II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2405 

To establish additional protections and disclosures for students and cosigners 

with respect to student loans, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 31, 2019 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. BOOKER, Ms. WARREN, Mr. BROWN, and 

Mrs. GILLIBRAND) introduced the following bill; which was read twice 

and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To establish additional protections and disclosures 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’’. 

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


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1 (1) The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protec2 tion (referred to in this section as the ‘‘CFPB’’) 

3 Student Loan Ombudsman stated the following: 

4 (A) ‘‘The CFPB received more than 7,700 

5 private student loan complaints and approxi6 mately 2,300 debt collection complaints related 

7 to student loans between September 1, 2016, 

8 and August 31, 2017.’’. 

9 (B) ‘‘cosigners complain that information 

10 about discharge or alternative arrangements in 

11 the case of death of the primary borrower is not 

12 readily available and that decisions are made on 

13 a case-by-case basis, giving cosigners little un14 derstanding of how the process works, or if they 

15 will be successful.’’. 

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

17 the CFPB resemble many of the same issues 

18 experienced by mortgage borrowers, such as im19 proper application of payments, untimeliness in 

20 error resolution, and inability to contact appro21 priate personnel in times of hardship.’’. 

22 (D) ‘‘The difference between Federal and 

23 private student loans in periods of disability 

24 was not well-understood.’’. 


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1 (2) An estimated 2,500,000 individuals sustain 

2 a traumatic brain injury each year and older adoles3 cents between 15 and 19 years of age are more like4 ly to sustain a traumatic brain injury than individ5 uals in other age groups. 

6 (3) It has been estimated that the annual inci7 dence of spinal cord injury, not including those indi8 viduals who die at the scene of an accident, is ap9 proximately 54 cases per 1,000,000 individuals in 

10 the United States, or approximately 17,000 new 

11 cases each year. These injuries can lead to perma12 nent disability or loss of movement and can prohibit 

13 the victim from engaging in any substantial gainful 

14 activity. 

15 (4) According to the CFPB, more than 90 per16 cent of new private student loans are co-signed. 

17 (5) According to the CFPB, private student 

18 loan companies provide cosigner release to less than 

19 1 percent of eligible borrowers. 

20 SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL STUDENT LOAN PROTECTIONS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 140(g) of the Truth in 

22 Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1650(g)) is amended to read as 

23 follows: 

24 ‘‘(g) ADDITIONAL PROTECTIONS RELATING TO BOR25 ROWER OR COSIGNER OF A PRIVATE EDUCATION LOAN.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS DESCRIPTION

2 OF OBLIGATION OF BORROWER AND COSIGNER.—In 

3 the case of any private educational lender that pro4 vides a private education loan, the lender shall clear5 ly and conspicuously describe, in writing, the obliga6 tions of a cosigner with respect to the loan, includ7 ing the effect that the death, disability, or inability 

8 to engage in any substantial gainful activity of the 

9 borrower or any cosigner would have on any such 

10 obligation, in language that the Bureau determines 

11 would give a reasonable person a reasonable under12 standing of the obligation being assumed by becom13 ing a cosigner for the loan. 

14 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION ON AUTOMATIC DEFAULT

15 WITH RESPECT TO A PERFORMING LOAN.— 

16 ‘‘(A) DEATH, DISABILITY, OR BANKRUPTCY

17 OF COSIGNER.—If a private education loan in18 cludes a cosigner, a private educational lender 

19 may not take any adverse action (including de20 claring a default, accelerating any loan obliga21 tion, increasing the interest rate, or altering 

22 any obligations under the private education loan 

23 in a way that is adverse to the borrower) 

24 against the borrower based on— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the death, disability, or inability 

2 to engage in any substantial gainful activ3 ity of the cosigner; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) the bankruptcy of the cosigner. 

5 ‘‘(B) BANKRUPTCY OF BORROWER.—If a 

6 private education loan includes a cosigner, a 

7 private educational lender may not take any ad8 verse action (including declaring a default, ac9 celerating any loan obligation, increasing the in10 terest rate, or altering any obligations under 

11 the private education loan in a way that is ad12 verse to any cosigner) against the cosigner 

13 based on the bankruptcy of the borrower. 

14 ‘‘(3) BORROWER REQUIREMENTS REGARDING

15 DEATH OR DISABILITY OF BORROWER.—In the event 

16 of the death, disability, or inability to engage in any 

17 substantial gainful activity of a borrower of a private 

18 education loan— 

19 ‘‘(A) the borrower, the estate of the bor20 rower, and any cosigner of the private edu21 cation loan shall not be obligated to repay the 

22 outstanding principal and interest on the loan; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(B) the private educational lender with 

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1 cation loan, as applicable, shall, upon notifica2 tion of the death, disability, or inability to en3 gage in any substantial gainful activity, dis4 charge the liability of the borrower, estate of 

5 the borrower, and any cosigner of the private 

6 education loan. 

7 ‘‘(4) COSIGNER RELEASE.— 

8 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENTS FOR AUTOMATIC RE9 LEASE OF COSIGNER.— 

10 ‘‘(i) CRITERIA ESTABLISHED BY THE

11 BUREAU.—Not later than 180 days after 

12 the date of enactment of this subsection, 

13 the Bureau shall establish criteria, which, 

14 if met by the borrower of a private edu15 cation loan, shall require the private edu16 cational lender with respect to, or servicer 

17 of, the private education loan, as applica18 ble, to promptly release any cosigner from 

19 the obligations of the cosigner under the 

20 loan without requiring any action on behalf 

21 of the borrower. 

22 ‘‘(ii) CRITERIA ESTABLISHED BY

23 LENDER.—A private educational lender 

24 may establish criteria for automatic release 

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1 scribed in clause (i) if the criteria estab2 lished by the lender are not more restric3 tive with respect to the borrower or any co4 signer of the private education loan than 

5 the criteria established under clause (i). 

6 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE OF CRITERIA FOR CO7 SIGNER RELEASE.—A private educational lend8 er shall— 

9 ‘‘(i) include in the promissory note of 

10 a private education loan the criteria under 

11 which a cosigner may be released from the 

12 obligation of the cosigner under a private 

13 education loan under this paragraph; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) disclose to the borrower and any 

15 cosigner at the time the private education 

16 loan is consummated, clearly and conspicu17 ously, the criteria under which a cosigner 

18 may be released from the obligation of the 

19 cosigner under a private education loan. 

20 ‘‘(C) MODIFICATIONS TO CRITERIA.—If a 

21 private education loan has a cosigner, the pri22 vate educational lender with respect to, or 

23 servicer of, the private education loan, as appli24 cable, may not modify the criteria under which 

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1 tion of the cosigner under the private education 

2 loan without the consent of the borrower and 

3 the cosigner if the modification would be ad4 verse to the borrower. 

5 ‘‘(D) NOTIFICATION ON RELEASE.—A pri6 vate educational lender with respect to, or 

7 servicer of, a private education loan, as applica8 ble, shall promptly notify the borrower and any 

9 cosigners for the private education loan if a co10 signer is released from the obligations of the co11 signer under the private education loan under 

12 this paragraph. 

13 ‘‘(E) MODIFICATION OF EVALUATION OF

14 CREDITWORTHINESS, CREDIT STANDING, OR

15 CREDIT CAPACITY.—In determining whether the 

16 criteria for a cosigner release are met, a private 

17 educational lender with respect to, or servicer 

18 of, a private education loan, as applicable, may 

19 not evaluate the creditworthiness, credit stand20 ing, or credit capacity of the borrower or a co21 signer of the private education loan using a 

22 standard that would be more adverse to the 

23 borrower or cosigner, as applicable, than the 

24 standard the private educational lender used to 

25 evaluate the creditworthiness, credit standing, 


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1 or credit capacity of the borrower or cosigner 

2 on the date on which the private education loan 

3 was consummated. 

4 ‘‘(5) DESIGNATION OF INDIVIDUAL TO ACT ON

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

6 private educational lender that extends a private 

7 education loan, the lender shall provide the borrower 

8 an option to designate an individual to have the 

9 legal authority to act on behalf of the borrower with 

10 respect to the private education loan in the event of 

11 the death, disability, or inability to engage in any 

12 substantial gainful activity of the borrower. 

13 ‘‘(6) COUNSELING.—In the case of any private 

14 educational lender that extends a private education 

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

16 any cosigner, receives comprehensive information on 

17 the terms and conditions of the loan and of the re18 sponsibilities the borrower has with respect to the 

19 loan, including the information required under sub20 paragraphs (H), (I), (K), (L), (M), and (N) of sec21 tion 485(l)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

22 (20 U.S.C. 1092(l)(2)). 

23 ‘‘(7) MODEL FORM.—The Bureau shall publish 

24 a model form under section 105 for describing the 


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1 obligation of a cosigner for the purposes of para2 graph (1). 

3 ‘‘(8) DEFINITION OF DEATH, DISABILITY, OR

4 INABILITY TO ENGAGE IN ANY SUBSTANTIAL GAIN5 FUL ACTIVITY.—For the purposes of this subsection 

6 with respect to a borrower or cosigner, the term 

7 ‘death, disability, or inability to engage in any sub8 stantial gainful activity’— 

9 ‘‘(A) means any condition described in sec10 tion 437(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

11 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)); and 

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

13 such a manner as to conform with the regula14 tions prescribed by the Secretary of Education 

15 under section 437(a) of the Higher Education 

16 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087(a)) to the fullest 

17 extent practicable, including safeguards to pre18 vent fraud and abuse.’’. 

19 (b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 1 year after the 

20 date of enactment of this Act, the Bureau of Consumer 

21 Financial Protection shall issue regulations to carry out 

22 subsection (g) of section 140 of the Truth in Lending Act 

23 (15 U.S.C. 1650), as amended by this section. 


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1 SEC. 3. FEDERAL STUDENT LOANS. 

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

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

4 1092(l)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(L) Information regarding the conditions 

6 required to discharge the loan due to the death, 

7 disability, or inability to engage in any substan8 tial gainful activity of the borrower in accord9 ance with section 437(a). 

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

11 forbearance, or forgiveness opportunities avail12 able to the borrower or cosigner in the event of 

13 the death, disability, or inability to engage in 

14 any substantial gainful activity of the borrower 

15 or cosigner. 

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

17 or inability to engage in any substantial gainful 

18 activity of the borrower would have on the obli19 gations of the borrower and any cosigner of the 

20 loan.’’. 

21 (b) DESIGNATION OF INDIVIDUAL TO ACT ON BE22 HALF OF THE BORROWER.—Section 484 of the Higher 

23 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091) is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph (4) 

25 and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(4) file with the Secretary, as part of the 

2 original financial aid application process, a certifi3 cation, which need not be notarized, but which— 

4 ‘‘(A) shall include— 

5 ‘‘(i) a statement of educational pur6 pose stating that the money attributable to 

7 such grant, loan, or loan guarantee will be 

8 used solely for expenses related to attend9 ance or continued attendance at such insti10 tution; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) such student’s social security 

12 number; and 

13 ‘‘(B) may include a designation by such 

14 student of an individual who shall have the 

15 legal authority to act on behalf of the student 

16 with respect to any loan to the student under 

17 this title in the event of the student’s death, 

18 disability, or inability to engage in any substan19 tial gainful activity;’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(u) OPTION TO DESIGNATE INDIVIDUAL TO ACT ON

22 BEHALF OF THE BORROWER IN CLEAR AND CON23 SPICUOUS MANNER.—The option for a student to make 

24 a designation described in subsection (a)(4)(B) shall be 


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1 provided in a clear and conspicuous manner to the stu2 dent.’’. 

3 (c) CANCELLATION OF LOANS FOR PARENT BOR4 ROWERS IN CASE OF DISABILITY OF A STUDENT.—Sec5 tion 437(d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

6 U.S.C. 1087(d)) is amended by inserting ‘‘becomes perma7 nently and totally disabled, or is unable to engage in any 

8 substantial gainful activity, as determined for purposes of 

9 subsection (a)(1),’’ after ‘‘dies,’’. 

10 SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

11 Nothing in this Act, or any amendment made by this 

12 Act, may be construed to adversely affect the eligibility 

13 of a student to receive any grant, loan, or work assistance 

14 under part C or part G of title IV of the Higher Education 

15 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087–51 et seq. and 20 U.S.C. 

16 1088 et seq.) based on a designation, or the lack of a des17 ignation, under section 484(a)(4)(B) of that Act (20 

18 U.S.C. 1091(a)(4)(B)), as added by section 3(b)(1). 

19 SEC. 5. APPLICABILITY. 

20 (a) PRIVATE EDUCATIONAL LOANS.—Paragraphs 

21 (2), (3), and subparagraphs (A), (C), (D) and (E) of sec22 tion 140(g)(4) of the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 

23 1650(g)), as amended by section 2 of this Act, shall apply 

24 to any outstanding private educational loan received by a 


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1 borrower before, on, or after the date of enactment of this 

2 Act. 

3 (b) FEDERAL LOANS.—The amendment made by sec4 tion 3(c) of this Act shall apply to any outstanding loan 

5 received by a parent before, on, or after the date of enact6 ment of this Act. 

7 (c) DATE OF ONSET.—The provisions described in 

8 subsections (a) and (b) shall apply without regard to the 

9 date of the onset of any disability or impairment, the date 

10 of death, or the date of bankruptcy filing. 

Æ 


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