U.S. Senator Russ Feingold spoke at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in support of S. 1455, the College Scholarship Fraud Prevention Act of 1999. The Abraham-Feingold bill would protect college students by making more information available about scholarship scams and by helping students gain access to legitimate sources of scholarship information. With this legislation we can empower the Justice Department, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Department of Education to prevent companies from scamming college students and their parents and taking their hard-earned money.
Companies scam students by imitating legitimate government agencies and grant-giving foundations.
Some unscrupulous companies falsely guarantee scholarships in exchange for an advance fee. The Abraham-Feingold bill protects students by requiring the Department of Education to create a website of legitimate sources of scholarship information. The bill also improves the FTC's ability to recover the monies owed to students. This legislation is a common sense first step in preventing scholarship fraud.