PUBLIC Act

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prevent conflicts of interest on accreditation boards. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Protecting Undergraduates with Board Limitations from Influence and Conflicts Act PUBLIC Act 2. Separate and independent defined Section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1099b (1) in subsection (a)(3)(A), by inserting before the semicolon at the end the following: , and any institution described in subsection (b) (2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting: (b) Separate and independent defined For the purpose of subsection (a)(3), the term separate and independent (1) the members of the postsecondary education governing body and any other decision-making body of the accrediting agency or association are not— (A) elected or selected by the board or chief executive officer of any related, associated, or affiliated trade association or membership organization; or (B) individuals (such as executives and owners of an institution) who exercise substantial control over an institution— (i) required to provide the Secretary with satisfactory evidence of its financial responsibility in accordance with paragraph (3)(A) of section 498(c) because the institution fails to meet criteria under paragraphs (1) and (2) of such section; (ii) that the Secretary has placed on a reimbursement system of payment pursuant to section 487(c)(1)(B); (iii) against which the Secretary has initiated an emergency action in accordance with section 487(c)(1)(G); (iv) against which the Secretary has limited, suspended, or terminated the institution’s participation in any program under this title in accordance with section 487(c)(1)(F); or (v) that has been placed on probation, show cause, or had its accreditation withdrawn; (2) among the membership of the board of the accrediting agency or association there shall be 1 public member for each 3 members of the board, with a minimum of 1 such public member, and guidelines are established for such members to avoid conflicts of interest, including guidelines ensuring that each such public member— (A) is selected to serve on such board in the same manner that other board members are selected for such service; (B) has not served on such board as a nonpublic member in the preceding 10 years; (C) is not (or has not been in the preceding 5-year period) a full-time employee of, or a member of the governing board, an owner, or shareholder of, or consultant to, an institution or program that— (i) is accredited or preaccredited by the agency or association; or (ii) has applied for accreditation or preaccreditation from such agency or association; (D) is not a member of any trade association or membership organization related to, affiliated with, or associated with the agency or association or an institution that is accredited by such agency or association; and (E) is not a spouse, parent, child, or sibling of an individual identified in subparagraph (C) or (D); (3) dues to the accrediting agency or association are paid separately from any dues paid to any related, associated, or affiliated trade association or membership organization; and (4) the budget of the accrediting agency or association is developed and determined by the accrediting agency or association without review or resort to consultation with any other entity or organization. .

Summary: Protecting Undergraduates with Board Limitations from Influence and Conflicts Act or the PUBLIC Act This bill revises provisions related to the recognition of an accrediting agency or association to preclude potential conflicts of interest. Specifically, if an accrediting agency or association has a voluntary membership of institutions of higher education (IHE) and has as its primary purpose the accrediting of IHEs, it must be separate and independent of certain trade associations, membership organizations, and IHEs. To be separate and independent, members of the accrediting agency or association may not be (1) chosen by the board or chief executive of any related trade association or membership organization, or (2) individuals who exercise substantial control over specified IHEs. Further, there must be at least one public member for every three members of the board of the accrediting agency or association. Dues paid to the accrediting agency or association must be paid separately from any dues paid to a related trade association or membership organization, and the budget of the accrediting agency must be developed and determined without consulting any other entity or organization.