11/20/2007
(original message posted via email)
OGSLP Legislative Update
Reauthorization Legislation
On November 15 the House Committee on Education and Labor voted 45 to 0 to pass the College Opportunity and Affordability Act of 2007 (H.R. 4137), the House version of the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA). This legislation provides for a five-year reauthorization of the HEA. The bill will next go to the House floor for consideration.
The National Council on Higher Education Loan Programs (NCHELP) issued the following November 13 press release about the College Opportunity and Affordability Act of 2007:
“The College Opportunity and Affordability Act of 2007 (H.R. 4137), introduced Friday by House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller (D-CA) and Representative Rubén Hinojosa (D-TX), will help to make postsecondary education more accessible and the financial aid process more effective. NCHELP is pleased that lawmakers are committed to helping the future leaders of this country to achieve their educational goals.
“The entire nation acknowledges our critical need for an educated workforce, which only increases with the advances in science and technology and the fierce economic competition between countries. Our higher education system must usher in capable students and ensure that they have the financial support required to succeed. We commend the sponsors for including authorization for loan forgiveness programs to encourage more individuals to serve in professions that meet a national need. We hope these provisions are included in the final legislation and that sufficient funds are appropriated so their objectives can be realized.
“We also support the many provisions in the bill to encourage more students from disadvantaged backgrounds to pursue their postsecondary goals and to ease their financial aid experience.
“While the bill contains many provisions that will improve the overall financial aid process, there is one that we feel should be reconsidered. The Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) community works diligently not only to provide the highest quality and lowest cost services to student borrowers but also to insure the protection of personal information and the integrity of student loan and personal data. One provision included in H.R. 4137 is of great concern in that it would allow for the dissemination of a student borrower's personal information with little or no protection. While the language says the information shall be "safeguarded," it does not impose any parameters or consequences should the data be compromised or used inappropriately. We believe those parameters need to be delineated to protect borrower privacy.
“We support providing clear, concise, and meaningful information to students and parents so that they better understand the loan choices before them, as well as the consequences of those choices. We ask that Congress take into account the many disclosures that already exist before adding new disclosures that may not be necessary. We have learned from experience that sending too much information sometimes has the unintended consequence of causing the borrower not to read any of the information provided - which is antithetical to the goal we all share of having well-informed borrowers.
“We also support the provision to conduct an evaluation of the parent PLUS loan auction, which was established by the College Cost Reduction and Access Act. This evaluation would have been a useful exercise to complete prior to the implementation of the auction. The foundation of the FFELP is that borrowers have a choice of lender. This pro-consumer competition drives down borrower cost and enhances innovation and efficiencies within the program. The auction will result in the stripping away of the pro-consumer competition and force students and families to borrow from the bidder that costs the least and may in turn offer the least.
“We look forward to working with education leaders to ensure that our nation's students are given every opportunity to succeed.”
Senate Action on Reauthorization
As a reminder, on July 24 the Senate passed its version of the reauthorization of the HEA titled the Higher Education Amendments of 2007 (S. 1642). The Senate's version includes provisions relating to the FFELP, including but not limited to, school codes of conduct, preferred lender lists, and issues concerning school accreditation. For additional information regarding the Higher Education Amendments of 2007, please refer to the July 24 Legislative Update.
Links to Reauthorization Legislative Information
Appropriations Update
The House of Representatives has failed to obtain the required number of votes to override President Bush's veto of the 2008 education spending bill (H.R. 3043) that provides funding for the Department of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. The override attempt failed with a vote of 277-141. As a result, Democratic leaders are working with the White House Administration on a new funding plan for education.
The current continuing resolution is set to expire on December 14, 2007. Government agencies have been advised to operate as if current year FY07 funding will be extended until February 15, 2008. Next month, the Democratic leaders will construct an omnibus spending bill consisting of the eleven remaining spending bills totaling $484.2 billion. An omnibus spending bill is a bill that sets the budget of many departments of the government at once and is usually done when Congress does not or cannot produce separate spending bills in a timely fashion.
OGSLP will keep you advised regarding progress on reauthorization legislation. We encourage you to visit OGSLP's Legislation Page often to view important updates and detailed information on legislative activity. If you have questions, please contact Policy, Compliance, and Training at (405) 234-4432 or pct@ogslp.org.
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