I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4061 

To support statewide individual-level integrated postsecondary education data 

systems, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 16, 2012 

Mr. HUNTER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To support statewide individual-level integrated postsecondary education data systems, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Student Right to Know 

5 Before You Go Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Every year, millions of people in the United 

9 States will make the choice of whether to invest in 

10 higher education or job retraining programs, but 


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1 outcomes vary widely based on the program of study 

2 selected, the institution selected, and the maximum 

3 level of education attained. 

4 (2) A person who obtains an associate degree 

5 earns, on average, $1,500,000 over a lifetime, while 

6 individuals with the maximum accreditation of a 

7 high school diploma can expect to earn $1,300,000 

8 over a lifetime. By comparison, individuals with a 

9 baccalaureate degree earn, on average, $2,300,000 

10 in their lifetime. However, 28.2 percent of individ11 uals with associate degrees earn more than the me12 dian salary of baccalaureate degree-holders. It is not 

13 just maximum level of education attained, but also 

14 the earnings and employment prospects associated 

15 with specific programs of study, that determines the 

16 amount of an individual’s earnings. Furthermore, 

17 the employment and earnings projections of distinct 

18 degree and certificate programs and the cost of ob19 taining these credentials are not equal across institu20 tions. 

21 (3) On average, workers with a baccalaureate 

22 degree earn more than 84 percent over their lifetime 

23 compared with those who do not have a degree, and 

24 workers with an associate degree earn, on average, 


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1 $6,600 per year more than those with a high school 

2 diploma as their highest credential. 

3 (4) According to the National Center for Public 

4 Policy and Higher Education report in 2008, the 

5 cost of college increased 439 percent from 1982 to 

6 2007. In 2010, graduates who took out loans left 

7 college with an average of more than $25,000 of 

8 debt, more than double what it was 15 years ago. In 

9 2011, student debt in the United States outweighed 

10 credit card debt at nearly $1,000,000,000,000. 

11 (5) As of 2008, 84 percent of undergraduates 

12 had at least 1 credit card, up from 76 percent in 

13 2004. With the rising cost of college tuition and ex14 penses, students are increasingly turning to private 

15 credit to supplement traditional student aid; on av16 erage, students charge $2,200 towards direct edu17 cation expenses, with only 17 percent regularly pay18 ing off their balances each month. The average stu19 dent leaves college with an average credit card debt 

20 of more than $4,100, up from about $2,900 in 

21 2004. 

(6) Recent research shows that more than 1 22 ⁄2 of 

23 student loan borrowers are in deferment, forbear24 ance, delinquency, or default on their Federal stu25 dent loans within 5 years of leaving school. 


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1 (7) Greater access and transparency regarding 

2 the costs and benefits of higher education are crit3 ical to better prepare students, parents, and the 

4 public for the realities of college and the workforce. 

5 (8) Even though enrollment in colleges is on the 

6 rise, corresponding graduation and completion rates 

7 have not risen. At 2-year institutions of higher edu8 cation, about 27 percent of first-time, full-time stu9 dents who enrolled in the fall of 2005 completed a 

10 certificate or associate’s degree within 150 percent 

11 of the normal time required to complete such a de12 gree. 

13 (9) As unemployment among young adults re14 mains elevated, the economic value and employment 

15 potential of certain degrees has become an increas16 ingly important factor in selecting a major. Not all 

17 academic fields have the same employment and earn18 ings potential. Labor and employment statistics 

19 show that certain majors have a higher employment 

20 potential after college and a higher median starting 

21 salary. Furthermore, the employment and earnings 

22 outcomes for the same or similar accreditation vary 

23 widely across institutions of higher education. 

24 (10) To enhance the public’s knowledge and ac25 cess to improved information concerning the cost of 


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1 college, financial aid, prospective earnings, and post2 graduation employment rates, States, institutions of 

3 higher education, and other stakeholders must col4 laborate to make these data points available to pro5 spective students, parents, and all taxpayers in a 

6 new, comprehensive, and easily accessible manner. 

7 (11) Such collaboration will allow for a more 

8 comprehensive statistical overview of the current 

9 landscape in American higher education and increase 

10 accountability and efficiency. 

11 (12) Research shows that certain courses of 

12 study correlate to improved earnings and employ13 ment; however, existing reporting requirements make 

14 it impossible for researchers to accurately analyze 

15 data at the institutional level. A State-based report16 ing system would ensure that students, parents, tax17 payers, and policymakers can make informed deci18 sions, maximizing their return on investment and 

19 bringing greater transparency to higher education in 

20 the United States. 

21 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

22 In this Act: 

23 (1) ADMINISTERING ENTITY.—The term ‘‘ad24 ministering entity’’ means— 


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1 (A) a State, including a State coordinating 

2 or governing board, State system office, or 

3 other State agency; 

4 (B) a multi-State compact; or 

5 (C) a data system operated by the Depart6 ment of Education. 

7 (2) EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION.—The term 

8 ‘‘educational institution’’ means— 

9 (A) an institution of higher education, as 

10 defined in section 102 of the Higher Education 

11 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002); 

12 (B) a school or institution that offers a 

13 program of postsecondary education and that is 

14 an eligible provider of training services under 

15 section 122 of the Workforce Investment Act of 

16 1998 (42 U.S.C. 2842); and 

17 (C) any entity that provides postsecondary 

18 training programs that are approved by the 

19 Secretary of Labor under section 236 of the 

20 Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2296) for work21 ers who receive benefits under the trade adjust22 ment assistance program under chapter 2 of 

23 title II of that Act (19 U.S.C. 2271 et seq.). 

24 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

25 the Secretary of Education. 


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1 SEC. 4. PARTICIPATION IN STATEWIDE INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL 

2 INTEGRATED POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION 

3 DATA SYSTEMS. 

4 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 487(a)(17) of the Higher 

5 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)(17)) is amend6 ed— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘(17) The’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘(17)(A) The’’; and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(B) To meet the requirements of subpara11 graph (A), the institution will fully participate in, 

12 and provide all data required for— 

13 ‘‘(i) the individual-level integrated postsec14 ondary education data system certified by the 

15 Secretary under section 5(a) of the Student 

16 Right to Know Before You Go Act that is ad17 ministered by a State entity of the State in 

18 which the institution is located; or 

19 ‘‘(ii) if no such system exists in the State, 

20 an individual-level integrated postsecondary 

21 education data system that is operated by an22 other administering entity and that is certified 

23 by the Secretary under such section 5(a).’’. 

24 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

25 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date that is 1 year 

26 after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 5. STATEWIDE INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL INTEGRATED POST2 SECONDARY EDUCATION DATA SYSTEMS. 

3 (a) STATEWIDE EMPLOYMENT AND LEARNING EX4 CHANGES.— 

5 (1) CERTIFICATION OF INTEGRATED POSTSEC6 ONDARY EDUCATION DATA SYSTEMS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year 

8 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec9 retary shall, upon request by an administering 

10 entity— 

11 (i) review the administering entity’s 

12 individual-level postsecondary education 

13 data system or other data system; and 

14 (ii) upon determining that the system 

15 meets the requirements of this subsection, 

16 certify the system for purposes of section 

17 487(a)(17)(B) of the Higher Education 

18 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)(17)(B)). 

19 (B) CONSULTATION FOR CERTIFICATION

20 OF SYSTEMS INCLUDING DATA FOR OTHER PRO21 GRAMS.—Before certifying under subparagraph 

22 (A) an individual-level integrated postsecondary 

23 education data system that includes data from 

24 a Federal education and training program in 

25 accordance with paragraph (2)(B)(ii)(I), the 

26 Secretary shall consult with the head of the 


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1 Federal agency responsible for administering 

2 such Federal education and training program. 

3 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—An individual-level inte4 grated postsecondary education data system certified 

5 under this subsection shall meet the following re6 quirements: 

7 (A) COMPATIBLITY WITH IPEDS.—The sys8 tem shall have the ability to submit data, in a 

9 manner that does not disclose any personally 

10 identifiable information, to the Integrated Post11 secondary Data System (IPEDS) or any other 

12 Federal postsecondary data collection as des13 ignated by the Secretary, in a timely manner to 

14 the satisfaction of the Secretary. 

15 (B) SCOPE OF SYSTEM.—The system shall 

16 include— 

17 (i) Data from educational institutions 

18 described in section 3(2)(A); or 

19 (ii) if the administering entity choos20 es, data from such educational institutions 

21 and data from— 

22 (I) other Federal education and 

23 training programs, such as the Job 

24 Corps program carried out under sub25 title C of title I of the Workforce InVerDate Mar 15 2010 07:22 Feb 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4061.IH H4061

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1 vestment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 

2 2881 et seq.), educational assistance 

3 and training programs under the laws 

4 administered by the Secretary of Vet5 erans Affairs, programs carried out 

6 under the Carl D. Perkins Career and 

7 Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 

8 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.), and training, 

9 education, and educational assistance 

10 programs of the Department of De11 fense; or 

12 (II) beginning on or after the 

13 date that is 5 years after the date of 

14 enactment of this Act, educational in15 stitutions described in subparagraphs 

16 (B) and (C) of section 3(2). 

17 (C) UNIQUE IDENTIFIER.—The system 

18 shall use a unique individual identifier system 

19 that— 

20 (i) does not permit an individual to be 

21 individually identified by users of the data 

22 system; and 

23 (ii) is created through a process that 

24 creates a one-way secure identifier that can 


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1 be used in data systems in other States 

2 and cannot be reverse-engineered. 

3 (D) DATA INCLUDED.—The system shall 

4 include the following data and information: 

5 (i) Data sufficient to complete all stu6 dent components of reporting required for 

7 the Integrated Postsecondary Education 

8 Data System of the National Center for 

9 Education Statistics. The system shall em10 ploy, where applicable, the most recent 

11 version available of the Common Education 

12 Data Standards developed by the National 

13 Center for Education Statistics. 

14 (ii) Rates of remedial enrollment, 

15 credit accumulation, and postsecondary 

16 completion by high school completion sta17 tus. 

18 (iii) Other information determined 

19 necessary by the Secretary to address 

20 alignment and adequate preparation for 

21 success in postsecondary education. 

22 (E) DATA AUDIT AND DATA GOVERNANCE

23 SYSTEMS.—The system shall include a data 

24 audit system assessing data quality, validity, 

25 and reliability and a data governance system, 


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1 operated at the State or regional level (as the 

2 case may be) with the participation of rep3 resentative educational institutions, to ensure 

4 compliance with Federal and State standards of 

5 data quality and individual privacy. 

6 (F) INDIVIDUAL PRIVACY AND ACCESS TO

7 DATA.—The administering entity shall provide 

8 an assurance— 

9 (i) that the system does not disclose 

10 any personally identifiable information and 

11 complies with the requirements of section 

12 444 of the General Education Provisions 

13 Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g) (commonly known 

14 as the ‘‘Family Educational Rights and 

15 Privacy Act’’) and other applicable Federal 

16 and State privacy laws; and 

17 (ii) that there is a policy on the use 

18 of data in the system by other entities, in19 cluding by nongovernmental entities. 

20 (3) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—In order for 

21 an individual-level integrated postsecondary edu22 cation data system of an administering entity to be 

23 certified under this subsection, the entity shall dem24 onstrate to the Secretary that the entity is coordi25 nating with an agency or entity that oversees adminVerDate Mar 15 2010 07:22 Feb 17, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4061.IH H4061

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1 istrative wage and earnings data to match data from 

2 the postsecondary education data system to adminis3 trative wage and earnings data, in order to create an 

4 interoperable employment and learning exchange 

5 that— 

6 (A) continues the use of a unique indi7 vidual identifier system that does not permit an 

8 individual to be identified by users of the data 

9 system; and 

10 (B) provides data on average individual 

11 annual earnings, disaggregated by educational 

12 program, degree received, educational institu13 tion, employment sector, and State. 

14 (b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized 

16 to award grants— 

17 (A) to educational institutions to assist 

18 with the costs necessary to comply with the re19 quirements of this section or section 487(a)(17) 

20 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

21 U.S.C. 1094(a)(17)), as added by section 4; 

22 and 

23 (B) to administering entities described in 

24 subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 3(1) that 

25 have an integrated postsecondary education 


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1 data system certified by the Secretary under 

2 subsection (a) or that are developing such a 

3 system, to assist with the costs associated with 

4 such systems or with developing or imple5 menting such systems. 

6 (2) APPLICATION.—An educational institution 

7 or administering entity that desires to receive a 

8 grant under this subsection shall submit an applica9 tion to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 

10 and containing such information as the Secretary 

11 shall require. 

12 SEC. 6. TRANSITION PLAN. 

13 (a) TRANSITION REQUIREMENTS.—In transitioning 

14 to the requirements of this Act and the amendments made 

15 by this Act, the Secretary shall— 

16 (1) ensure that no educational institution will 

17 be required to report duplicative information to the 

18 Secretary; 

19 (2) allow States and educational institutions to 

20 consolidate the reporting requirements under section 

21 487(a)(17) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

22 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) with any other overlapping re23 porting requirements, and inform State and institu24 tions of this ability; and 


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1 (3) establish safeguards to ensure that States 

2 and educational institutions are not required to re3 port duplicative information through the individual4 level integrated postsecondary education data sys5 tems certified under section 5(a). 

6 (b) TRANSITION PLAN.—Not later than 3 months 

7 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

8 make available to States, educational institutions, and the 

9 public, a transition plan (including guidance) that— 

10 (1) describes the new options for complying 

11 with the reporting requirements of section 

12 487(a)(17) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

13 U.S.C. 1094(a)(17)), as amended by section 4; 

14 (2) describes the transition requirements under 

15 subsection (a) and how the Secretary will fulfill such 

16 requirements; and 

17 (3) provides a timeline, including dates, for the 

18 Secretary’s implementation of the requirements of 

19 this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 

Æ 


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