I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2961 

To amend the Truth in Lending Act and the Higher Education Act of 

1965 to require additional disclosures and protections for students and 

cosigners with respect to student loans, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 1, 2013 

Mr. PASCRELL (for himself and Mr. RUNYAN) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, for a period to 

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Truth in Lending Act and the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional disclosures and 

protections for students and cosigners with respect to 

student loans, 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; FINDINGS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Christopher Bryski Student Loan Protection Act’’ or 

6 ‘‘Christopher’s Law’’. 


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1 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

2 (1) No requirement exists for private edu3 cational lenders’ promissory notes to include a clear 

4 and conspicuous description of the responsibilities of 

5 a borrower and cosigner in the event the borrower 

6 or cosigner becomes disabled, incapacitated, or dies. 

7 (2) According to the Annual Report of the Bu8 reau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB) Stu9 dent Loan Ombudsman, dated October 16, 2012: 

10 (A) ‘‘In less than seven months, the CFPB 

11 has handled approximately 2,900 private stu12 dent loan complaints.’’. 

13 (B) ‘‘Co-signers complain that information 

14 about discharge or alternative arrangements in 

15 the case of death of the primary borrower is not 

16 readily available and that decisions are made on 

17 a case-by-case basis, giving co-signers little un18 derstanding of how the process works, or if they 

19 will be successful.’’. 

20 (C) ‘‘The complaints and input received by 

21 the CFPB resemble many of the same issues 

22 experienced by mortgage borrowers, such as im23 proper application of payments, untimeliness in 

24 error resolution, and inability to contact appro25 priate personnel in times of hardship.’’. 


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1 (D) ‘‘The difference between federal and 

2 private student loans in periods of disability 

3 was not well-understood.’’. 

4 (E) ‘‘There are at least $8 billion of pri5 vate student loans in default, representing more 

6 than 850,000 individual loans.’’. 

7 (F) ‘‘While lenders do provide the terms of 

8 agreement in promissory notes, including asso9 ciated benefits and protections, many borrowers 

10 state they were unaware of the categorical dif11 ferences between federal and private protec12 tions.’’. 

13 (3) No requirement exists for a private edu14 cation loan borrower to designate an alternate point 

15 of contact on their account in the event of their 

16 death or permanent disability. 

17 (4) An estimated 1,700,000 people sustain a 

18 traumatic brain injury each year, with older adoles19 cents aged 15 to 19 years old more likely to sustain 

20 a traumatic brain injury than other age groups. 

21 (5) It has been estimated that the annual inci22 dence of spinal cord injury, not including those who 

23 die at the scene of an accident, is approximately 40 

24 cases per 1,000,000 people in the United States or 

25 approximately 12,000 new cases each year. These inVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:46 Aug 08, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2961.IH H2961

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1 juries can lead to permanent disability or loss of 

2 movement and can prohibit the victim from engaging 

3 in any substantial gainful activity. 

4 (6) In the 2007–2008 academic year, 13 per5 cent of students attending a 4-year public institution 

6 of higher education, and 26.2 percent of students at7 tending a 4-year private institution of higher edu8 cation, borrowed monies from private educational 

9 lenders. 

10 (7) According to Sallie Mae, in 2009, the per11 centage of cosigned private education loans in12 creased from 66 percent to 84 percent of all private 

13 education loans. 

14 SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL STUDENT LOAN PROTECTIONS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 140 of the Truth in Lend16 ing Act (15 U.S.C. 1650) is amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘(g) ADDITIONAL PROTECTIONS RELATING TO

19 DEATH OR DISABILITY OF BORROWER OR COSIGNER OF

20 A PRIVATE EDUCATION LOAN.— 

21 ‘‘(1) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS DESCRIPTION

22 OF BORROWER’S AND COSIGNER’S OBLIGATION.—In 

23 the case of any private educational lender who ex24 tends a private education loan, the lender shall 

25 clearly and conspicuously describe, in writing, the 


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1 cosigner’s obligations with respect to the loan, in2 cluding the effect the death, disability, or inability to 

3 engage in any substantial gainful activity of the bor4 rower or any cosigner would have on any such obli5 gation, in language that the Bureau determines 

6 would give a reasonable person a reasonable under7 standing of the obligation being assumed by becom8 ing a cosigner for the loan. 

9 ‘‘(2) DESIGNATION OF INDIVIDUAL TO ACT ON

10 BEHALF OF THE BORROWER.—In the case of any 

11 private educational lender who extends a private 

12 education loan, the lender shall require the borrower 

13 to designate an individual to have the legal authority 

14 to act on behalf of the borrower with respect to the 

15 private education loan in the event of the borrower’s 

16 death, disability, or inability to engage in any sub17 stantial gainful activity. 

18 ‘‘(3) COUNSELING.—In the case of any private 

19 educational lender who extends a private education 

20 loan, the lender shall ensure that the borrower, and 

21 any cosigner, receives comprehensive information on 

22 the terms and conditions of the loan and of the re23 sponsibilities the borrower has with respect to such 

24 loan, including the information described under secVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:57 Aug 07, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2961.IH H2961

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1 tion 485(l)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

2 (20 U.S.C. 1092(l)(2)). 

3 ‘‘(4) MODEL FORM.—The Bureau shall publish 

4 a model form under section 105 for describing a co5 signer’s obligation for purposes of paragraph (1). 

6 ‘‘(5) DEFINITION OF DEATH, DISABILITY, OR

7 INABILITY TO ENGAGE IN ANY SUBSTANTIAL GAIN8 FUL ACTIVITY.—For the purposes of this subsection 

9 with respect to a borrower or cosigner, the term 

10 ‘death, disability, or inability to engage in any sub11 stantial gainful activity’— 

12 ‘‘(A) means any condition described in sec13 tion 437(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

14 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)); and 

15 ‘‘(B) shall be interpreted by the Bureau in 

16 such a manner as to conform with the regula17 tions prescribed by the Secretary of Education 

18 under section 437(a) of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

19 1087(a)) to the fullest extent practicable, in20 cluding safeguards to prevent fraud and 

21 abuse.’’. 

22 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Subsection (a) of section 140 of 

23 the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(a)) is amend24 ed— 


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1 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through 

2 (8) as paragraphs (2) through (9), respectively; and 

3 (2) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as redes4 ignated by paragraph (1)) the following: 

5 ‘‘(1) the term ‘cosigner’— 

6 ‘‘(A) means any individual who is liable for 

7 the obligation of another without compensation, 

8 regardless of how designated in the contract or 

9 instrument; 

10 ‘‘(B) includes any person whose signature 

11 is requested as condition to grant credit or to 

12 forbear on collection; and 

13 ‘‘(C) does not include a spouse of an indi14 vidual referred to in subparagraph (A) whose 

15 signature is needed to perfect the security inter16 est in the loan;’’. 

17 (c) RULEMAKING.—Not later than the end of the 1- 

18 year period following the date of the enactment of this 

19 Act, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall 

20 issue regulations to carry out section 140(g) of the Truth 

21 in Lending Act. 

22 SEC. 3. FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS. 

23 (a) COUNSELING INFORMATION.—Section 485(l)(2) 

24 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

25 1092(l)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(L) Information on the conditions re2 quired to discharge the loan due to the death, 

3 disability, or inability to engage in any substan4 tial gainful activity of the borrower in accord5 ance with section 437(a), and an explanation 

6 that, in the case of a private education loan 

7 made through a private educational lender (as 

8 such terms are defined in section 140 of the 

9 Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650)), the 

10 borrower, the borrower’s estate, and any co11 signer of such a private education loan may be 

12 obligated to repay the full amount of the loan, 

13 regardless of the death or disability of the bor14 rower or any other condition described in sec15 tion 437(a). 

16 ‘‘(M) Any repayment, refinance, deferment, 

17 forbearance, or forgiveness opportunities avail18 able to the borrower, or cosigner, in the event 

19 of either individual’s death, disability, or inabil20 ity to engage in any substantial gainful activity. 

21 ‘‘(N) The effect that the death, disability, 

22 or inability to engage in any substantial gainful 

23 activity of the borrower would have on the obli24 gations of the borrower and any cosigner of the 

25 loan.’’. 


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1 (b) DESIGNATION OF INDIVIDUAL TO ACT ON BE2 HALF OF THE BORROWER.—Section 484(a)(4) of the 

3 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091(a)(4)) is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

6 after the semicolon; 

7 (2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ‘‘and’’ 

8 after the semicolon; and 

9 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub10 paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(C) a designation by such student of an 

12 individual who shall have the legal authority to 

13 act on behalf of the student with respect to any 

14 loan to the student under this title in the event 

15 of the student’s death, disability, or inability to 

16 engage in any substantial gainful activity;’’. 

Æ 


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