Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules 104935 

NPRM applied distinct and different eligibility 

criteria and addressed different challenges with 

student loan repayment faced by borrowers. See, 

e.g., 89 FR at 87131 n. 2. 

1The Department also published a document 

with two technical corrections on November 6, 

2020, see 85 FR 70975. 

2Cooper, Michelle Asha. ‘‘Update on the Free 

Inquiry Rule,’’ Department of Education Homeroom 

Continued 

The Department believed clarifying 

the circumstances in which the 

Secretary may use the existing and 

longstanding waiver authority under 

sections 432(a)(6) and 468(2) of the HEA 

would better inform the public about 

how the Secretary may exercise this 

waiver authority in a consistent and 

equitable manner. Current regulations 

do not describe how the Secretary uses 

this waiver authority. We also believed 

that providing such specificity would 

allow the Department to highlight 

circumstances where we are particularly 

concerned about borrowers’ inability to 

successfully repay their debts in full 

and where the Department anticipated 

that the costs of collection would 

exceed the expected benefits. 

However, upon further consideration 

of the operational challenges in 

implementing the proposals in the 

NPRM, the Secretary withdraws the 

NPRM and terminates the rulemaking 

proceeding. 

In making this decision, we 

reconsidered the Department’s ability to 

implement the proposed rules if they 

were finalized in a form identical or 

largely similar to what was included in 

the NPRM. With the time remaining in 

this Administration, the Department is 

focused on several priorities including 

court-ordered settlements and helping 

borrowers manage the final elements of 

the return to repayment following the 

Fall 2024 end of the 12-month on-ramp 

period designed to assist borrowers who 

were unable to make their payments or 

who needed more time to access 

information to determine the right 

repayment plan for their circumstances. 

With the end of the on-ramp period, 

some borrowers may start becoming 

delinquent and start down the path to 

default. Given that many newer 

borrowers are at risk of default, and the 

Department expects that many of these 

newer borrowers would not have been 

otherwise eligible for immediate relief 

under the proposed rules in the NPRM, 

along with the uncertainty around the 

implementation of the NPRM proposals, 

the Department at this time intends to 

commit its limited operational resources 

to helping at-risk borrowers return to 

repayment successfully. For all of these 

independently sufficient reasons, the 

Department is withdrawing this NPRM. 

Importantly, the Department is not 

withdrawing this NPRM and 

terminating this rulemaking proceeding 

based upon a changed view of the 

Secretary’s authority under section 

432(a) and 468(2) of the HEA, or based 

upon any preliminary determination 

about the limitations of such authority. 

See Missouri v. Biden, No. 24–cv–1316, 

ECF No. 57 (granting preliminary 

injunction in challenge focused on 

separate April 2024 NPRM relying on 

waiver authority). Rather, the 

Department continues to believe that the 

NPRM is authorized by the Secretary’s 

longstanding and existing authority 

under the HEA, as explained in the 

NPRM. See, e.g., 89 FR 87133–34. 

We do not intend for a final rule to 

be issued on this NPRM. Were the 

Department to issue a regulation in this 

area in the future, it would be bound by 

the requirements of section 492(a) and 

(b) of the HEA, 20 U.S.C. 1098a(a) and 

(b). 

Accessible Format: On request to the 

program contact person listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, 

individuals with disabilities can obtain 

this document in an accessible format. 

The Department will provide the 

requestor with an accessible format that 

may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or 

text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3, 

braille, large print, audiotape, compact 

disc, or other accessible format. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

The official version of this document is 

the document published in the Federal 

Register. You may access the official 

edition of the Federal Register and the 

Code of Federal Regulations at 

www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can 

view this document, as well as all other 

Department documents published in the 

Federal Register, in text or Portable 

Document Format (PDF). To use PDF, 

you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, 

which is available free at the site. 

You may also access Department 

documents published in the Federal 

Register by using the article search 

feature at www.Federalregister.gov. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

Miguel Cardona, 

Secretary of Education. 

[FR Doc. 2024–30605 Filed 12–20–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

34 CFR Parts 75 and 76 

[Docket ID ED–2022–OPE–0157] 

RIN 1840–AD72 

Direct Grant Programs, StateAdministered Formula Grant 

Programs; Withdrawal 

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary 

Education, Department of Education. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; 

withdrawal. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Education (Department) is withdrawing 

a notice of proposed rulemaking to 

rescind regulations related to religious 

student organizations at certain public 

institutions of higher education (IHEs). 

The proposed regulations would have 

applied to public IHEs that receive a 

direct grant from the Department or a 

subgrant from a State-administered 

formula grant program of the 

Department. 

DATES: The notice of proposed 

rulemaking published in the Federal 

Register at 88 FR 10857 on February 22, 

2023, is withdrawn as of December 20, 

2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Scott Prince, U.S. Department of 

Education, Office of Postsecondary 

Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 

5th floor, Washington, DC 20202. 

Telephone: (202) 453–5568. Email: 

NegRegNPRMHelp@ed.gov. 

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or 

have a speech disability and wish to 

access telecommunications relay 

services, please dial 7–1–1. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On September 23, 2020, the 

Department promulgated a final rule 

that addressed freedom of speech and 

the free exercise of religion at 

institutions of higher education 

participating in certain programs 

administered by the Department. See 85 

FR 59916.1 On August 19, 2021, the 

Department announced our intent to 

conduct a review of these regulations 

while keeping in mind the importance 

of several key elements, including First 

Amendment protections, 

nondiscrimination requirements, and 

the promotion of inclusive learning 

environments for all students.2 As part 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1
104936 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules 

Blog (Aug. 19, 2021), https://blog.ed.gov/2021/08/ 

update-on-the-free-inquiry-rule/. 

3The Department notes that the 2020 final 

regulations do not impose conditions on 

participation in the programs authorized under title 

IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended 

(HEA). See 85 FR 59942. Any future rulemaking 

that would seek to impose conditions on 

participation in title IV programs would be subject 

to the negotiated rulemaking requirement in section 

492 of the HEA, 20 U.S.C. 1098a. 

of the review, the Department 

conducted outreach and held meetings 

with: (1) higher education and 

institutional stakeholders, including 

organizations representing public 

institutions; (2) faith-based 

organizations, including organizations 

representing religious IHEs; and (3) 

organizations that advocate for civil 

rights and civil liberties. On February 

22, 2023, the Department published a 

notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) 

in the Federal Register proposing to 

rescind portions of the rule that became 

effective on November 23, 2020. See 88 

FR 10857. Specifically, the Department 

proposed to rescind 34 CFR 75.500(d) 

and 76.500(d), which prescribe a role for 

the Department in enforcing grant 

conditions related to religious student 

organizations at certain public 

institutions of higher education (IHEs). 

These regulations apply to public IHEs 

that receive a direct grant from the 

Department or a subgrant from a Stateadministered formula grant program of 

the Department. 

The Department accepted public 

comments on the NPRM from February 

22, 2023, through March 24, 2023. In 

response to that NPRM the Department 

received approximately 58,000 public 

comments. 

Withdrawal of the Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking and Termination of the 

Rulemaking Proceeding 

The Department issued the NPRM to 

amend 34 CFR parts 75 and 76 and 

provided its reasons for proposing to 

rescind the 2020 final regulations in that 

document. However, upon further 

consideration, the Department is 

withdrawing the NPRM and terminating 

the rulemaking proceeding. 

During the public comment period, 

the Department received approximately 

58,000 comments. Several hundred of 

the comments calling for withdrawal 

were from individuals and organizations 

who argued that rescinding the current 

rule is not necessary because it is not 

complex or burdensome. Additionally, 

many comments in support of the 

current regulations pointed to ongoing 

issues faced by religious student groups 

as evidence of the need to keep these 

regulations. Numerous commenters in 

favor of rescinding these provisions 

asserted that the current regulations are 

not necessary to protect these 

constitutional freedoms and expressed 

concern that the regulations could be 

read to require institutions to afford 

preferential treatment to religious 

student groups. 

We appreciate the feedback that the 

Department received in response to the 

NPRM. In light of the concerns raised by 

commenters both in support of and in 

opposition to the proposed rescissions, 

the forthcoming change in 

administration, and the significant 

resources needed to review and 

consider all relevant matters presented 

in the public comments, the Department 

for each of these independent reasons 

does not believe that finalizing the 

proposed rescissions is an efficient use 

of Department resources at this time. 

Therefore, the Secretary exercises his 

discretion to withdraw the NPRM and 

terminate this rulemaking. We do not 

intend for a final rule to be issued on 

this NPRM. Any future rulemaking the 

Department may undertake on this topic 

would similarly be subject to the notice 

and comment requirements of the 

Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 

551, et seq.3

Importantly, this withdrawal does not 

change or alter the Department’s role 

with respect to the other material grant 

conditions added by the 2020 final 

regulations at §§ 75.500(b) and (c) and 

76.500(b) and (c). The Department will 

determine if an IHE has violated the 

grant conditions in those provisions 

only if a State or Federal court issues a 

final, non-default judgment against a 

public IHE for violating the First 

Amendment or against a private IHE for 

violating stated institutional policies. 

Absent such a judgment, the 

Department presumes public IHEs to be 

in compliance with the First 

Amendment where the alleged 

violations concern matters other than 

denial of equal treatment to religious 

student organizations because of the 

organization’s beliefs, practices, 

policies, speech, membership standards, 

or leadership standards, which are 

informed by sincerely held religious 

beliefs. Under the 2020 final regulations 

at §§ 75.500(b) and (c) and 76.500(b) and 

(c), the Department’s role is not to 

investigate alleged violations of these 

grant conditions and is limited to 

deciding whether and to what extent to 

impose additional penalties where a 

State or Federal court has rendered a 

relevant final, non-default judgment. 

Accessible Format: On request to the 

program contact person listed under FOR

FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, 

individuals with disabilities can obtain 

this document and a copy of the 

application package in an accessible 

format. The Department will provide the 

requestor with an accessible format that 

may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or 

text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 

file, braille, large print, audiotape, 

compact disc, or other accessible format. 

Electronic Access to This Document: 

The official version of this document is 

the document published in the Federal 

Register. You may access the official 

edition of the Federal Register and the 

Code of Federal Regulations at 

www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can 

view this document, as well as all other 

Department documents published in the 

Federal Register, in text or Portable 

Document Format (PDF). To use PDF 

you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, 

which is available free at the site. 

You may also access Department 

documents published in the Federal 

Register by using the article search 

feature at www.federalregister.gov. 

Specifically, through the advanced 

search feature at this site, you can limit 

your search to documents published by 

the Department. 

Miguel Cardona, 

Secretary of Education. 

[FR Doc. 2024–30923 Filed 12–20–24; 2:00 pm] 

BILLING CODE 4000–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

34 CFR Part 106 

[Docket ID ED–2022–OCR–0143] 

RIN 1870–AA19 

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex 

in Education Programs or Activities 

Receiving Federal Financial 

Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility 

Criteria for Male and Female Athletic 

Teams; Withdrawal 

AGENCY: Office for Civil Rights, 

Department of Education. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; 

withdrawal. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of 

Education (Department) is withdrawing 

the notice of proposed rulemaking 

entitled ‘‘Nondiscrimination on the 

Basis of Sex in Education Programs or 

Activities Receiving Federal Financial 

Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility 

Criteria for Male and Female Athletic 

Teams’’ published in the Federal 

Register on April 13, 2023. The 

proposed rule would have amended the 

regulations implementing Title IX of the 

Education Amendments of 1972 (Title 

IX). 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1