I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4533 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make technical improvements 

to the Net Price Calculator system so that prospective students may 

have a more accurate understanding of the true cost of college. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 11, 2016 

Mr. CUMMINGS (for himself and Mr. HINOJOSA) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make technical improvements to the Net Price Calculator system 

so that prospective students may have a more accurate 

understanding of the true cost of college. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Net Price Calculator 

5 Improvement Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR NET PRICE CALCULA2 TORS. 

3 Section 132(h) of the Higher of Education Act of 

4 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015a(h)) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating subsection (4) as sub6 section (6); 

7 (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting before the pe8 riod the following ‘‘, and, not later than 1 year after 

9 the date of enactment of the Net Price Calculator 

10 Improvement Act, shall meet the requirements of 

11 paragraph (4)(B)’’; 

12 (3) in paragraph (3), by inserting after the first 

13 sentence the following: ‘‘Not later than 1 year after 

14 the date of enactment of the Net Price Calculator 

15 Improvement Act, such calculator shall meet the re16 quirements of paragraph (4).’’ 

17 (4) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(4) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR NET PRICE

20 CALCULATORS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

21 of enactment of the Net Price Calculator Improve22 ment Act, a net price calculator for an institution of 

23 higher education shall, at a minimum, meet the fol24 lowing requirements: 

25 ‘‘(A) The link for the calculator— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is clearly labeled as a ‘net price 

2 calculator’ and prominently, clearly, and 

3 conspicuously (in such size and contrast 

4 (such as shade) that it is readily noticeable 

5 and readable) posted in locations on the in6 stitution’s website where information on 

7 costs and aid is provided (such as financial 

8 aid, prospective students, or tuition and 

9 fees web pages); 

10 ‘‘(ii) matches in size and font to the 

11 other prominent links on the primary 

12 menu; and 

13 ‘‘(iii) may also be included on the in14 stitution’s compliance web page, which 

15 contains information relating to compliance 

16 with Federal, State, and local laws. 

17 ‘‘(B) The results screen for the calculator 

18 specifies the following information: 

19 ‘‘(i) Net price (as calculated under 

20 subsection (a)(3)) for the institution, which 

21 is the most visually prominent figure on 

22 the results screen. 

23 ‘‘(ii) Cost of attendance, including— 

24 ‘‘(I) tuition and fees; 


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1 ‘‘(II) average annual cost of 

2 room and board for the institution for 

3 a first-time, full-time undergraduate 

4 student enrolled in the institution; 

5 ‘‘(III) average annual cost of 

6 books and supplies for a first-time, 

7 full-time undergraduate student en8 rolled in the institution; and 

9 ‘‘(IV) estimated cost of other ex10 penses (including personal expenses 

11 and transportation) for a first-time, 

12 full-time undergraduate student en13 rolled in the institution. 

14 ‘‘(iii) Estimated total need-based 

15 grant aid and merit-based grant aid, from 

16 Federal, State, and institutional sources, 

17 that may be available to a first-time, full18 time undergraduate student. 

19 ‘‘(iv) Percentage of the first-time, full20 time undergraduate students enrolled in 

21 the institution that received any type of 

22 grant aid described in clause (iii). 

23 ‘‘(v) The disclaimer described in para24 graph (6). 


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1 ‘‘(vi) In the case of a calculator 

2 that— 

3 ‘‘(I) includes questions to esti4 mate a student’s (or prospective stu5 dent’s) eligibility for veterans’ edu6 cation benefits (as defined in section 

7 480) or educational benefits for active 

8 duty service members, such benefits 

9 are displayed on the results screen in 

10 a manner that clearly distinguishes 

11 them from the grant aid described in 

12 clause (iii); or 

13 ‘‘(II) does not include questions 

14 to estimate eligibility for the benefits 

15 described in subclause (I), the results 

16 screen indicates that certain students 

17 (or prospective students) may qualify 

18 for such benefits and includes a link 

19 to information about such benefits. 

20 ‘‘(C) The institution populates the calcu21 lator with data from not later than 2 academic 

22 years prior to the most recent academic year. 

23 ‘‘(5) PROHIBITION ON USE OF DATA COL24 LECTED BY THE NET PRICE CALCULATOR.—A net 


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1 price calculator for an institution of higher edu2 cation shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) clearly indicate which questions are 

4 required to be completed for an estimate of the 

5 net price from the calculator; 

6 ‘‘(B) in the case of a calculator that re7 quests contact information from users, clearly 

8 mark such requests as ‘optional’; and 

9 ‘‘(C) prohibit any personally identifiable in10 formation provided by users from being sold or 

11 made available to third parties.’’. 

12 SEC. 3. UNIVERSAL NET PRICE CALCULATOR. 

13 Section 132(h) of the Higher of Education Act of 

14 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015a(h)) is further amended by adding 

15 at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(7) UNIVERSAL NET PRICE CALCULATOR.— 

17 The Secretary may develop a universal net price cal18 culator that— 

19 ‘‘(A) enables users to answer one set of 

20 questions and receive net prices for any institu21 tion that is required to have a net price calcu22 lator under this subsection; 

23 ‘‘(B) provides the information required 

24 under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph 


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1 (4) for each institution for which a net price is 

2 being sought; and 

3 ‘‘(C) is tested by students and families and 

4 evaluated by financial aid administrators and 

5 others in the field of postsecondary education 

6 before being finalized and publicly released.’’. 

Æ 


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