NCHER Legislative Conference Washington, DC Federal Update February 2, 2016 Annmarie Weisman, Office of Postsecondary Education Regulatory Update RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) Program Integrity and Improvement (Cash Management) (COMPLETED) 3 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) Feb. - April, 2015: Negotiations held Consensus reached on a Revised Pay As You Earn repayment plan (REPAYE) extends 10% income cap to all borrowers regardless of when they borrowed Repayment period = 20 years for undergraduate loans and 25 years if graduate loans included PAYE still available; not a replacement plan October 30, 2015: Final regulations published Dec. 2015: Early implementation (COMPLETED) 4 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Program Integrity and Improvement (Cash Management) October 30, 2015: Final regulations published July 1, 2016: Regulations effective Ensure that students receiving Title IV, HEA funds: Have convenient access to their funds Do not incur unreasonable financial account fees Are not led to believe they must open a particular financial account to receive their funds (COMPLETED) 5 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Borrower Defenses to Repayment Sept. 2015: Public hearings DC, San Francisco Oct. 20, 2015: Published Federal Register Notice requested negotiator nominations Announce dates of committee meetings Nov. 19, 2015: Negotiator nominations due Dec. 21, 2015: 2 nd FR Notice requesting negotiators Dec. 28, 2015: Additional nominations due (IN PROGRESS) 6 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Borrower Defenses to Repayment Negotiation sessions: Session 1: January 12-14, 2016 Session 2: February 17-19, 2016 Session 3: March 16-18, 2016 Expect to publish proposed rules this summer Expect to publish final rules by November 1, 2016 (IN PROGRESS) 7 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Borrower Defenses to Repayment (*etc.) Tentative issues for discussion; finalizing issues in Feb. Procedures for a borrower to establish a defense to repayment Criteria to identify acts or omissions of an institution that constitute defenses to repayment Standards and procedures that ED will use to determine school liability from borrower defenses Effect of borrower defenses on institutional administrative capability assessments (financial responsibility) (IN PROGRESS) 8 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Borrower Defenses to Repayment (*etc.) Other potential issues for discussion Finalizing issues in February False Certification* Electronic Death Certificates* Nurse Faculty Loans in Consolidation Loans* Interest Capitalization* REPAYE Technical Corrections* Collection Costs* (IN PROGRESS) 9 RECENT REGULATORY EFFORTS Borrower Defenses to Repayment Rulemaking website:(IN PROGRESS) 10 Administration Priorities ADMINISTRATION PRIORITIES By 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. Themes: Increasing access Making college more affordable Improving outcomes PRESIDENTS 2020 GOAL 12 ADMINISTRATION PRIORITIES Student Aid Bill of Rights Income-Driven Repayment Plans Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) INCREASING AFFORDABILITY BACK END STRATEGIES 13 ADMINISTRATION PRIORITIES Student Aid Bill of Rights Protects Social Security benefits of borrowers with disabilities who may qualify for a loan discharge or other repayment options Ensures a fair, transparent, and reasonable debt collection process for defaulted Federal student loans Compensation of collection agencies, guidance provided to collection agencies, ensuring accurate information provided INCREASING AFFORDABILITY BACK END STRATEGIES 14 Affordability: Student Aid Bill of Rights ADMINISTRATION PRIORITIES Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Caps payments for Federal Direct Student Loans at 10% of discretionary income for eligible borrowers Benefits: Helps borrowers to manage their debt Helps borrowers to avoid default Provides relief on loan payments, especially in the early years of repayment Complements other repayment plans INCREASING AFFORDABILITY BACK END STRATEGIES 16 ADMINISTRATION PRIORITIES Revised Pay As You Earn REPAYE Feb. - April, 2015: Negotiations held Consensus reached on a Revised Pay As You Earn repayment plan (REPAYE) extends 10% income cap to all borrowers regardless of when they borrowed Repayment period = 20 years for undergraduate loans and 25 years if graduate loans included PAYE still available; not a replacement plan October 30, 2015: Final regulations published Dec. 2015: Early implementation INCREASING AFFORDABILITY BACK END STRATEGIES 17 Contact Information Annmarie Weisman, Director, Policy Coordination Group Office of Postsecondary Education Phone: (until Feb. 26, 2016) Phone forwarded for 60 days ED directory available afterward