I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5674 

To provide for higher education reform. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 19, 2014 

Mr. HIMES introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To provide for higher education reform. 

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 ‘‘College Affordability 

5 and Innovation Act of 2014’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) AUTHORIZING COMMITTEES.—The term 

9 ‘‘authorizing committees’’ means the Committee on 

10 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Sen11 ate and the Committee on Education and the Work12 force of the House of Representatives. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

2 the Secretary of Education. 

3 SEC. 3. PILOT PROGRAM TO PROMOTE INNOVATION IN 

4 HIGHER EDUCATION. 

5 (a) PURPOSE; DEFINITION.— 

6 (1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is 

7 to authorize an evidence-based grant program to 

8 promote greater experimentation among institutions 

9 of higher education to increase the level of student 

10 attainment of postsecondary and graduate certifi11 cates and degrees through innovative programs de12 signed to decrease the cost and time required to 

13 complete postsecondary and graduate programs 

14 while improving the quality and effectiveness of post15 secondary education programs, providing accelerated 

16 degree or certificate programs, and increasing on17 time graduation rates. 

18 (2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—In 

19 this section, the term ‘‘institution of higher edu20 cation’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

21 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

22 U.S.C. 1002). 

23 (b) INCENTIVE GRANTS FOR INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS

24 THAT IMPROVE QUALITY AND AFFORDABILITY.— 

25 (1) IN GENERAL.— 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (A) GRANTS.—The Secretary shall, for a 

2 5-year award term, award grants to not more 

3 than 15 institutions of higher education, 

4 through a competitive process described in this 

5 section, to enable the institutions to carry out 

6 programs designed to graduate students with 

7 certificates or degrees at significantly lower 

8 costs for students and within shorter time peri9 ods than traditional programs while improving 

10 the quality and effectiveness of the programs. 

11 (B) GOOD STANDING REQUIREMENT.— 

12 Only those institutions of higher education that 

13 are in good standing with the administration of 

14 their student assistance programs under title IV 

15 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

16 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) shall be eligible to receive 

17 grants under subparagraph (A). 

18 (2) DISTRIBUTION OF GRANT FUNDS.—Grant 

19 payments shall be awarded with an initial distribu20 tion of 20 percent of the total grant amount, fol21 lowed by a distribution of 10 percent of the total 

22 grant amount prior to the second, third, and fourth 

23 years of the program, and the remaining 50 percent 

24 of the total grant amount after the program receives 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 5674 IH

1 its final satisfactory annual evaluation by the Sec2 retary in accordance with subsection (f)(1). 

3 (3) DESCRIPTION OF INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS.— 

4 The programs described under paragraph (1) shall 

5 include those that— 

6 (A) utilize online instruction, including dis7 tance education (as defined in section 103 of 

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

9 1003)), or online interaction components, or on10 line instruction integrated with classroom or in11 person instruction; 

12 (B) utilize direct assessment programs, as 

13 described in section 481(b)(4) of the Higher 

14 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088(b)(4)), 

15 either within a comprehensive direct assessment 

16 program or integrated within another type of 

17 academic program; 

18 (C) utilize integration of experiential learn19 ing and design of customized programs of 

20 study, to promote completion or alignment with 

21 medium- and long-term employment needs; 

22 (D) allow students to be dually or concur23 rently enrolled in the postsecondary program 

24 and a secondary school, or a postsecondary pro25 gram and a graduate program; or 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (E) utilize any other innovative, evidence2 based method of postsecondary education that 

3 provides cost-effective, high-quality methods for 

4 instruction, student learning, and use of avail5 able technology-based resources, including hy6 brid models incorporating elements of the pro7 gram types set forth in subparagraphs (A), (B), 

8 (C), and (D), and adaptive learning tech9 nologies. 

10 (c) APPLICATIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—An institution of higher edu12 cation that desires to receive a grant under this sec13 tion shall submit an application to the Secretary at 

14 such time and in such manner as the Secretary may 

15 require. 

16 (2) CONTENTS.—An application submitted 

17 under paragraph (1) shall include— 

18 (A) a description of the institution’s qual19 ity assurances for the programs to be offered; 

20 (B) a description of the statutory and reg21 ulatory requirements for which a waiver is 

22 sought under subsection (e) and the reasons for 

23 which the waiver is sought; 

24 (C) a description of the programs to be of25 fered; 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (D) a description of the students eligible 

2 for the programs offered, including any eligi3 bility limitations; 

4 (E) an assurance that the institution will 

5 fully cooperate with the ongoing evaluations of 

6 the programs provided for in this section; 

7 (F) a description of how the proposed pro8 gram will improve the quality of its postsec9 ondary certificates or degrees, reduce tuition 

10 and other costs to students, and reduce enroll11 ment time; 

12 (G) a description of the data (or any other 

13 evidence) that indicate that the programs to be 

14 offered will likely lead to the outcomes de15 scribed in subparagraph (F); 

16 (H) a complete listing of the institution’s 

17 performance goals and measures regarding as18 sessments of the quality of its postsecondary 

19 certificates or degrees, amount of tuition and 

20 costs charged to students, and the amount of 

21 enrollment time needed by students to complete 

22 the postsecondary certificates or degrees; and 

23 (I) any other information as the Secretary 

24 may require. 

25 (d) AWARDING OF GRANTS.— 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 

2 grants under this section to institutions of higher 

3 education for new or existing programs. 

4 (2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

5 section, the Secretary shall give priority to an insti6 tution of higher education that the Secretary deter7 mines— 

8 (A) is financially responsible, as described 

9 in section 498(c)(1) of the Higher Education 

10 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099c(c)(1)); 

11 (B) has a proven record of graduating stu12 dents from the other programs of the institu13 tion; 

14 (C) has a proven record of graduates from 

15 the other programs of the institution securing 

16 full-time employment; 

17 (D) simultaneously addresses income-re18 lated inequalities in remedial education, college 

19 access, persistence rates, and graduation rates; 

20 (E) has support services in place, such as 

21 counseling, coaching, mentoring, and outreach, 

22 that are designed to assist all students in ob23 taining information and making decisions re24 garding financial aid, and degree or certificate 

25 likelihood of persistence and completion; 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (F) will serve low-income students, adult 

2 students aged 25 years and older, and part-time 

3 students; 

4 (G) will support programs that are 

5 replicable at a range of institutions of higher 

6 education if they are demonstrated to be suc7 cessful; and 

8 (H) has presented the strongest evidence 

9 in support of their likely outcomes, as required 

10 under subsection (c)(2)(G). 

11 (3) DIVERSE POPULATIONS.—In awarding 

12 grants under this section, the Secretary shall ensure 

13 the participation of diverse student populations, in14 cluding rural and urban populations, and of a di15 verse range of institutions. 

16 (4) PUBLICATION OF GRANTEES.—The Sec17 retary shall make available to the public and to the 

18 authorizing committees a list of the institutions of 

19 higher education awarded a grant under this section, 

20 including a listing of the specific statutory and regu21 latory requirements being waived for each institution 

22 and a description of the programs and courses to be 

23 offered. 

24 (e) WAIVERS.— 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided under 

2 paragraph (2), with respect to institutions of higher 

3 education awarded grants under this section, the 

4 Secretary may waive— 

5 (A) subsection (a) or (b) of section 481 of 

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

7 1088(a) and (b)), as such subsections relate to 

8 requirements for a minimum number of weeks 

9 of instruction; 

10 (B) subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 

11 102(a)(3) of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

12 1002(a)(3)(A) and (B)); 

13 (C) one or more of the regulations promul14 gated to carry out part F or G of title IV of 

15 such Act (20 U.S.C. 1087kk et seq. and 1088 

16 et seq.), which inhibit the operation of innova17 tive education programs; and 

18 (D) any other requirement under title IV 

19 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) that will 

20 bias the results of the program, including a re21 quirement related to the award process and dis22 bursement of student financial aid (such as in23 novative delivery systems for modular or com24 pressed courses or other innovative systems), or 

25 other management procedures or processes as 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 5674 IH

1 determined in the negotiated rulemaking proc2 ess under section 492 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 

3 1098a), or regulations prescribed under such 

4 title. 

5 (2) PROHIBITION OF WAIVER.—The Secretary 

6 shall not waive, pursuant to paragraph (1), any pro7 vision under the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

8 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) or a regulation promulgated to 

9 carry out such Act with respect to award rules 

10 (other than an award rule related to an experiment 

11 in modular or compressed schedules), grant and loan 

12 maximum award amounts, and need analysis re13 quirements, unless the waiver of such provision is 

14 authorized by another provision under such Act. 

15 (f) EVALUATION AND REPORTS.— 

16 (1) EVALUATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY PROC17 ESS.—The Secretary shall establish an evaluation 

18 and accountability process for the programs author19 ized under this section and shall administer such 

20 process on an annual basis. Such evaluations shall 

21 include— 

22 (A) the extent to which the institution of 

23 higher education has met the goals set forth in 

24 its application to the Secretary, including the 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 5674 IH

1 quality of education provided by participating 

2 programs; 

3 (B) the number and types of students par4 ticipating in the programs offered, including the 

5 progress of participating students toward recog6 nized certificates or degrees; 

7 (C) issues related to student financial as8 sistance; 

9 (D) the extent to which any statutory or 

10 regulatory requirements present difficulties for 

11 students or institutions in the participating pro12 grams; and 

13 (E) an analysis of the program’s progress 

14 with each of its objectives, including the num15 ber and rate of completion of participating stu16 dents toward recognized certificates or degrees, 

17 prices charged to students, time required to 

18 complete the participating programs, on-time 

19 completion rates of participating students, and 

20 indicators of program quality. 

21 (2) REVIEW.—The Secretary shall review poli22 cies and identify those policies that present impedi23 ments to the development and use of innovative pro24 grams and other nontraditional methods of expand25 ing success and access to education. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (3) MEASURES.—The Secretary shall establish 

2 measures to assess the quality of the education pro3 vided by participating programs under this section, 

4 including a minimum standard of quality that par5 ticipating programs shall meet. 

6 (4) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall provide re7 ports to the authorizing committees on an annual 

8 basis regarding— 

9 (A) the programs authorized under this 

10 section; and 

11 (B) the number and types of students re12 ceiving assistance under this section for instruc13 tion leading to a recognized degree or certifi14 cate, including the progress of such students to15 ward recognized certificates and the degree to 

16 which participation in such programs leading to 

17 such certificates increased. 

18 (5) DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY.—In con19 ducting the program authorized under this section, 

20 the Secretary shall, on a continuing basis— 

21 (A) ensure compliance of institutions of 

22 higher education with the requirements of this 

23 section (other than the sections and regulations 

24 that are waived under subsection (e)); 

25 (B) provide technical assistance; 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (C) monitor fluctuations in the student 

2 population enrolled in the participating pro3 gram; and 

4 (D) assess whether each participating pro5 gram is improving the quality of postsecondary 

6 credentials and meeting the quality control 

7 measures set by the Secretary. 

8 (g) CONSUMER PROTECTION FOR STUDENTS.— 

9 (1) PROGRAM TERMINATION.—If a program 

10 funded under this section terminates on its accord at 

11 any point during which the program is receiving 

12 funds under this section, or if the Secretary deter13 mines that the program does not meet the minimum 

14 standard of quality as required under subsection 

15 (f)(3)— 

16 (A) the institution of higher education ad17 ministering the program shall provide imme18 diate notice to students enrolled in the program 

19 and shall prepare a teach-out plan, as described 

20 in section 487(f) of the Higher Education Act 

21 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(f)); and 

22 (B) the Secretary shall— 

23 (i) ensure that— 

24 (I) no additional program funds 

25 are distributed to the program; and 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (II) the institution of higher edu2 cation administering the program is in 

3 compliance with the notice and teach4 out requirements under subparagraph 

5 (A); and 

6 (ii) assess a fine to an institution of 

7 higher education administering the pro8 gram that is not in compliance with the 

9 notice and teach-out requirements under 

10 subparagraph (A). 

11 (2) NOTICE AND DISCLOSURE FOR STU12 DENTS.—An institution of higher education admin13 istering a participating program under this section 

14 shall provide notice to all students before they enroll 

15 in the participating program that such program is 

16 receiving grant funds under this section and may be 

17 terminated, as described in paragraph (1). 

18 (h) FINAL EVALUATION BY THIRD-PARTY RE19 VIEWER.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall direct 

21 an independent third-party evaluator to review all 

22 participating programs and conduct a final evalua23 tion in order to determine the evidence of the effec24 tiveness of each program in achieving its objectives 

25 with regard to the quality of the education provided, 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 5674 IH

1 reducing the cost of the degree or certificate pro2 gram, and shortening the amount of time needed to 

3 complete the degree or certificate program. 

4 (2) EVALUATION METHODOLOGY.—The inde5 pendent third-party evaluator shall establish evalua6 tion methodology in carrying out the final evaluation 

7 under paragraph (1). 

8 (3) SUBMISSION TO AUTHORIZING COMMIT9 TEES.—The independent third-party evaluator shall 

10 publicize the final evaluation and submit such eval11 uation to the authorizing committees. 

12 (4) FUNDING.—Not more than 1 percent of the 

13 total amount appropriated to carry out this section 

14 may be used to carry out this subsection. 

15 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

16 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section— 

17 (1) $260,000,000 for fiscal year 2015; and 

18 (2) such sums as may be necessary for each 

19 succeeding fiscal year. 

20 SEC. 4. HIGHER EDUCATION ACCOUNTABILITY. 

21 (a) PURPOSE; DEFINITION.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The purpose of this section 

23 is to establish minimum institutional accountability 

24 standards that will be required of all institutions of 

25 higher education that receive funds or whose stuVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:18 Oct 06, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5674.IH H5674

tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 5674 IH

1 dents receive funds pursuant to title IV of the High2 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) 

3 programs. The standards shall focus on afford4 ability, accessibility for low- and middle-income stu5 dents, and value. 

6 (2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—In 

7 this section: 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘institution 

9 of higher education’’ means an institution of 

10 higher education described in section 102 of the 

11 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

12 1002), except as provided in subparagraphs (B) 

13 and (C). 

14 (B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘‘institution of 

15 higher education’’ does not include institutions 

16 that solely offer graduate or professional degree 

17 programs of study. 

18 (C) INSTITUTIONS.—To the extent an in19 stitution offers undergraduate programs of 

20 study and graduate or professional degree pro21 grams of study, for purposes of this section, the 

22 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ with re23 spect to such institutions shall only include the 

24 undergraduate programs of study. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (b) COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION ACCOUNT2 ABILITY STANDARDS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

4 the date of enactment of this Act, there shall be es5 tablished a Commission on Higher Education Ac6 countability Standards (referred to in this section as 

7 the ‘‘Commission’’) to make recommendations on a 

8 set of minimum accountability standards and the 

9 measures for assessing compliance with such stand10 ards for institutions of higher education that shall 

11 focus on affordability, access for low- and middle-in12 come students, and value. 

13 (2) COMPOSITION OF THE COMMISSION.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—Members of the Com15 mission shall be appointed as follows: 

16 (i) 5 members shall be appointed by 

17 the Majority Leader of the Senate, with 

18 the concurrence of the Minority Leader of 

19 the Senate on 2 of such members. 

20 (ii) 5 members shall be appointed by 

21 the Majority Leader of the House of Rep22 resentatives, with the concurrence of the 

23 Minority Leader of the House of Rep24 resentatives on 2 of such members. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (iii) 5 members shall be appointed by 

2 the Secretary, including at least 1 member 

3 from the National Center for Education 

4 Statistics and 1 member from the Federal 

5 Student Aid Office of the Department of 

6 Education. 

7 (iv) In the event that any member of 

8 the Commission has not been appointed 

9 during the 90-day period after the date of 

10 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

11 appoint the remaining member in order to 

12 establish the Commission. 

13 (B) GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS.—Members 

14 of the Commission shall be appointed on the 

15 basis of the individuals’— 

16 (i) experience, integrity, impartiality, 

17 and good judgment; and 

18 (ii) except with respect to the under19 graduate students, technical qualifications 

20 and professional standing. 

21 (C) MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION.— 

22 Members appointed under subparagraph (A) 

23 shall be comprised of the following relevant 

24 stakeholders: 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
19 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (i) 2 undergraduate student leaders 

2 from different types of institutions of high3 er education. 

4 (ii) 2 members of national or regional 

5 student advocacy organizations with a 

6 track record of engagement and expertise 

7 on issues related to college costs and stu8 dent debt. 

9 (iii) 1 consumer advocate or consumer 

10 protection expert with demonstrated knowl11 edge of consumer protection issues related 

12 to undergraduate students. 

13 (iv) 2 representatives of faculty 

14 groups or associations with expertise re15 lated to higher education finance or gov16 ernance. 

17 (v) 1 State government official with 

18 demonstrated knowledge of State budg19 eting and higher education funding. 

20 (vi) 3 administrative officers from 

21 various types of institutions of higher edu22 cation, including at least 1 from a minor23 ity-serving institution. 

24 (vii) 1 higher education researcher. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
20 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (viii) 1 State postsecondary education 

2 data system director. 

3 (ix) 1 member from the National Cen4 ter for Education Statistics. 

5 (x) 1 member from the Federal Stu6 dent Aid Office of the Department of Edu7 cation. 

8 (3) RECOMMENDATIONS.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall 

10 make recommendations on a set of minimum 

11 accountability standards that institutions of 

12 higher education must meet with respect to af13 fordability, accessibility, and value in order to 

14 receive funds or that the students of such insti15 tutions may receive funds pursuant to title IV 

16 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

17 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) programs. The Commis18 sion shall also recommend measures and accept19 able levels of performance on those measures to 

20 assess compliance with the minimum account21 ability standards. If the Commission cannot 

22 issue its recommendations by consensus, it shall 

23 issue its recommendations based on the views of 

24 a majority of the Commission. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
21 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (B) REQUIRED MEASURES.—The Commis2 sion shall include, at a minimum, the following 

3 measures as part of the minimum account4 ability standards it shall recommend: 

5 (i) AFFORDABILITY.—The average or 

6 mean cost of tuition and other costs re7 quired for attendance after all institu8 tional, Federal, and State grant aid is 

9 taken into account. 

10 (ii) ACCESSIBILITY.—The percentage 

11 of the total number of enrolled students 

12 who are recipients of a Federal Pell Grant 

13 under subpart 1 of part A of title IV of the 

14 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

15 1070a et seq.). 

16 (iii) VALUE.—Student loan repayment 

17 rates. 

18 (C) OTHER MEASURES.—The Commission 

19 shall make recommendations on additional 

20 measures to comprise the minimum account21 ability standards, including the following: 

22 (i) AFFORDABILITY.—The Commis23 sion shall make recommendations on addi24 tional higher education affordability measVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:18 Oct 06, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5674.IH H5674

tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
22 

•HR 5674 IH

1 ures, including the appropriateness of the 

2 following: 

3 (I) The cost of tuition relative to 

4 the cost to the institution of educating 

5 a student and the institution’s admin6 istrative costs. 

7 (II) The percentage of institu8 tional aid that is awarded on the basis 

9 of need, as opposed to merit. 

10 (III) Annual increases in tuition 

11 after taking into account all public 

12 subsidies. 

13 (ii) ACCESSIBILITY.—The Commission 

14 shall make recommendations on higher 

15 education accessibility measures, including 

16 the appropriateness of the following: 

17 (I) Enrollment of low- and mid18 dle-income, underrepresented minori19 ties, and adult students aged 25 and 

20 older. 

21 (II) Whether institutional policies 

22 on credit transfers meet industry 

23 standards by type of receiving institu24 tion. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
23 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (iii) VALUE.—The Commission shall 

2 make recommendations on measures of 

3 higher education value, including the ap4 propriateness of the following: 

5 (I) Student progress toward com6 pletion of a postsecondary degree or 

7 certificate. 

8 (II) Student completion of a 

9 postsecondary degree or certificate, in10 cluding for transfer and part-time stu11 dents, or where applicable, transfer 

12 rates to 4-year degree programs. 

13 (III) Student retention rates. 

14 (IV) Full-time employment and 

15 graduate degree enrollment rates after 

16 graduation. 

17 (4) CONSIDERATIONS.—The Commission shall 

18 take into account the differences in missions of insti19 tutions of higher education and ensure that institu20 tions are held to standards that are appropriate for 

21 their mission. 

22 (5) HEARINGS AND REPORT.— 

23 (A) HEARINGS.—Not later than 6 months 

24 after the date of the appointment of the final 

25 member of the Commission, the Commission 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
24 

•HR 5674 IH

1 shall hold public field hearings in all regions of 

2 the United States. The Commission shall hold 

3 not fewer than 8 hearings. 

4 (B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 

5 the date of the appointment of the final mem6 ber of the Commission, the Commission shall 

7 prepare a report on the recommendations under 

8 paragraph (3) and submit the report to the 

9 Secretary and the authorizing committees. The 

10 report shall include the following: 

11 (i) Recommendations for minimum ac12 countability standards and the measures 

13 for assessing compliance with those stand14 ards for every institution of higher edu15 cation that receives funds or whose stu16 dents receive funds pursuant to title IV of 

17 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

18 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) programs. The stand19 ards shall focus on affordability, access for 

20 low- and middle-income students, and 

21 value. The Commission shall recommend 

22 standards that are in accordance with the 

23 types of information that institutions of 

24 higher education are authorized to collect 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
25 

•HR 5674 IH

1 and report under the Higher Education 

2 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.). 

3 (ii) Recommendations for applying the 

4 standards to institutions of higher edu5 cation with different academic missions. 

6 (iii) Recommendations for periodic re7 evaluation of the standards and their effi8 cacy by the Secretary. 

9 (iv) Recommendations for sharing in10 stitutions’ performance with respect to the 

11 standards with prospective students and 

12 conducting complementary consumer edu13 cation for students. 

14 (v) Recommendations for the criteria 

15 the Secretary should use to reward institu16 tions of higher education that meet and ex17 ceed the minimum accountability stand18 ards. 

19 (vi) Recommendations to Congress on 

20 reforms to statutory or regulatory limita21 tions on the collection and availability of 

22 data that would improve the Secretary’s 

23 ability to assess institutions’ compliance 

24 with minimum standards of affordability, 

25 accessibility, and value. 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
26 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (6) SECURING INFORMATION.—The Commis2 sion may secure directly from any Federal depart3 ment or agency such information as the Commission 

4 considers necessary to carry out its duties under this 

5 section. The Commission may request the head of 

6 any State or local department or agency to furnish 

7 such information to the Commission. 

8 (7) FINAL STANDARDS.— 

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

10 after receiving the report under paragraph (5), 

11 the Secretary shall publish a final rule on insti12 tutional accountability standards. The stand13 ards shall be determined by the Secretary after 

14 giving due consideration to the recommended 

15 standards provided by the Commission. The 

16 Secretary shall set forth in writing the reasons 

17 for any deviation from the Commission’s rec18 ommendations for any standard or measure and 

19 shall submit the written statement to the au20 thorizing committees. 

21 (B) REQUIRED MEASURES TO BE IN22 CLUDED.—In carrying out subparagraph (A), 

23 the Secretary shall include the measures de24 scribed in subsection (b)(3)(B) that the ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:18 Oct 06, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5674.IH H5674

tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
27 

•HR 5674 IH

1 mission is required to include as part of its 

2 minimum accountability standards. 

3 (8) ASSESSMENT.—The Secretary shall annu4 ally assess compliance with the institutional account5 ability standards. On September 30 of the year fol6 lowing the publication of the final rule as required 

7 under paragraph (7) and every year thereafter, the 

8 Secretary shall publish a list of each institution of 

9 higher education that participates in title IV of the 

10 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et 

11 seq.) and the institution’s level of compliance with 

12 the accountability standards. The list shall be made 

13 easily accessible to the public. 

14 (9) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall es15 tablish procedures to implement this subsection, in16 cluding procedures for effectively applying this sub17 section. 

18 (10) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall 

19 terminate 60 days after the date on which the Com20 mission submits the report under paragraph (5). 

21 (c) INCENTIVIZE IMPROVEMENT FOR BELOW-STAND22 ARD INSTITUTIONS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—An institution of higher edu24 cation that participates in title IV of the Higher 

25 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
28 

•HR 5674 IH

1 programs and that does not meet the institutional 

2 accountability standards adopted under subsection 

3 (b)— 

4 (A) shall be deemed to be in probationary 

5 status; and 

6 (B) shall work with the Secretary to de7 velop a plan for how the institution will achieve 

8 compliance not later than 5 years after the date 

9 of the determination of noncompliance. 

10 (2) CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT.—For each 

11 year following a determination that an institution of 

12 higher education does not meet the institutional ac13 countability standards adopted under subsection (b), 

14 the institution shall demonstrate to the Secretary 

15 continuous improvement in following its plan to 

16 achieve compliance. 

17 (3) FAILURE TO MAKE CONTINUOUS IMPROVE18 MENT.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.— 

20 (i) 2 YEARS OUT.—If an institution of 

21 higher education does not show continuous 

22 improvement 2 years after a determination 

23 that it does not meet the institutional ac24 countability standards adopted under sub25 section (b), the institution shall pay to the 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
29 

•HR 5674 IH

1 Secretary an amount equal to 10 percent 

2 of the total amount of funds made avail3 able under title IV of the Higher Edu4 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et 

5 seq.) to students in attendance with an un6 dergraduate enrollment status at the insti7 tution during the prior academic year, to 

8 be deposited into the fund described in 

9 subparagraph (C). 

10 (ii) 3 YEARS OUT.—If an institution 

11 of higher education does not show contin12 uous improvement 3 years after a deter13 mination that it does not meet the institu14 tional accountability standards adopted 

15 under subsection (b), the institution shall 

16 pay to the Secretary an amount equal to 

17 20 percent of the total amount of funds 

18 made available under title IV of the Higher 

19 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et 

20 seq.) to students in attendance with an un21 dergraduate enrollment status at the insti22 tution during the prior academic year, to 

23 be deposited into the fund described in 

24 subparagraph (C). 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
30 

•HR 5674 IH

1 (iii) 4 YEARS OUT.—If an institution 

2 of higher education does not show contin3 uous improvement 4 years after a deter4 mination that it does not meet the institu5 tional accountability standards adopted 

6 under subsection (b), the institution shall 

7 pay to the Secretary an amount equal to 

8 30 percent of the total amount of funds 

9 made available under title IV of the Higher 

10 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et 

11 seq.) to students in attendance with an un12 dergraduate enrollment status at the insti13 tution during the prior academic year, to 

14 be deposited into the fund described in 

15 subparagraph (C). 

16 (B) WAIVER AND PAYMENT PLAN.— 

17 (i) WAIVER.—The Secretary may 

18 waive a requirement of an institution of 

19 higher education paying the amount owed 

20 pursuant to subparagraph (A) if the Sec21 retary determines such a waiver is nec22 essary to avoid extreme hardship for the 

23 students enrolled at such institution. 

24 (ii) PAYMENT PLAN.—The Secretary 

25 may allow an institution of higher eduVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:18 Oct 06, 2014 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5674.IH H5674

tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
31 

•HR 5674 IH

1 cation that owes an amount under sub2 paragraph (A) to enter into a payment 

3 plan to pay such amount. 

4 (C) FUND.—There shall be established a 

5 special fund in which amounts refunded by an 

6 institution of higher education under this para7 graph shall be placed to be used pursuant to 

8 subsection (d). 

9 (4) NONCOMPLIANCE FIVE YEARS OUT.—If an 

10 institution of higher education fails to achieve com11 pliance by not later than the date that is 5 years 

12 after the date of the determination that the institu13 tion does not meet the institutional accountability 

14 standards, the institution— 

15 (A) shall not be eligible to receive funds 

16 under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 

17 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.) for the academic 

18 year following the date that is 5 years after the 

19 date of the determination; 

20 (B) shall be required to submit a teach-out 

21 plan, as described in section 487(f) of the High22 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(f)); 

23 and 

24 (C) shall be eligible to receive funds under 

25 such title IV when the institution is able to 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
32 

•HR 5674 IH

1 demonstrate compliance with the institutional 

2 accountability standards. 

3 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF REWARD GRANT PRO4 GRAM.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts available in 

6 the fund established pursuant to subsection 

7 (c)(3)(C), the Secretary shall award grants, on a 

8 competitive basis, to institutions of higher education 

9 that meet or exceed the institutional accountability 

10 standards adopted under subsection (b). In deter11 mining the criteria for awarding grants, the Sec12 retary shall give due consideration to the rec13 ommendations of the Commission. 

14 (2) USE FOR FINANCIAL AID.—An institution of 

15 higher education awarded a grant under paragraph 

16 (1) shall use the grant funds for need-based aid to 

17 students who are eligible for Federal Pell Grants 

18 under subpart 1 of part A of title IV of the Higher 

19 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a et seq.). 

Æ 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with BILLS