II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2795 

To provide for higher education affordability, access, and opportunity. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 13, 2004 

Mr. ENZI (for himself, Mr. BAUCUS, Mr. ALEXANDER, Mrs. DOLE, and Mr. 

LIEBERMAN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide for higher education affordability, access, and 

opportunity. 

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 ‘‘Higher Education Af5 fordability, Access, and Opportunity Act of 2004’’. 

6 SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS IN MARKET INFORMATION AND 

7 PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY. 

8 (a) DATA DISSEMINATION.—Section 131(b) of the 

9 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015(b)) is 

10 amended to read as follows: 
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1 ‘‘(b) COMPARATIVE DATA.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each year the Secretary 

3 shall make available to the public the information 

4 described in paragraph (2), disaggregated by institu5 tion of higher education, in a form that enables the 

6 public to compare the information among institu7 tions. 

8 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION.—The information referred 

9 to in paragraph (1) is the following: 

10 ‘‘(A) Tuition and fees for a full-time un11 dergraduate student. 

12 ‘‘(B) Cost of attendance for a full-time un13 dergraduate student. 

14 ‘‘(C) The average annual cost of attend15 ance for a full-time undergraduate student for 

16 the 10 preceding academic years, or if data are 

17 not available for the 10 preceding academic 

18 years, data for as many of the 10 preceding 

19 academic years as is available. 

20 ‘‘(D) The percentage of full-time under21 graduate students receiving financial assistance, 

22 including— 

23 ‘‘(i) Federal grants; 

24 ‘‘(ii) State and local grants; 

25 ‘‘(iii) institutional grants; and 
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1 ‘‘(iv) loans to students. 

2 ‘‘(E) The average percentage of credit 

3 hours accepted from students transferring to an 

4 institution of higher education from another in5 stitution of higher education, and the policy of 

6 the accepting institution of higher education for 

7 the transfer of credit. 

8 ‘‘(F) The percentage of students who have 

9 completed an undergraduate program who are 

10 placed in unsubsidized employment not later 

11 than 12 months after the date of completion of 

12 the program. 

13 ‘‘(G) A ranking of the dollar and percent14 age increases in tuition for all institutions of 

15 higher education for which data are available, 

16 disaggregated by quartile. 

17 ‘‘(3) STANDARD DEFINITIONS.—In carrying out 

18 this section, the Secretary shall use the standard 

19 definitions developed under subsection (a)(3).’’. 

20 (b) STUDY AND ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 131(c) 

21 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015(c)) 

22 is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (1)— 
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1 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

2 (A), by inserting ‘‘and costs’’ after ‘‘expendi3 tures’’; 

4 (B) in subparagraph (F), by striking 

5 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

6 (C) in subparagraph (G), by striking the 

7 period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

8 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(H) the information and costs described 

10 in subparagraphs (D) through (G) of paragraph 

11 (2).’’; 

12 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

13 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

14 ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon; 

15 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the 

16 period and inserting a semicolon; and 

17 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(D) national trends in the cost of attend19 ing an institution of higher education; 

20 ‘‘(E) the mean cost of attending an institu21 tion of higher education, disaggregated by type 

22 of institution of higher education; 

23 ‘‘(F) the mean annual cost of attending an 

24 institution of higher education for the 10 pre25 ceding academic years (if available), 
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1 disaggregated by type of institution of higher 

2 education; and 

3 ‘‘(G) the assistance provided to institutions 

4 of higher education by each State, which infor5 mation the Secretary shall make available to 

6 the public.’’; and 

7 (3) in paragraph (3)— 

8 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 

9 ‘‘FINAL’’ and inserting ‘‘ANNUAL’’; 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘a report’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘an annual report’’; 

12 (C) by inserting ‘‘and the evaluation re13 quired by paragraph (2)’’ after ‘‘paragraph 

14 (1)’’; and 

15 (D) by striking ‘‘not later than September 

16 30, 2002’’. 

17 SEC. 3. TEACHER QUALITY ENHANCEMENT GRANTS. 

18 (a) DEFINITION OF HIGH NEED LOCAL EDU19 CATIONAL AGENCY.—Section 201(b)(2) of the Higher 

20 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021(b)(2)) is amend21 ed— 

22 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

23 by striking ‘‘that serves an elementary school or sec24 ondary school located in an area in which there is’’; 
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1 (2) in each of subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), 

2 by inserting ‘‘that serves an elementary school or 

3 secondary school located in an area in which there 

4 is’’ before ‘‘a high’’; 

5 (3) in subparagraph (B) (as so amended), by 

6 striking ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon; 

7 (4) in subparagraph (C) (as so amended), by 

8 striking the period and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

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

10 ‘‘(D) with a total of less than 600 students 

11 in average daily attendance at the schools that 

12 are served by the local educational agency and 

13 all of those schools are designated with a school 

14 locale code of 7 or 8, as determined by the Sec15 retary.’’. 

16 (b) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIPS.—Sec17 tion 203(b)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

18 (20 U.S.C. 1023(b)(1)(B)) is amended by inserting ‘‘edu19 cational service agency (as defined in section 9101 of the 

20 Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965),’’ after 

21 ‘‘State educational agency,’’. 

22 SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR JOB SKILL TRAINING. 

23 Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

24 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.) is amended— 

25 (1) by redesignating part F as part G; and 
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1 (2) by inserting after part E the following: 

2 ‘‘PART F—JOB SKILL TRAINING 

3 ‘‘Subpart 1—Job Skill Training in High-Growth 

4 Occupations or Industries 

5 ‘‘SEC. 371. JOB SKILL TRAINING IN HIGH-GROWTH OCCUPA6 TIONS OR INDUSTRIES. 

7 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary is au8 thorized to award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible 

9 partnerships to enable the eligible partnerships to provide 

10 relevant job skill training in high-growth industries or oc11 cupations. 

12 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

13 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘eligi14 ble partnership’ means a partnership— 

15 ‘‘(A) between an institution of higher edu16 cation and a local board (as such term is de17 fined in section 101 of the Workforce Invest18 ment Act of 1998); or 

19 ‘‘(B) if an institution of higher education 

20 is located within a State that does not operate 

21 local boards, between the institution of higher 

22 education and a State board (as such term is 

23 defined in section 101 of the Workforce Invest24 ment Act of 1998). 
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1 ‘‘(2) NONTRADITIONAL STUDENT.—The term 

2 ‘nontraditional student’ means a student who— 

3 ‘‘(A) is independent, as defined in section 

4 480(d); 

5 ‘‘(B) attends an institution of higher edu6 cation— 

7 ‘‘(i) on less than a full-time basis; 

8 ‘‘(ii) via evening, weekend, modular, 

9 or compressed courses; or 

10 ‘‘(iii) via distance learning methods; 

11 or 

12 ‘‘(C) has delayed enrollment at an institu13 tion of higher education. 

14 ‘‘(3) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

15 The term ‘institution of higher education’ means an 

16 institution of higher education, as defined in section 

17 101(b), that offers a 1- or 2-year program of study 

18 leading to a degree or certificate. 

19 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible partnership 

21 that desires a grant under this section shall submit 

22 an application to the Secretary at such time, in such 

23 manner, and accompanied by such additional infor24 mation as the Secretary may require. 
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1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 

2 under paragraph (1) shall include a description of— 

3 ‘‘(A) how the eligible partnership, through 

4 the institution of higher education, will provide 

5 relevant job skill training for students to enter 

6 high-growth occupations or industries; 

7 ‘‘(B) local high-growth occupations or in8 dustries; and 

9 ‘‘(C) the need for qualified workers to meet 

10 the local demand of high-growth occupations or 

11 industries. 

12 ‘‘(d) AWARD BASIS.—In awarding grants under this 

13 section, the Secretary shall— 

14 ‘‘(1) ensure an equitable distribution of grant 

15 funds under this section among urban and rural 

16 areas of the United States; and 

17 ‘‘(2) take into consideration the capability of 

18 the institution of higher education— 

19 ‘‘(A) to offer relevant, high quality instruc20 tion and job skill training for students entering 

21 a high-growth occupation or industry; 

22 ‘‘(B) to involve the local business commu23 nity and to place graduates in the community 

24 in employment in high-growth occupations or 

25 industries; 
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1 ‘‘(C) to assist students in obtaining loans 

2 under section 428L, if appropriate, or other 

3 forms of student financial assistance; 

4 ‘‘(D) to serve nontraditional or low-income 

5 students, or adult or displaced workers; and 

6 ‘‘(E) to serve students from rural or re7 mote communities. 

8 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUNDS.—Grant funds provided under 

9 this section may be used— 

10 ‘‘(1) to expand or create academic programs or 

11 programs of training that provide relevant job skill 

12 training for high-growth occupations or industries; 

13 ‘‘(2) to purchase equipment which will facilitate 

14 the development of academic programs or programs 

15 of training that provide training for high-growth oc16 cupations or industries; 

17 ‘‘(3) to support outreach efforts that enable 

18 students to attend institutions of higher education 

19 with academic programs or programs of training fo20 cused on high-growth occupations or industries; 

21 ‘‘(4) to expand or create programs for distance, 

22 evening, weekend, modular, or compressed learning 

23 opportunities that provide relevant job skill training 

24 in high-growth occupations or industries; 
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1 ‘‘(5) to build partnerships with local businesses 

2 in high-growth occupations or industries; and 

3 ‘‘(6) for other uses that the Secretary deter4 mines to be consistent with the intent of this section. 

5 ‘‘(f) REQUIREMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) FISCAL AGENT.—For the purpose of this 

7 section, the institution of higher education in an eli8 gible partnership shall serve as the fiscal agent and 

9 grant recipient for the eligible partnership. 

10 ‘‘(2) DURATION.—The Secretary shall award 

11 grants under this section for a 1-year period. 

12 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF GRANT FUNDS.—Grant 

13 funds awarded under this section shall be available 

14 for not more than 18 months unless, at the Sec15 retary’s discretion, the Secretary extends the avail16 ability of the grant funds. 

17 ‘‘(4) SUPPLEMENT, NOT SUPPLANT.—Funds 

18 made available under this section shall be used to 

19 supplement and not supplant other Federal, State, 

20 and local funds available to the eligible partnership 

21 for carrying out the activities described in subsection 

22 (e). 
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1 ‘‘Subpart 2—Small Business Innovation Partnership 

2 Grants 

3 ‘‘SEC. 375. SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION PARTNERSHIP 

4 GRANTS. 

5 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary is au6 thorized to award grants to eligible partnerships to enable 

7 the eligible partnerships to provide training and relevant 

8 job skills to small business owners or operators for the 

9 purpose of facilitating small business development in the 

10 communities served by the eligible partnerships. 

11 ‘‘(b) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—In 

12 this section the term ‘eligible partnership’ means a part13 nership between or among an institution of higher edu14 cation and 1 or more entities that the Secretary, in con15 sultation with the Administrator of the Small Business 

16 Administration, identifies as facilitating small business de17 velopment, which may include— 

18 ‘‘(1) a community development financial institu19 tion; 

20 ‘‘(2) a small business development center; or 

21 ‘‘(3) a microenterprise lending institution. 

22 ‘‘(c) AWARD BASIS.—The Secretary shall award 

23 grants under this section on the basis of— 

24 ‘‘(1) the ability of an eligible partnership to fa25 cilitate small business development; and 
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1 ‘‘(2)(A) the ability of an eligible partnership to 

2 serve a rural community; 

3 ‘‘(B) the ability of an eligible partnership to 

4 serve a low-income population; or 

5 ‘‘(C) other criteria developed by the Secretary 

6 in consultation with the Administrator of the Small 

7 Business Administration. 

8 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—Of the funds appropriated under 

9 section 378 for this part for a fiscal year, the Secretary 

10 is authorized to use not more than $15,000,000 of such 

11 funds to carry out this section. 

12 ‘‘Subpart 3—Administrative Provisions 

13 ‘‘SEC. 378. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

14 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

15 this part $65,000,000 for fiscal year 2005 and such sums 

16 as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal 

17 years.’’. 

18 SEC. 5. LEAP APPLICATIONS. 

19 Section 415C of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

20 (20 U.S.C. 1070c–2) is amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting after the first 

22 sentence the following: ‘‘A State agency may submit 

23 an application under this section in partnership with 

24 a philanthropic organization within the State, a pub25 lic or private degree granting institution of higher 
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1 education within the State, or a combination of such 

2 organizations or institutions.’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (b)(10), by inserting ‘‘, from 

4 philanthropic, institutional, or private funds, or from 

5 a combination of such sources’’ before the period. 

6 SEC. 6. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT LOAN PROGRAM. 

7 Part B of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 

8 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1071 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

9 after section 428K (20 U.S.C. 1078–11) the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 428L. HIGH-GROWTH OCCUPATION OR INDUSTRY 

11 WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT STUDENT 

12 LOANS. 

13 ‘‘(a) LOAN PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary 

14 shall carry out a loan program under which eligible stu15 dents may receive a loan of not more than $2,000 for each 

16 of the first 2 years of the eligible students’ undergraduate 

17 program of study in the same manner as the eligible stu18 dents receive loans under this part and part D. 

19 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDU21 CATION.—The term ‘eligible institution of higher 

22 education’ means an institution of higher education 

23 that offers undergraduate academic programs or un24 dergraduate programs of training in a subject identi25 fied under subsection (d)(1) by the State board of 
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1 the State where the institution of higher education 

2 is located. 

3 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE STUDENT.—The term ‘eligible 

4 student’ means an undergraduate student who— 

5 ‘‘(A) is otherwise eligible for a loan under 

6 this part or part D; 

7 ‘‘(B) enters into an agreement with the eli8 gible institution of higher education where the 

9 student is or will be in attendance, under which 

10 the student agrees to pursue an undergraduate 

11 academic program or undergraduate program of 

12 training that trains the student for employment 

13 in a high-growth occupation or industry identi14 fied under subsection (d)(1); 

15 ‘‘(C) is age 18 or older; and 

16 ‘‘(D) has an expected family contribution 

17 (calculated under part F) equal to or less than 

18 zero. 

19 ‘‘(3) STATE BOARD; LOCAL BOARD.—The terms 

20 ‘State board’ and ‘local board’ have the meanings 

21 given such terms in section 101 of the Workforce In22 vestment Act of 1998. 

23 ‘‘(c) LIMITS ON LOAN AMOUNTS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) ANNUAL LOAN LIMITS.—The total aggre25 gate amount of loans made to an eligible student 
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1 under this part (including this section) and part D 

2 for each of the first and second years of the eligible 

3 student’s program of study at an eligible institution 

4 of higher education, or their equivalent (as deter5 mined by the Secretary), that may be covered by Fed6 eral loan insurance may not exceed $4,625 for each 

7 such year, notwithstanding sections 425 and 428. 

8 ‘‘(2) AGGREGATE LIMITS.—The Secretary shall 

9 include the amount of any loans received by an eligi10 ble student under this section in calculating the eli11 gible student’s aggregate loan limits under sections 

12 425(a)(2) and 428(b)(1)(B). 

13 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF OTHER FUNDS.—An eli14 gible student who receives the maximum loan 

15 amount allowed under this section remains eligible 

16 for any other program for which the eligible student 

17 qualifies under this Act. 

18 ‘‘(d) IDENTIFICATION OF HIGH-GROWTH OCCUPA19 TIONS OR INDUSTRIES.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The State board, in con21 sultation with the local boards and the State entity 

22 or agency responsible for licensing institutions of 

23 higher education, shall identify high growth occupa24 tions or industries in accordance with paragraph (2). 
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1 ‘‘(2) TIMING.—The State board shall review 

2 and update the identification required under para3 graph (1) each time the State board is required to 

4 submit or resubmit a State plan under section 112 

5 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. 

6 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE.—A student who has com7 pleted 1 year of a 2-year undergraduate academic 

8 program or undergraduate program of training in a 

9 subject which was previously identified as prepara10 tion for a high-growth occupation or industry but, 

11 after the review under paragraph (2), is no longer 

12 so identified, shall be eligible to receive a loan under 

13 this section for the student’s second year of such 

14 program of study if the student— 

15 ‘‘(A) qualified as an eligible student, as de16 fined in subsection (b)(2), and received a loan 

17 under this section, for the first year of such 

18 program of study; and 

19 ‘‘(B) meets the qualifications of subpara20 graphs (A), (C), and (D) of subsection (b)(2). 

21 ‘‘(e) FUNDS FOR ADMINISTRATION.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—From funds appropriated 

23 under subsection (f), the Secretary shall make avail24 able to each eligible institution of higher education 

25 serving an eligible student with a loan made under 
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1 this section not more than the amount determined 

2 under paragraph (2). 

3 ‘‘(2) AMOUNT.—The amount referred to in 

4 paragraph (1) for each eligible institution of higher 

5 education serving an eligible student with a loan 

6 made under this section is 2 percent of the total 

7 amount of all loans made under this section to eligi8 ble students at the eligible institution of higher edu9 cation, or $100,000, whichever is less. 

10 ‘‘(3) USES.—The funds made available under 

11 paragraph (1) may be used for the following pur12 poses: 

13 ‘‘(A) OFFICE.—To create an office of busi14 ness and workforce partnerships at the eligible 

15 institution of higher education to provide staff 

16 support for building relationships between the 

17 eligible institution of higher education and local 

18 businesses. 

19 ‘‘(B) ANNUAL REPORT.—To provide an 

20 annual report to the Secretary regarding the 

21 number of eligible students receiving loans 

22 made under this section who— 

23 ‘‘(i) remain in their academic program 

24 or program of training; 
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1 ‘‘(ii) graduate from their academic 

2 program or program of training; 

3 ‘‘(iii) transfer to another institution of 

4 higher education; or 

5 ‘‘(iv) are placed in unsubsidized em6 ployment not later than 12 months after 

7 graduation. 

8 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

10 such sums as may be necessary for fiscal year 2005 and 

11 each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

12 SEC. 7. REQUIREMENT RELATING TO CREDIT TRANSFER. 

13 (a) PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENTS.—Sec14 tion 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

15 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(24) The institution will not exclude the trans18 fer of credits earned by a student completing courses 

19 or programs at other eligible institutions of higher 

20 education solely on the basis of the agency or asso21 ciation that accredited such other eligible institution 

22 if that agency or association is recognized by the 

23 Secretary pursuant to section 496 to be a reliable 

24 authority as to the quality of the education or train-
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1 ing offered and is currently listed by the Secretary 

2 pursuant to section 101(c).’’. 

3 (b) ACCREDITING AGENCY AND ASSOCIATION RE4 QUIREMENTS.—Section 496(a) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)) is 

5 amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

7 (7); 

8 (2) by striking the period at the end of para9 graph (8) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(9) such agency or association not adopt or 

12 apply standards, policies, or practices that restrict or 

13 deny the transfer of credits earned by a student 

14 completing courses or programs at other eligible in15 stitutions of higher education solely on the basis of 

16 the agency or association that accredited such other 

17 eligible institution if that agency or association is 

18 recognized by the Secretary pursuant to this section 

19 to be a reliable authority as to the quality of the 

20 education or training offered and is currently listed 

21 by the Secretary pursuant to section 101(c).’’. 

22 (c) ACCREDITING AGENCY STANDARDS.—Section 

23 496(a)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

24 1099b(a)(5)) is amended— 
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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara2 graph (I); 

3 (2) by inserting ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at 

4 the end of subparagraph (J); and 

5 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (J) the fol6 lowing new subparagraph: 

7 ‘‘(K) policies for the transfer of credit and 

8 the notification of the public of such policies;’’. 

Æ