—
“(C) An institution may not be subject to an annual fee under subparagraph (B) for monitoring related to a conversion that exceeds $60,000.
“(D) If the Secretary determines that an institution should be subject to the monitoring under this paragraph beyond the 5-year period described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall provide the reasons justifying an extension in writing to the institution (and in the Federal Register) at least 30 days before the expiration of such period.
“(E) Any institution that is subject to monitoring under this paragraph may seek a waiver to be exempt from such monitoring (including the annual fee under subparagraph (B)) on an annual basis for any year during the monitoring period and the Secretary shall grant such waiver if there is no ongoing contractual or financial relationship between the institution and the former entity or individuals that previously owned the institution. The Secretary may grant a waiver for more than 1 year in the case where the entity that formerly owned the proprietary institution has closed or no longer exists and the Secretary determines the institution is not at risk of violating the requirements of section 103(13) or paragraph (7) of this subsection.
“(9) Any institution that submits an application for conversion shall not promote or market itself, in any manner, as a public or other nonprofit institution of higher education unless—
“(A) the Secretary has provided final approval of the conversion of the institution to a public or other nonprofit institution of higher education under this section;
“(B) an accrediting agency or association recognized by the Secretary pursuant to section 496 has approved such public or nonprofit status of the institution;
“(10) Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, and periodically thereafter, the Secretary shall publish (and update as necessary) in the Federal Register—
“(A) descriptions of the documents and materials the Secretary expects or requires institutions of higher education to submit (including any standardized forms) as part of any pretransaction application or change in ownership application under this section, including a description of what the Secretary considers to be a materially complete application; and
“(11) In a case in which the Secretary requests a document under this section as part of a pretransaction or change in ownership application that is not described in the Federal Register under paragraph (10), the Secretary shall—
“(12) (A) Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit a report to authorizing committees, and post such report on a publicly available website regarding implementation of the amendments made to this section by such Act, including the following information:
“(i) The mean and median length of time taken by the Secretary to review applications under this section during the preceding 12-month period.
“(iii) For any application not processed during the 90-day period beginning on the date of receipt of the application for which the Secretary found good cause under paragraph (6)(A) to extend the deadline in which the application shall be processed, a copy of the letter sent to the institution explaining why the Secretary believed good cause existed for such extension.
“(iv) For any application not processed during such 90-day period, which was deemed to be automatically approved by the requirements of this section under paragraph (6)(B), the name of each institution involved and an explanation for why the application was not processed in a timely manner.
“(v) Any legislative suggestions the Secretary may have to improve the application or monitoring process under this section.
“(B) If the Secretary fails to submit a report under this paragraph by not later than 90 days after the deadline for such submission under subparagraph (A), the Secretary may not, for the 12-month period following such failure, spend the fees remitted by institutions under this section or remit such fees to the Commissioner unless Congress provides for such use by further appropriation.
(3) APPLICATION.—The amendments made by this section shall be apply with respect to applications submitted for change of control or conversion submitted on or after January 1, 2023.
(4) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report on the implementation of the amendments made by this subsection, including recommendations to improve—
(A) the application process under section 498(i) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099c(i)), as amended by paragraph (2), for institutions of higher education seeking a change in ownership resulting in a change in control; or
(d) Financial responsibility.—
(1) REGULATION REPEALED.—Sections 668.15, 668.23, 668.171, and 668.174 through 668.177 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to financial responsibility), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. Reg. 74568 et seq.) are repealed and will have no force or effect.
(2) AMENDMENTS.—Section 498(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 6 U.S.C. 1099c(c)) is amended—
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (3), (4), (5), and (6) as paragraphs (4), (5), (6), and (7), respectively;
(B) in paragraph (2)—
(i) by striking “paragraph (1), if” and inserting “paragraph (1), the Secretary shall prescribe criteria regarding ratios that aid in the determination financial responsibility. Such ratios shall be first issued in draft form to the institution to allow for adequate review, consisting of an appeals process, by such institutions of higher education. If”; and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
“(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the Secretary shall take into account an institution’s current total financial circumstances, including any subsequent change in the institution’s overall fiscal health based on the standards in paragraph (2), when making a determination of its ability to meet the standards herein required before any subsequent action is taken under paragraph (4). If an institution meets the standards in paragraph (2), the institution shall be seen as financially responsible.”;
(D) in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (4), as so redesignated, by striking “establishes to the satisfaction of the Secretary, with” and inserting “establishes, with”;
(G) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
(e) Incentive compensation; third party servicer.—
(1) AMENDMENTS.—Section 487(a)(20) (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)(20)) is amended to read as follows:
“(20) The institution will not provide any commission, bonus, or other incentive payment based directly or indirectly on success in securing enrollments or financial aid to any persons or entities engaged in any student recruiting or admission activities, or in making decisions regarding the award of student financial assistance, except that this paragraph shall not apply—
“(A) to the recruitment of foreign students residing in foreign countries who are not eligible to receive Federal student assistance; or
“(B) to a third party where—
“(i) the third party is providing the institution recruiting or admissions activities as part of a larger bundle of services not covered by this paragraph and which may include marketing or advertising activities that broadly disseminate or distribute widely available information;
(2) DEFINITION.—Section 481(c) (20 U.S.C. 1088(c)) is amended to read as follows:
“(c) Third party servicer.—
“(1) For purposes of this title, the term ‘third party servicer’—
“(A) means any individual, any State, or any private, for-profit or nonprofit organization, which enters into a contract with—
“(i) any eligible institution of higher education to administer, through either manual or automated processing, any aspect of such institution’s student assistance programs under this title; or
“(ii) any guaranty agency, or any eligible lender, to administer, through either manual or automated processing, any aspect of such guaranty agency’s or lender’s student loan programs under part B of this title, including originating, guaranteeing, monitoring, processing, servicing, or collecting loans; and
“(B) does not include any individual, any State, or any private, for-profit or nonprofit organization, which conducts activities or interacts with prospective or enrolled students for the purposes of—
“(i) marketing or recruiting, such as soliciting potential enrollments through the dissemination of information and advertising;
“(ii) assisting with the completion of applications for enrollment, such as screening pre-enrollment information and offering admission counseling;
“(iii) administering ability-to-benefit tests or establishing any aspect of an eligible career pathway program;
(f) Other repeals.—The following regulations (including any supplement or revision to such regulations) are repealed and shall have no legal effect:
(1) CLOSED SCHOOL DISCHARGES.—Sections 674.33(g), 682.402(d), and 685.214 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to closed school discharges), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on November 1, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 65904 et seq.).
(2) BORROWER DEFENSE TO REPAYMENT.—Section 685.401 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to borrower defense to repayment), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on November 1, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 65904 et seq.).
(3) PRE-DISPUTE ARBITRATION.—Sections 668.41, 685.300, and 685.304 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to pre-dispute arbitration), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on November 1, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 65904 et seq.).
(4) FALSE CERTIFICATION.—Sections 682.402(e), 685.215(c) and 685.215(d) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to false certification), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on November 1, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 65904 et seq.).
(5) ADMINISTRATIVE CAPABILITY.—Sections 668.16 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to administrative capability), as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. Reg. 74568 et seq.).
(6) CERTIFICATION PROCEDURES.—Sections 668.13, 668.14, and 668.43 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to certification procedures) as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. Reg. 74568 et seq.).
(7) ABILITY TO BENEFIT.—Sections 668.2, 668.32, 668.156, and 668.157 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to ability to benefit) as added or amended by the final regulations published by the Department of Education in the Federal Register on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. Reg. 74568 et seq.).
(g) Effect of repeal.—Any regulations repealed by subsections (c) through (e) that were in effect on June 30, 2023, are restored and revived as if the repeal of such regulations under such subsections had not taken effect.
(h) Prohibition.—The Secretary of Education may not implement any rule, regulation, policy, or executive action specified in this section (or a substantially similar rule, regulation, policy, or executive action) unless authority for such implementation is explicitly provided in an Act of Congress.
(i) Program review and data.—Section 498A (20 U.S.C. 1099c–1) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(f) Time limit on program review activities.—In conducting, responding to, and concluding program review activities, the Secretary shall—
“(1) provide to the institution the initial report finding not later than 90 days after concluding an initial site visit;
“(2) upon each receipt of an institution’s response during a program review inquiry, respond in a substantive manner within 90 days;
“(3) upon each receipt of an institution’s written response to a draft final program review report, provide the final program review report and accompanying enforcement actions, if any, within 90 days; and
“(4) conclude the entire program review process not later than 2 years after the initiation of a program review, unless the Secretary determines that such a review is sufficiently complex and cannot reasonably be concluded before the expiration of such 2-year period, in which case the Secretary shall promptly notify the institution of the reasons for such delay and provide an anticipated date for conclusion of the review.”.
Part G of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 492 the following:
“SEC. 492A. Limitation on authority of the secretary to propose or issue regulations and executive actions.
“(a) Draft regulations.—Beginning after the date of enactment of this section, a draft regulation implementing this title (as described in section 492(b)(1)) that is determined by the Secretary to be economically significant shall be subject to the following requirements (regardless of whether negotiated rulemaking occurs):
“(b) Proposed or final regulations and executive actions.—Beginning after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary may not issue a proposed rule, final regulation, or executive action implementing this title if the Secretary determines that the rule, regulation, or executive action—
“(c) Relationship to other requirements.—The analyses required under subsections (a) and (b) shall be in addition to any other cost analysis required under law for a regulation implementing this title, including any cost analysis that may be required pursuant to Executive Order 12866 (58 Fed. Reg. 51735; relating to regulatory planning and review), Executive Order 13563 (76 Fed. Reg. 3821; relating to improving regulation and regulatory review), or any related or successor orders.
(a) Federal preemption.—Section 456 (20 U.S.C. 1087f) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(c) Federal preemption.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Covered activities shall not be subject to any law or other requirement of any State or political subdivision of a State with respect to—
(b) Procurement flexibility.—Section 142 (20 U.S.C. 1018a) is amended—
(2) by inserting after subsection (k) the following:
“(l) Guidance to student loan servicers.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—In notifying a student loan servicer of a final contract modification (as such term is defined in section 2.101 of title 48, Code of Federal Regulations) that instructs such loan servicer to perform a function that is new or different from a function such servicer performs pursuant to an existing contract, the PBO shall, not later than 30 days before such contract change takes effect, provide such servicers with written guidance in the form of—
“(2) NON-BINDING DIRECTIVES.—A student loan servicer that is notified of a final contract modification described in paragraph (1) and receives guidance in a form other than a form described in paragraph (1) (including through emails or phone calls) shall not be subject to such contract modification.”.
(a) Criteria required.—Section 496(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)) is amended—
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), in the first sentence, by striking “or training” and inserting “skills development”;
(2) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
“(1) the accrediting agency or association (other than an accrediting agency or association described in paragraph (2)(D)) shall be a State or national agency or association and shall demonstrate the ability to operate as an institutional or programmatic accrediting agency or association within the State or nationally, as appropriate;”;
(3) in paragraph (2)—
(4) in paragraph (3)—
(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
“(A) subparagraph (A), (C), or (D) of paragraph (2), then such agency or association is—
“(ii) both administratively and financially separate from, and independent of, any related, associated, or affiliated trade association or membership organization, by ensuring that—
“(I) the members of the board or governing body of the accrediting agency or association are not elected or selected by the board or chief executive officer (or the representative of such board or officer) of any related, associated, or affiliated trade association or membership organization;
“(II) among the membership of the board or governing body of the accrediting agency or association—
“(III) guidelines are established for such members to avoid conflicts of interest, including specific guidelines to ensure that no such member is an employee of any institution accredited by the agency or association or has a financial interest in any such institution;
(5) in paragraph (4)—
(B) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following:
“(B) such accrediting agency or association consistently applies and enforces standards that respect the stated religious mission of an institution of higher education by—
“(i) basing decisions regarding accreditation and preaccreditation on the standards of accreditation of such agency or association; and
“(ii) not using as a negative factor the institution’s religious mission based policies, decisions, and practices in the areas covered by subparagraphs (B), (C), (D), (E), and (F) of paragraph (5), except that the agency or association may require that the institution’s or a program of study’s curricula include all core components required by the agency or association that are not inconsistent with the institution’s religious mission; and
“(C) such agency or association demonstrates the ability to review, evaluate, and assess the quality of any instruction delivery model or method such agency or association has or seeks to include within its scope of recognition, without giving preference to or differentially treating a particular instruction delivery model or method offered by an institution of higher education or program, except that—
“(i) in a case in which the instruction delivery model allows for the separation of the student from the instructor, the agency or association shall not be required to have separate standards, procedures, or policies for the evaluation of the quality of any instruction delivery model or method in order to meet the requirements of this subparagraph; and
“(ii) in the case in which the instruction delivery model allows for the separation of the student from the instructor—
“(I) the agency or association requires the institution to have processes through which the institution establishes that the student who registers in a course or program is the same student who participates in the program (including, to the extent practicable, the testing or other assessments required under the program), completes the program, and receives the academic credit; and
(6) in paragraph (5)—
(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:
“(A) success with respect to student achievement outcomes in relation to the institution’s mission and to the programs the institution offers, or the mission of a specific degree, certificate, or credential program, which may include different standards for different institutions or programs, and which shall include—
“(i) standards for consideration of the median total price charged to students for a program of study in relation to the median value-added earnings of students who completed such program;
“(ii) standards for consideration of learning outcomes measures (such as competency attainment and licensing examination passage rates);
(b) Secretarial requirements and authority.—Subsection (b) of section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is amended to read as follows:
“(b) Secretarial requirements and authority.—
“(1) STATE DESIGNATED ACCREDITING AGENCY.—
“(A) APPROVAL OF STATE PLANS.—The Secretary shall—
“(i) approve a State’s designation of an entity as an accrediting agency or association for the purposes described in subsection (a)(2)(D) for a 5-year period, beginning not later than 30 days after receipt of the plan from such State with respect to such designation, if such plan includes each of the elements listed in subparagraph (B);
“(ii) submit to the State and the authorizing committees, and make publicly available the Secretary’s response to the State with respect to such plan, including whether the plan includes each of the elements listed in subparagraph (B); and
“(B) REQUIRED PLAN ELEMENTS.—The required elements of a State plan submitted under subparagraph (A) with respect to the designation of an entity as an accrediting agency or association are as follows:
“(iii) A description of any requirements (in addition to the requirements of this section), that the State required the entity to comply with as a condition of receiving and maintaining such designation.
“(iv) A copy of the standards, policies, and procedures of the entity that the State considered in selecting the entity for such designation.
“(v) The State’s assessment of how the standards for accreditation of the entity will be effective in meeting the requirements of subsection (a)(5).
“(C) STATE MONITORING.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—A State that has designated an entity as an accrediting agency or association for the purposes described in subsection (a)(2)(D) shall submit to the Secretary, and to the State authorizing entity, as appropriate, a report at the end of the 5-year period for which the entity has received such designation, which shall include, with respect to each postsecondary education program or institution that has been accredited by such entity during such period, and disaggregated by type of credential, certification, or degree—
“(ii) COUNTING TRANSFER STUDENTS.—For purposes of clause (i)(I), a student shall be counted as obtaining a credential, certification, or degree offered by a program or institution that was accredited by the entity during the period for which the report under this subparagraph is being submitted, if the student obtains such credential, certification, or degree after transferring to another institution during such period.
“(2) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE AN ACCELERATED PATH TO RECOGNITION.—With respect to a prospective accrediting agency or association that submits to the Secretary an application for initial recognition under this Act, the Secretary may provide such recognition to such agency or association within 2 years after receipt of such application, if such application—
“(3) DEVELOPMENT OF COMMON TERMINOLOGY.—Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Secretary shall—
“(A) convene a panel of experts to develop common terminology for accrediting agencies or associations to use in making accrediting decisions with respect to program of study or institutions, such as a common understanding of monitoring, warning, show cause, and other relevant statuses, as appropriate; and
(c) Operating procedures required.—
(1) ON-SITE INSPECTIONS AND REVIEWS.—Paragraph (1) of section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is amended—
(2) MECHANISM TO IDENTIFY INSTITUTIONS AND PROGRAMS EXPERIENCING DIFFICULTIES.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended—
(B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
“(2) develops a policy process to identify any institution or program of study accredited by the agency or association that is not meeting the standards for accreditation of the agency or association, with a focus on the standards assessing an institution’s or program of study’s student achievement outcomes described in subsection (a)(5)(A), and other indicators, which shall include—
(3) PROCEDURES WITH RESPECT TO SUBSTANTIVE CHANGES.—Paragraph (5) of section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) (as redesignated by paragraph (2)(A)) is amended to read as follows:
“(5) establishes and applies or maintains policies, which ensure that any substantive change to the educational mission, program of study, or program of study of an institution after the agency or association has granted the institution accreditation or preaccreditation status does not adversely affect the capacity of the institution to continue to meet the agency’s or association’s standards for such accreditation or preaccreditation status, which shall include policies that—
“(A) require the institution to obtain the agency’s or association’s approval of the substantive change before the agency or association includes the change in the scope of the institution’s accreditation or preaccreditation status; and
“(B) define substantive change to include, at a minimum—
“(ii) any change in the legal status, form of control, or ownership of the institution, including the acquisition or addition of any other institution or new location where more than 50 percent of a program is offered;
“(iii) the addition of program of study at a higher credential level from the credential level previously accredited by the agency or association; or
“(iv) the entering into a contract under which an institution or organization not certified to participate in programs under this title offers more than 25 percent but less than 50 percent of the instruction of an educational program of the institution with such accreditation or preaccreditation status;”.
(4) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended—
(A) in paragraph (8) (as redesignated by paragraph (2)(A))—
(C) in paragraph (10)(B) (as so redesignated), by striking the period at the end and inserting the following: “, including an assurance that the institution does not deny a transfer of credit based solely on the accreditation of the institution at which the credit was earned;”; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
(5) PROHIBITION ON LITMUS TESTS.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
“(12) confirms that the standards for accreditation of the agency or association do not—
“(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B)—
(6) PROHIBITION ON ASSESSMENT OF ELECTED OR APPOINTED OFFICIALS.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
(7) PROHIBITION OF PRACTICES THAT DRIVE CREDENTIAL INFLATION.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
(d) Length of recognition.—Subsection (d) of section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is amended—
(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(2) LONGER RECOGNITION AUTHORIZED FOR CERTAIN AGENCIES AND ASSOCIATIONS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), an accrediting agency or association that has been recognized by the Secretary for the purpose of this Act for a period of 5 years, may be recognized for an additional period of up to 3 years, if the Secretary determines, based on the performance of the accrediting agency or association during its recognition period under this Act, that the accrediting agency or association—
(e) Limitation on scope of criteria.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending subsection (g) to read as follows:
“(g) Limitation on scope of criteria.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not establish criteria for accrediting agencies or associations that are not required by this section.
“(2) INSTITUTIONAL ELIGIBILITY.—An institution of higher education shall be eligible for participation in programs under this title if the institution is in compliance with the standards of its accrediting agency or association that assess the institution in accordance with subsection (a)(5), regardless of any additional standards adopted by the agency or association for purposes unrelated to participation in programs under this title.”.
(f) Change of accrediting agency.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending subsection (h) to read as follows:
“(h) Change of accrediting agency or association.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall recognize the accreditation of any otherwise eligible institution or program of study if the institution (or program) is in the process of changing its accrediting agency or association, unless the institution (or program) is subject to one or more covered actions.
“(2) COVERED ACTION DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘covered action’ means one or more of the following, when used with respect to an institution or program of study:
“(A) A pending or final action brought by a State agency to suspend, revoke, withdraw, or terminate the institution’s legal authority to provide postsecondary education in the State.
“(B) A decision by a recognized accrediting agency or association to deny accreditation or preaccreditation to the institution or program of study.
“(3) INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION NOT SUBJECT TO COVERED ACTIONS.—An institution (or program of study ) that is not subject to a covered action described in paragraph (1) and that desires to change its accrediting agency or association for a reason not related to any such covered action (such as compliance with State law) may make such a change without the approval of the Secretary, as long as the institution (or program) and the new accrediting agency or association of the institution (or program), not later than 30 days after the accreditation decision by such agency or association, notify the Secretary, in writing, of the effective date of the institution’s (or program’s)accreditation by such agency or association.”.
(g) Dual accreditation rule.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending subsection (i) to read as follows:
“(i) Dual accreditation rule.—
“(1) RECOGNITION BY SECRETARY.—The Secretary shall recognize the accreditation of any otherwise eligible institution of higher education if the institution of higher education is accredited, as an institution, by more than one accrediting agency or association.
“(2) DESIGNATION BY INSTITUTION.—If the institution is accredited, as an institution, by more than one accrediting agency or association, the institution—
(h) Religious institutions rule.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending subsection (k) to read as follows:
“(k) Religious institution rule.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection (j), the Secretary shall allow an institution that has had its accreditation withdrawn, revoked, or otherwise terminated, or has voluntarily withdrawn from an accreditation agency, to remain certified as an institution of higher education under section 102 and subpart 3 of this part for a period sufficient to allow such institution to obtain alternative accreditation, if the Secretary determines that the withdrawal, revocation, or termination—
“(2) ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLAINT FOR FAILURE TO RESPECT RELIGIOUS MISSION.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—
“(i) INSTITUTION.—If an institution of higher education believes that an adverse action of an accrediting agency or association fails to respect the institution’s religious mission in violation of subsection (a)(4)(B), the institution—
“(I) may file a complaint with the Secretary to review the adverse action of the agency or association; and
“(ii) ACCREDITING AGENCY OR ASSOCIATION.—Upon notification of an intent to file a complaint and through the duration of the complaint process under this paragraph, the Secretary and the accrediting agency or association shall treat the accreditation status of the institution of higher education as if the adverse action for which the institution is filing the complaint had not been taken.
“(B) COMPLAINT.—Not later than 45 days after providing notice of the intent to file a complaint, the institution shall file the complaint with the Secretary (and provide a copy to the accrediting agency or association), which shall include—
“(C) RESPONSE.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—The accrediting agency or association shall have 30 days from the date the complaint is filed with the Secretary to file with the Secretary (and provide a copy to the institution) a response to the complaint, which response shall include—
“(ii) BURDEN OF PROOF.—
“(I) IN GENERAL.—The accrediting agency or association shall bear the burden of proving that the agency or association has not taken the adverse action as a result of the institution’s religious mission, and that the action does not fail to respect the institution’s religious mission in violation of subsection (a)(4)(B), by showing that the adverse action does not impact the aspect of the religious mission claimed to be affected in the complaint.
“(D) ADDITIONAL INSTITUTION RESPONSE.—The institution shall have 30 days from the date on which the agency or association’s response is filed with the Secretary to—
“(E) SECRETARIAL ACTION.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days of receipt of the institution’s response under subparagraph (D) or notification that the institution elects not to file a response under such subparagraph—
“(I) the Secretary shall review the materials to determine if the accrediting agency or association has met its burden of proof under subparagraph (C)(ii)(I); or
“(ii) REVIEW OF COMPLAINT.—In reviewing the complaint under clause (i)(I)—
“(I) the Secretary shall consider the institution to be correct in the assertion that the adverse action fails to respect the institution’s religious mission and shall apply the burden of proof described in subparagraph (C)(ii)(I) with respect to the accrediting agency or association; and
“(II) if the Secretary determines that the accrediting agency or association fails to meet such burden of proof—
“(F) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this paragraph shall prohibit—
“(i) an accrediting agency or association from taking an adverse action against an institution of higher education for a failure to comply with the agency or association’s standards of accreditation as long as such standards are in compliance with subsection (a)(4)(B) and any other applicable requirements of this section; or
“(G) GUIDANCE.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may only issue guidance under this paragraph that explains or clarifies the process for providing notice of an intent to file a complaint or for filing a complaint under this paragraph.
“(ii) CLARIFICATION.—The Secretary may not issue guidance, or otherwise determine or suggest, when discussions to remedy the failure by an accrediting agency or association to respect the religious mission of an institution of higher education referred to in subparagraph (A)(i)(II)(bb) have failed or will fail.
(i) Independent evaluation.—Section 496(n)(3) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(n)(3)) is amended by striking the last sentence.
(j) Regulations.—Section 496(o) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(o)) is amended by inserting before the period at the end the following: “, or with respect to the policies and procedures of an accreditation agency or association described in paragraph (2) or (5) of subsection (c) or how the agency or association carries out such policies and procedures”.
(k) Risk-based review processes or procedures; waiver.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended—
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(p) Risk-based or differentiated review processes or procedures.—
“(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law (including subsection (a)(4)(A)), an accrediting agency or association shall establish risk-based processes or procedures for assessing compliance with the accrediting agency or association’s standards (including policies related to substantive change and award of accreditation statuses) under which the agency or association—
“(A) creates a system for understanding an institution’s or program of study’s performance in comparison with other similarly situated institutions or programs of study (which may include past performance with respect to meeting the accrediting agency or association’s standards, including the standards relating to the student achievement outcomes described in subclauses (I) through (IV) of subsection (a)(5)(A));
“(B) requires for each institution and program of study designated as high-risk, in accordance with the accrediting agency or association’s system in subparagraph (A), to submit the annual plans described in subsection (c)(2)(B) to the agency or association that address the performance issues of such institution or program of study that resulted in such designation;
“(C) with respect to institutions or program of study meeting or exceeding performance as described in subparagraph (A), reduces any compliance requirements with the standards of accreditation of the agency that are not assessing an institution or program of study under subsection (a)(5), such as on-site inspections; and
“(D) may require an institution or program of study that has declining performance (such as an institution or program of study with a high-risk designation under subparagraph (B)), which has not improved as required by the annual plan submitted under subsection (c)(2)(B), to take actions to avoid or minimize the risks that may lead to revocation of accreditation (such as limiting certain program of study enrollment or recommending to the Secretary to limit funds under this title for such an institution or program.
(l) Total price defined.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by adding at the end the following:
Section 114 (20 U.S.C. 1011c) is amended—
(1) in subsection (b)—
(A) in paragraph (2), by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (C) as clauses (i) through (iii), respectively, and adjusting the margins accordingly;
(C) in clause (ii), as so redesignated, by striking “and training” and inserting “skills development”;
(D) by adding at the end of paragraph (2) the following:
“(B) DISQUALIFICATION.—No individual may be appointed as a member of the Committee if such individual has a significant conflict of interest, such as being a current regulator (such as a State authorizer), that would require the individual to frequently be recused from serving as a member of the Committee.”; and
(3) in subsection (d)(2), by inserting at the end the following: “The name of any member of the Committee who has been recused with respect to an agenda item of the meeting shall be included in such agenda.”;
Section 487A of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094a) is amended—
(2) by inserting after subsection (b) the end the following:
“(c) Alternative quality assurance experimental site initiative.—
“(1) EXPERIMENTAL SITE AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary shall select, in accordance with paragraph (4), eligible entities that voluntarily seek to participate in an Alternative Quality Assurance experimental site initiative for a duration of 5 years and receive the waivers or other flexibility described in paragraph (5) to evaluate whether the eligible entities, during such 5-year period, can maintain high student achievement outcomes while participating in programs under this title without being accredited by an accrediting agency or association recognized under section 496.
“(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsection, an eligibility entity means—
“(3) APPLICATION.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity desiring to participate in the experimental site initiative under this subsection shall submit an application to the Secretary, at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may require, which shall contain the information described in subparagraph (B). The Secretary may not require any information in such an application that is not described in subparagraph (B).
“(B) CONTENTS.—Each application under paragraph (1) shall include—
“(i) a description of which program of study offered at the eligible entity will be included in the experimental site initiative, including—
“(I) in the case of an eligible entity that is an institution of higher education, an attestation that such program meets the standards of accreditation of the institution’s accrediting agency or association described in clauses (i) through (iv) of section 496(a)(5)(A) (including the standard requiring that the median value-added earnings of students who complete the program are greater than the median total price charged to students for the program); and
“(ii) a justification of the reason why the eligible entity seeks to receive the waiver described in paragraph (5)(A), including estimates or documentation of the potential savings to the entity of receiving such waiver; and
“(iii) a description of how the eligible entity plans to share the financial risk with the Secretary of receiving the waivers described in paragraph (5), such as by—
“(I) providing matching non-Federal funds to the Secretary to cover the cost of at least half of the expected disbursements under this title to the students that enroll in such program for the first year of the experiment;
“(4) SELECTION.—No later than 6 months after the experimental site initiative is announced, the Secretary shall select eligible entities to participate in the initiative based on the applications submitted under paragraph (3). In making such selections, the Secretary—
“(A) shall consider—
“(B) shall ensure that the selected eligible entities represent a variety of eligible entities with respect to size, mission, and geographic distribution;
“(5) WAIVERS.—The Secretary is authorized to waive, for any eligible entity participating in the experimental site initiative under this subsection—
“(A) any requirements conditioning an eligible entity’s eligibility to participate in programs under this title to being accredited by an accrediting agency or association recognized under section 496; and
“(B) any other requirements of this title determined necessary by the Secretary to carry out such initiative (including requirements related to the award process and disbursement of student financial aid, or other management procedures or processes), except that the Secretary shall not waive any provisions with respect to award rules (other than an award rule related to an experiment in modular or compressed schedules), grant and loan maximum award amounts, and need analysis requirements, unless the waiver of such provisions is authorized by another provision under this title.
“(6) REVIEW AND EVALUATION.—
“(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall review and evaluate the experimental site initiative conducted under this subsection, including by evaluating, with respect to each participating program of each participating eligible entity, whether—
“(B) RECOMMENDATIONS.—If, based on such evaluation, the Secretary determines that participating eligible entities were able to meet the requirement of subparagraph (A)(i) and the other student achievement outcomes evaluated by the Secretary under subparagraph (A)(ii), the Secretary shall submit to the authorizing committees recommendations regarding amendments to this Act that will streamline and enhance the quality assurance process of institutions of higher education, and educational providers described in paragraph (2)(B).”.
Part B of title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1138 et seq.) is amended—
(1) in section 741—
(C) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
“(b) Grants.—
“(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:
“(A) COMPLETION RATE.—The term ‘completion rate’ means—
“(B) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible entity’ means—
“(C) ELIGIBLE INDIAN ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible Indian entity’ means the entity responsible for the governance, operation, or control of a Tribal College or University.
“(D) EVIDENCE-BASED.—The term ‘evidence-based’ has the meaning given the term in section 8101(21)(A) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(21)(A)), except that such term shall also apply to institutions of higher education.
“(E) EVIDENCE TIERS.—
“(i) EVIDENCE TIER 1 REFORM OR PRACTICE.—The term ‘evidence tier 1 reform or practice’ means a reform or practice that prior research suggests has promise for the purpose of successfully improving student achievement or attainment for high-need students.
“(ii) EVIDENCE TIER 2 REFORM OR PRACTICE.—The term ‘evidence tier 2 reform or practice’ means a reform or practice described in clause (i), or other practice meeting similar criteria, that measures impact and cost effectiveness of student success activities, and, through rigorous evaluation (including through the use of existing administrative data, as applicable), has been found to be successfully implemented.
“(F) FIRST GENERATION COLLEGE STUDENT.—The term ‘first generation college student’ has the meaning given the term in section 402A(h) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a–11(h)).
“(I) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.—The term ‘Tribal College or University’ has the meaning given the term in section 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)).
“(2) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR ELIGIBLE INDIAN ENTITIES.—From the total amount appropriated to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve 2 percent for grants to eligible Indian entities to increase participation and completion rates of high-need students.
“(3) AUTHORIZATION OF POSTSECONDARY STUDENT SUCCESS COMPETITIVE GRANTS.—
“(A) GRANT AUTHORIZATION.—For each of fiscal years 2025 through 2030, the Secretary shall award, on a competitive basis, grants to eligible entities to provide student services to increase participation, retention, and completion rates of high-need students.
“(B) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity desiring a grant under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing the information required under subparagraph (C).
“(C) CONTENTS.—An application submitted under this paragraph shall include the following:
“(i) A plan to increase, with respect to all students enrolled at the institution of higher education, attainment and completion rates or graduation rates, including—
“(iii) A plan to evaluate the evidence-based reforms or practices carried out pursuant to a grant received under this subsection.
“(vi) A description of how the eligible entity will, directly or in collaboration with institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations, use the grant funds to implement 1 or more of the following evidence-based reforms or practices:
“(I) Providing comprehensive academic, career, and student services, which may include mentoring, advising, or case management services.
“(D) EVIDENCE-BASED STUDENT SUCCESS PROGRAMS.—From the total amount appropriated to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year and not reserved under paragraph (4), the Secretary shall reserve not less than 20 percent to award grants to eligible entities with applications that propose to include reforms or practices—
“(E) REQUIRED USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall use the grant funds to carry out the plans submitted pursuant to subparagraph (C) and for evidence-based reforms or practices for improving retention and completion rates of students that may include the following:
“(iii) Efforts to prepare students for a career, which may include—
“(I) career coaching, career counseling and planning services, and efforts to lower student to advisor ratios;
“(II) networking and work-based learning opportunities to support the development of skills and professional relationships;
“(IV) boosting experiences necessary to obtain and succeed in high-wage, high-skilled, (as described in section 122 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2342)) or in-demand industry sectors or occupations (as defined in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)).
“(F) PERMISSIVE USE OF FUNDS.—From the total amount appropriated to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year, and not reserved under paragraph (4) or subparagraph (D), the Secretary may set aside—
“(G) EVALUATIONS.—
“(i) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of improving the effectiveness of the evidence-based reforms or practices carried out by eligible entities pursuant to a grant under this subsection, the Secretary shall make grants to or enter into contracts with one or more organizations to—
“(ii) ISSUES TO BE EVALUATED.—The evaluations required under clause (i) shall measure the effectiveness of the evidence-based reforms or practices carried out by eligible entities pursuant to a grant under this subsection in—
Section 444(b)(1) of the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)) is amended—
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (L) the following:
“(M) an institution of postsecondary education in which a student was previously enrolled, to which records of postsecondary coursework and credits are sent for the purpose of applying such coursework and credits toward completion of a recognized postsecondary credential (as that term is defined in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)), upon condition that the student provides written consent prior to receiving such credential.”.
Section 485(h) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1092(h)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting “, including with respect to the acceptance or denial of such credit” after “higher education”;
(3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
“(2) DENIAL OF CREDIT TRANSFER.—An institution may not establish a transfer of credit policy which denies credit earned at another institution based solely on the source of accreditation of such other institution, provided that such other institution is accredited by an agency or association that is recognized by the Secretary pursuant to section 496.”.
Union Calendar No. 624 | |||||
| |||||
[Report No. 118–739] | |||||
A BILL | |||||
To lower the cost of postsecondary education for students and families. | |||||
November 18, 2024 | |||||
Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed |