Stafford loans that may be borrowed 
shall be $50,000; 
‘‘(II) the maximum aggregate 
amount of Federal Direct Stafford 
loans that may be borrowed shall be 
$23,000; and 
‘‘(III) the maximum aggregate 
amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized 
Stafford loans that may be borrowed 
shall be $50,000. 
‘‘(B) STUDENTS IN A QUALIFYING UNDER-
GRADUATE PROGRAM.— 
‘‘(i) 
AGGREGATE
LIMITS.—Notwith-
standing the aggregate limits described in 
subparagraph (A)(ii), a student enrolled in 
a qualifying undergraduate program shall 
be subject to the aggregate limits for profes-
sional students described in paragraph 
(3)(D)(ii). 
‘‘(ii) 
QUALIFYING
UNDERGRADUATE 
PROGRAM DEFINED.—For purposes of this 
subparagraph, the term ‘qualifying under-
graduate program’ means a program of 
study— 
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‘‘(I) for which the total tuition 
and fees (including the required costs 
described in section 124(b)(3)(A)(i)(I)) 
exceeds the aggregate limits for under-
graduate students described in sub-
paragraph (A)(ii); 
‘‘(II) that meets certification re-
quirements of the Federal agency that 
directly regulates the program and 
provides final licensing and credentials 
to students upon completion; and 
‘‘(III) the institution of higher 
education offering such program of 
study notifies the Secretary that the 
program desires to be a qualifying un-
dergraduate program. 
‘‘(C) ALL STUDENTS.—The maximum ag-
gregate amount of loans made, insured, or guar-
anteed under this title to a student shall be 
$200,000.’’. 
(3) INSTITUTIONALLY
DETERMINED
LIMITS.— 
Section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is further amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(5) INSTITUTIONALLY DETERMINED LIMITS.— 
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‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of this subsection, an eligible in-
stitution (at the discretion of a financial aid ad-
ministrator at the institution) may prorate or 
limit the amount of a loan any student who is 
enrolled in a program of study for a period of 
instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2024, 
at that institution, may borrow under this part 
for an academic year— 
‘‘(i) if the institution can reasonably 
demonstrate that outstanding amounts owed 
of loans made under this title are or would 
be excessive for students who complete such 
program, based on the most recently avail-
able data from the College Scorecard (or 
successor website of the Department) on— 
‘‘(I) the median of the value- 
added earnings of students who com-
plete such program; and 
‘‘(II) the median debt owed, and 
the repayment rate, on loans made 
under this part, of such students; 
‘‘(ii) in a case in which the student is 
enrolled on a less than full-time basis or the 
student is enrolled for less than the period 
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of enrollment to which the annual loan 
limit applies under this subsection, based 
on the student’s enrollment status; or 
‘‘(iii) based on the year of the program 
for which the student is seeking such loan. 
‘‘(B) APPLICATION
TO
ALL
STUDENTS.— 
Any proration or limiting of loan amounts 
under subparagraph (A) shall be applied in the 
same manner to all students enrolled in a pro-
gram of study. 
‘‘(C) INCREASES
FOR
INDIVIDUAL
STU-
DENTS.—Upon the request of a student whose 
loan amount for an academic year has been pro-
rated or limited under subparagraph (A), an eli-
gible institution (at the discretion of the finan-
cial aid administrator at the institution) may 
increase such loan amount to an amount not ex-
ceeding the annual loan amount applicable to 
such student under this paragraph for such aca-
demic year.’’. 
(b) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY TO MAKE FEDERAL 
DIRECT PLUS LOANS TO ANY STUDENT OR PARENT BOR-
ROWER.—Section 455(a) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)) is amended by adding at the 
end the following: 
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‘‘(6) TERMINATION
OF
AUTHORITY
TO
MAKE 
FEDERAL
DIRECT
PLUS
LOANS.—Notwithstanding 
any provision of this part or part B, except as pro-
vided in paragraph (3)(E), for any period of instruc-
tion beginning on or after July 1, 2025, no Federal 
Direct PLUS loans may be made to any parent bor-
rower or graduate or professional student borrower.’’. 
SEC. 222. LOAN REPAYMENT. 
(a) REPAYMENT PLANS.—Section 455(d) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(d)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)(D) by inserting ‘‘(includ-
ing a repayment assistance plan under section 
455(e)(9))’’ after ‘‘an income contingent repayment 
plan’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6) REPAYMENT PLANS FOR LOANS MADE ON OR 
AFTER JULY 1, 2024.— 
‘‘(A) DESIGN
AND
SELECTION.—Notwith-
standing paragraph (1), beginning on July 1, 
2024, the Secretary shall offer a borrower of a 
loan made under this part on or after July 1, 
2024, two plans for repayment of such loan, in-
cluding principal and interest on the loan. The 
borrower shall be entitled to accelerate, without 
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‘‘(ii) carry out or modify a repayment 
plan for any loan made under this part on 
or after July 1, 2024, that is not described 
in such clause (i) or (ii).’’. 
(b) REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE PLAN.—Section 455(e) of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(e)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(9) REPAYMENT ASSISTANCE PLAN.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of this Act, beginning on July 1, 
2024, the Secretary shall carry out a repayment 
assistance program that shall have the terms and 
conditions of an income-contingent repayment 
plan described in paragraphs (1) through (8), 
except that— 
‘‘(i) a borrower of any loan made 
under this part (other than an excepted 
PLUS loan or excepted consolidation loan), 
may elect to have the borrower’s aggregate 
monthly payment for all such loans not ex-
ceed the applicable monthly payment for the 
borrower, except that a borrower may not be 
precluded from repaying an amount that 
exceeds such applicable monthly payment 
for any month; 
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‘‘(ii) the Secretary shall apply the bor-
rower’s monthly payment under this para-
graph first toward interest due on such a 
loan, next toward any fees due on the loan, 
and then toward the principal of the loan; 
‘‘(iii) any principal due and not paid 
under clause (ii) shall be deferred; 
‘‘(iv) the amount of time the borrower 
makes monthly payments under clause (i) 
may exceed 10 years; 
‘‘(v) notwithstanding paragraph (7), 
the Secretary shall repay or cancel any out-
standing balance of principal and interest 
due on all loans made under this part 
(other than excepted PLUS loans or ex-
cepted consolidation loans) to a borrower— 
‘‘(I) who, at any time, elected to 
participate in a repayment assistance 
plan under clause (i); 
‘‘(II) whose final monthly pay-
ment for such loans prior to the loan 
cancellation under this clause was 
made under such repayment assistance 
plan; and 
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‘‘(III) who has repaid on such 
loans (pursuant to a repayment assist-
ance plan under clause (i), a standard 
repayment 
plan 
under 
subsection 
(d)(6)(A)(i), or a combination of any 
such plan or any of the repayment 
plans listed in clause (ii), (iii), (iv), or 
(v) of paragraph (7)(B), or, in the case 
of a consolidation loan, pursuant to a 
repayment schedule described item 
(aa)(BB) of this subclause) an amount 
that is equal to— 
‘‘(aa)(AA) the total amount 
of principal and interest that the 
borrower would have repaid under 
a standard repayment plan under 
paragraph (1)(A) or (6)(A)(i) of 
subsection (d), based on a 10-year 
repayment period, when the bor-
rower entered repayment on such 
loans; or 
‘‘(BB) in the case of a Fed-
eral Direct Consolidation Loan, 
the total amount of principal and 
interest that the borrower would 
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have repaid under the repayment 
schedule established for the loan 
under section 428C(c)(2) on the 
date on which such loan was 
made; plus 
‘‘(bb) an amount equal to the 
amount of any unpaid interest 
that has accrued, but was not in-
cluded in the calculation of the 
total amount of principal and in-
terest that would have been repaid 
under the standard repayment 
plan or schedule described in item 
(aa)— 
‘‘(AA) 
during 
any 
deferment period described in 
clause (i) or (ii) of subsection 
(f)(2)(A); or 
‘‘(BB) during any for-
bearance period while serving 
in a medical or dental in-
ternship or residency pro-
gram as described in section 
428(c)(3)(A)(i)(I); and 
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‘‘(vi) a borrower who is repaying a 
loan pursuant to a repayment assistance 
plan under clause (i) may elect, at any 
time, to terminate repayment pursuant to 
such plan and repay such loan under the 
standard repayment plan under subsection 
(d)(6)(A)(i). 
‘‘(B) REPAYMENT
ASSISTANCE
FOR
DIS-
TRESSED BORROWERS.— 
‘‘(i) INTEREST
SUBSIDY.—For each 
month for which a borrower’s aggregate 
monthly payment under this paragraph is 
insufficient to pay the total amount of in-
terest that accrues on a loan for the month, 
the amount of interest accrued and not paid 
for the month shall be subtracted from the 
total amount of interest due on such loan 
for the month. 
‘‘(ii) PRINCIPAL
SUBSIDY.—For each 
month for which a borrower’s aggregate 
monthly payment under this paragraph re-
pays an amount due on an individual loan 
that is less than twice the total amount of 
interest that accrues on such loan for the 
month, the amount of the total principal 
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due on such loan shall be reduced by an 
amount equal to half of the monthly pay-
ment under this paragraph on such loan for 
the month. 
‘‘(C) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph: 
‘‘(i) ADJUSTED
GROSS
INCOME.—The 
term ‘adjusted gross income’ has the mean-
ing given the term in section 62 of the In-
ternal Revenue Code of 1986. 
‘‘(ii) 
APPLICABLE
MONTHLY
PAY-
MENT.—The term ‘applicable monthly pay-
ment’ means, when used with respect to a 
borrower, the amount obtained by dividing 
by 12, 10 percent of the result obtained by 
calculating, on at least an annual basis, the 
amount by which— 
‘‘(I) the adjusted gross income of 
the borrower or, if the borrower is mar-
ried and files a Federal income tax re-
turn jointly with or separately from 
the borrower’s spouse, the adjusted 
gross income of the borrower and the 
borrower’s spouse; exceeds 
‘‘(II) 150 percent of the poverty 
line applicable to the borrower’s family 
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size as determined under section 673(2) 
of the Community Services Block 
Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)). 
‘‘(iii) 
EXCEPTED
CONSOLIDATION 
LOAN.—The term ‘excepted Consolidation 
Loan’ means a Federal Direct Consolida-
tion Loan, if the proceeds of such loan were 
used to the discharge the liability on— 
‘‘(I) an excepted PLUS loan; or 
‘‘(II) a Federal Direct Consolida-
tion loan, if the proceeds of such loan 
were used to discharge the liability on 
an excepted PLUS loan. 
‘‘(iv) EXCEPTED
PLUS
LOAN.—The 
term ‘excepted PLUS Loan’ has the mean-
ing given the term in section 493C.’’. 
SEC. 223. LOAN REHABILITATION. 
Section 428F(a)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–6(a)(5)) is amended by striking ‘‘one 
time’’ and inserting ‘‘two times’’. 
SEC. 224. INTEREST CAPITALIZATION. 
(a) FEDERAL PLUS LOANS.—Section 428B(d)(2) of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–2(d)(2)) 
is amended to read as follows: 
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‘‘(2) NO CAPITALIZATION OF INTEREST.—Interest 
on loans made under this section for which payments 
of principal are deferred pursuant to paragraph (1) 
shall be paid monthly or quarterly, if agreed upon by 
the borrower and the lender.’’. 
(b) FEDERAL CONSOLIDATION LOANS DEFERRALS.— 
Section 428C(b)(4)(C)(ii)(III) of the Higher Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–3(b)(4)(C)(III)) is amended by 
striking ‘‘or capitalized,’’. 
(c) LOAN LIMITS
FOR UNSUBSIDIZED STAFFORD 
LOANS.—Section 428H(d)(5) of the Higher Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–8(d)(5)) is amended by inserting 
‘‘before the date of enactment of the College Cost Reduction 
Act’’ after ‘‘Interest capitalized’’. 
(d) UNSUBSIDIZED STAFFORD LOANS FOR MIDDLE IN-
COME BORROWERS.—Section 428H(e)(2) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–8(e)(2)) is amend-
ed— 
(1) in subparagraph (A), in the matter before 
clause (i), by striking ‘‘, if agreed upon by the bor-
rower and the lender’’ and all that follows through 
clause (ii)(IV) and inserting ‘‘be paid monthly or 
quarterly, if agreed upon by the borrower and the 
lender.’’; 
(2) by striking subparagraph (B); and 
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(3) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as sub-
paragraph (B). 
(e) 
INCOME
CONTINGENT
REPAYMENT.—Section 
455(e)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1087e(e)(5)) is amended by striking the last sentence and 
inserting ‘‘No interest may be capitalized on such loan on 
or after the date of the enactment of the College Cost Reduc-
tion Act, and the Secretary shall promulgate regulations 
with respect to the treatment of accrued interest that is not 
capitalized’’. 
(f) EFFECT OF DEFERMENT ON PRINCIPAL AND INTER-
EST.—Section 455(f)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087e(f)(1)(B)) is amended by striking 
‘‘capitalized or’’. 
(g) INCOME-BASED REPAYMENT PROGRAM.—Section 
493C(b)(3)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1098e(b)(3)(B)) is amended by inserting ‘‘shall ac-
crue but not’’ before ‘‘be capitalized’’. 
SEC. 225. ORIGINATION FEES. 
(a) REPEAL OF ORIGINATION FEES.—Subsection (c) 
of section 455 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1087e(c)) is repealed. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by sub-
section (a) shall apply with respect to loans made under 
part D of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
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115 
U.S.C. 1087a et seq.) for which the first disbursement of 
principal is made, or, in the case of a Federal Direct Con-
solidation Loan, the application is received, on or after 
July 1, 2024. 
TITLE III—ACCOUNTABILITY 
AND STUDENT SUCCESS 
PART A—ACCOUNTABILITY 
Subpart 1—Department of Education 
SEC. 301. AGREEMENTS WITH INSTITUTIONS. 
Section 454 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1087d) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon; 
(B) by redesignating paragraph (6) as 
paragraph (7); and 
(C) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol-
lowing new paragraph: 
‘‘(6) provide annual reimbursements to the Sec-
retary in accordance with the requirements under 
subsection (d); and’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(d) REIMBURSEMENT REQUIREMENTS.— 
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‘‘(1) ANNUAL
REIMBURSEMENTS
REQUIRED.— 
Beginning in award year 2024–2025, each institution 
of higher education participating in the direct student 
loan program under this part shall, for qualifying 
student loans, remit to the Secretary, at such time as 
the Secretary may specify, an annual reimbursement 
for each student cohort of the institution, based on the 
non-repayment balance of such cohort and calculated 
in accordance with paragraph (3). 
‘‘(2) STUDENT COHORTS.— 
‘‘(A) COHORTS
ESTABLISHED.—For each 
institution of higher education, the Secretary 
shall establish student cohorts, beginning with 
award year 2023–2024, as follows: 
‘‘(i) COMPLETING STUDENT COHORT.— 
For each program of study at such institu-
tion, a student cohort comprised of all stu-
dents who received Federal financial assist-
ance under this title and who completed 
such program during such award year. 
‘‘(ii) 
UNDERGRADUATE
NON-COM-
PLETING STUDENT COHORT.—For such in-
stitution, a student cohort comprised of all 
students who received Federal financial as-
sistance under this title, who were enrolled 
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in the institution during the previous 
award year in a program of study leading 
to an undergraduate credential, and who at 
the time the cohort is established— 
‘‘(I) have not completed such pro-
gram of study; and 
‘‘(II) are not enrolled at the insti-
tution in any program of study lead-
ing to an undergraduate credential. 
‘‘(iii) 
GRADUATE
NON-COMPLETING 
STUDENT
COHORT.—For each program of 
study leading to a graduate credential at 
such institution, a student cohort comprised 
of all students who received Federal finan-
cial assistance under this title, who were en-
rolled in such program during the previous 
award year, and who at the time the cohort 
is established— 
‘‘(I) have not completed such pro-
gram of study; and 
‘‘(II) are not enrolled in such pro-
gram. 
‘‘(B) QUALIFYING STUDENT LOAN.—For the 
purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualifying 
student loan’ means a Federal Direct loan, in-
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118 
cluding a Federal Direct Consolidation loan, 
made under this part that— 
‘‘(i) was made to a student included in 
a student cohort of an institution; 
‘‘(ii) except in the case of a loan de-
scribed in clause (i) or (ii) of subparagraph 
(C), is not included in any other student co-
hort of any institution of higher education; 
‘‘(iii) is not in— 
‘‘(I) a medical or dental intern-
ship or residency forbearance described 
in section 428(c)(3)(A)(i)(I), section 
428B(a)(2), section 428H(a), or section 
685.205(a)(3) of title 34, Code of Fed-
eral Regulations; 
‘‘(II) 
a 
graduate 
fellowship 
deferment 
described 
in 
section 
455(f)(2)(A)(ii) 
‘‘(III) rehabilitation training pro-
gram deferment described under section 
455(f)(2)(A)(ii); 
‘‘(IV) an in-school deferment de-
scribed under section 455(f)(2)(A)(i); 
‘‘(V) a cancer deferment described 
under section 455(f)(3); 
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‘‘(VI) a military service deferment 
described under section 455(f)(2)(C); or 
‘‘(VII) a post-active duty student 
deferment 
described 
under 
section 
493D; and 
‘‘(iv) is not in default. 
‘‘(C) SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES.— 
‘‘(i) MULTIPLE CREDENTIALS.—In the 
case of a student who completes two or more 
programs of study during the same award 
year, each qualifying student loan of the 
student shall be included in the student co-
hort for each of such program of study for 
such award year. 
‘‘(ii) TREATMENT
OF
CERTAIN
CON-
SOLIDATION LOANS.—A Federal Direct Con-
solidation loan made under this title shall 
not be considered a qualifying student loan 
for a student cohort for an award year if all 
of the loans included in such consolidation 
loan are attributable to another student co-
hort. 
‘‘(iii) CONSOLIDATION
AFTER
INCLU-
SION IN A STUDENT COHORT.—If a quali-
fying student loan is consolidated into a 
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‘‘(i) 
COMPLETING
STUDENT
CO-
HORTS.—The reimbursement percentage of 
a completing student cohort shall be equal 
to the percentage determined by— 
‘‘(I) subtracting from one the 
quotient of— 
‘‘(aa) 
the 
median 
value- 
added earnings of students who 
completed such program of study 
in the most recent award year for 
which such earnings data is avail-
able; divided by 
‘‘(bb) the median total price 
charged to students included in 
such cohort; and 
‘‘(II) multiplying the difference 
determined under subclause (I) by 100. 
‘‘(ii) SPECIAL
CIRCUMSTANCES
FOR 
COMPLETING STUDENT COHORTS.— 
‘‘(I) HIGH-RISK
COHORTS.—Not-
withstanding clause (i), if the median 
value-added earnings of a completing 
student cohort under clause (i)(I)(aa) 
is negative, the reimbursement percent-
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122 
age of the student cohort shall be 100 
percent. 
‘‘(II) LOW-RISK
COHORTS.—Not-
withstanding clause (i), if the median 
value-added earnings of a completing 
student cohort under clause (i)(I)(aa) 
exceeds the median total price of such 
cohort under clause (i)(I)(bb), the re-
imbursement percentage of the student 
cohort shall be 0 percent. 
‘‘(iii) NON-COMPLETING STUDENT CO-
HORTS.—The reimbursement percentage of 
a non-completing student cohort shall be de-
termined based on the most recent data 
available in the award year in which the 
cohort is established, and— 
‘‘(I) for an undergraduate non- 
completing student cohort, shall be 
equal to the percentage of under-
graduate students who received Federal 
financial assistance under this title at 
such institution who— 
‘‘(aa) did not complete an 
undergraduate program of study 
at the institution within 150 per-
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cent of the program length of such 
program; or 
‘‘(bb) only in the case of a 
two-year 
institution, 
did 
not, 
within 6 years after first enrolling 
at the two-year institution, com-
plete a program of study at a 
four-year institution for which a 
bachelor’s degree (or substantially 
similar credential) is awarded; 
and 
‘‘(II) for a graduate non-com-
pleting student cohort, shall be equal to 
the percentage of students who received 
Federal financial assistance under this 
title at the institution for the applica-
ble graduate program of study and 
who did not complete such program of 
study within 150 percent of the pro-
gram length. 
‘‘(C) NON-REPAYMENT LOAN BALANCE.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—For each award 
year, the Secretary shall determine the non- 
repayment loan balance for such award 
year for each student cohort of an institu-
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tion of higher education by calculating the 
sum of— 
‘‘(I) for loans in such cohort, the 
difference between the total amount of 
payments due from all borrowers on 
such loans during such year and the 
total amount of payments made by all 
such borrowers on such loans during 
such year; plus 
‘‘(II) the total amount of interest 
waived, paid, or otherwise not charged 
by the Secretary during such year 
under an income-based repayment 
plan described in section 493C or an 
income-contingent repayment plan de-
scribed in section 455(e); plus 
‘‘(III) the total amount of prin-
cipal and interest forgiven, cancelled, 
waived, discharged, repaid, or other-
wise reduced by the Secretary under 
any act during such year that is not 
included in subclause (II) and was not 
discharged or forgiven under section 
437(a) or 428J. 
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‘‘(ii) SPECIAL
CIRCUMSTANCES.—For 
the purpose of calculating the non-repay-
ment loan balance of student cohorts under 
this paragraph, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(I) for each qualifying student 
loan in a student cohort that is in-
cluded in another student cohort be-
cause the student who borrowed such 
loan completed two or more programs 
of study during the same award year, 
the sum of the amounts described in 
subclauses (I) through (III) of clause 
(i) for such qualifying student loan 
shall be divided equally among each of 
the student cohorts in which such loan 
is included; and 
‘‘(II) for each consolidation loan 
in a student cohort— 
‘‘(aa) determine the percent-
age of the outstanding principal 
balance of the consolidation loan 
attributable to such student co-
hort— 
‘‘(AA) at the time of 
that loan was included in 
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such cohort, in the case of a 
loan consolidated before in-
clusion in such cohort; or 
‘‘(BB) at the time of 
consolidation, in the case of 
a loan consolidated after in-
clusion in such cohort; and 
‘‘(bb) include in the calcula-
tions under clause (i) for such stu-
dent cohort only the percentage of 
the sum of the amounts described 
in subclauses (I) through (III) of 
clause (i) for the consolidation 
loan for such year that is equal to 
the percentage of the consolidation 
loan determined under item (aa). 
‘‘(D) TOTAL PRICE.—With respect to a stu-
dent who received Federal financial assistance 
under this title and who completes a program of 
study, the term ‘total price’ means the total 
amount, before Federal financial assistance 
under this title was applied, a student was re-
quired to pay to complete the program of study. 
A student’s total price shall be calculated by the 
Secretary as the difference between— 
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‘‘(i) the total amount of tuition and 
fees (including the required costs described 
in section 124(b)(3)(A)(i)(I)) that were 
charged to such student before the applica-
tion of any Federal financial assistance 
provided under this title; minus 
‘‘(ii) the total amount of grants and 
scholarships described in section 480(i) 
awarded to such student from non-Federal 
sources for such program of study. 
‘‘(4) NOTIFICATION
AND
REMITTANCE.—Begin-
ning with the first award year for which reimburse-
ments are required under this subsection, and for each 
succeeding award year, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) notify each institution of higher edu-
cation of the amounts and due dates of each an-
nual reimbursement calculated under paragraph 
(3) for each student cohort of the institution 
within 30 days of calculating such amounts; and 
‘‘(B) require the institution to remit such 
payments within 90 days of such notification. 
‘‘(5) PENALTY FOR LATE PAYMENTS.— 
‘‘(A) THREE-MONTH DELINQUENCY.—If an 
institution fails to remit to the Secretary a reim-
bursement for a student cohort as required under 
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this subsection within 90 days of receiving noti-
fication from the Secretary in accordance with 
paragraph (4), the institution shall pay to the 
Secretary, in addition to such reimbursement, 
interest on such reimbursement payment, at a 
rate that is the average rate applicable to the 
loans in such student cohort. 
‘‘(B) TWELVE-MONTH DELINQUENCY.—If an 
institution fails to remit to the Secretary a reim-
bursement for a student cohort as required under 
this subsection, plus interest owed in under sub-
paragraph (A), within 12 months of receiving 
notification from the Secretary in accordance 
with paragraph (4), the institution shall be in-
eligible to make direct loans to any student en-
rolled in the program of study for which the in-
stitution has failed to make the reimbursement 
payments until such payment is made. 
‘‘(C) EIGHTEEN-MONTH DELINQUENCY.—If 
an institution fails to remit to the Secretary a 
reimbursement for a student cohort as required 
under this subsection, plus interest owed under 
subparagraph (A), within 18 months of receiving 
notification from the Secretary in accordance 
with paragraph (4), the institution shall be in-
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eligible to make direct loans or award Federal 
Pell Grants under section 401 to any student en-
rolled in the institution until such payment is 
made. 
‘‘(D) TWO-YEAR DELINQUENCY.—If an in-
stitution fails to remit to the Secretary a reim-
bursement for a student cohort as required under 
this subsection, plus interest owed under sub-
paragraph (A), within 2 years of receiving noti-
fication from the Secretary in accordance with 
paragraph (4), the institution shall be ineligible 
to participate in any program under this title 
for a period of not less than 10 years. 
‘‘(6) RELIEF
FOR
VOLUNTARY
CESSATION
OF 
FEDERAL
DIRECT
LOANS
FOR
A
PROGRAM
OF 
STUDY.—The Secretary shall, upon the request of an 
institution that voluntarily ceases to make Federal 
direct loans to students enrolled in a specific program 
of study, reduce the amount of the annual reimburse-
ment owed by the institution for each student cohort 
associated with such program by 50 percent if the in-
stitution assures the Secretary that the institution 
will not make Federal direct loans to any student en-
rolled in such program of study (or any substantially 
similar program of study) for a period of not less 
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than 10 award years, beginning with the first award 
year that begins after the date on which the Secretary 
reduces such reimbursement. 
‘‘(7) RESERVATION
OF
FUNDS
FOR
PROMISE 
GRANTS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, the Secretary shall reserve the funds remitted to 
the Secretary as reimbursements in accordance with 
this subsection, and such funds shall be made avail-
able to the Secretary only for the purpose of awarding 
PROMISE grants in accordance with subpart 4 of 
part A of this title.’’. 
SEC. 302. REGULATORY RELIEF. 
(a) 90/10.— 
(1) REGULATION REPEALED.—Section 668.28 of 
title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to the 
90/10 rule), as added or amended by the final regula-
tions published by the Department of Education in 
the Federal Register on October 28, 2022 (87 Fed. 
Reg. 65426 et seq.), is repealed and will have no force 
or effect. 
(2) AMENDMENTS.—Section 487 of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094) is amend-
ed— 
(A) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph 
(24); 
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(B) by striking subsection (d); and 
(C) by redesignating subsections (e) through 
(j) as subsections (d) through (i), respectively. 
(b) FINANCIAL VALUE TRANSPARENCY AND GAINFUL 
EMPLOYMENT.— 
(1) REGULATION
REPEALED.—Sections 600.10, 
600.21, 668.2, 668.13, 668.43, 668.91, 668.402 
through 668.409 (excluding section 668.408), and 
668.601 through 668.606 of title 34, Code of Federal 
Regulations (relating to financial value transparency 
and gainful employment), as added or amended by 
the final regulations published by the Department of 
Education in the Federal Register on October 10, 
2023 (88 FR 70004 et seq.), are repealed and will 
have no force or effect. 
(2) PROHIBITION.—The Secretary of Education 
shall not, on or after the date of enactment of this 
Act, promulgate or enforce any regulation or rule 
with respect to the definition or application of the 
term ‘‘gainful employment’’ for any purpose under 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et 
seq.). 
(c) CHANGES IN OWNERSHIP.— 
(1) REGULATION
REPEALED.—Sections 600.2, 
600.4, 600.20, 600.21, and 600.31 of title 34, Code of 
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Federal Regulations (relating to changes in owner-
ship), as added or amended by the final regulations 
published by the Department of Education in the 
Federal Register on October 28, 2022 (87 Fed. Reg. 
65426 et seq.), are repealed and will have no force or 
effect. 
(2) AMENDMENTS.—Section 498(i) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099c(i)) is 
amended— 
(A) in the subsection heading, by inserting 
‘‘AND
PROPOSED
CHANGES
OF
OWNERSHIP’’ 
after ‘‘OWNERSHIP’’; 
(B) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘(1) An eligible institu-
tion’’, and inserting the following: ‘‘(1)(A) 
An eligible institution’’; 
(ii) by striking ‘‘the requirements of 
section 102 (other than the requirements in 
subsections (b)(5) and (c)(3))’’ and insert-
ing ‘‘the applicable requirements of section 
102 or 103(13)’’ 
(iii) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(B)(i) Prior to a change in ownership resulting in 
a change of control, an institution may seek a 
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pretransaction determination about whether the institution 
will meet the applicable requirements of section 102 or 
103(13) and this section after such proposed change in own-
ership by submitting to the Secretary a materially complete 
pretransaction review application. 
‘‘(ii) In reviewing applications submitted under clause 
(i), the Secretary shall only provide a comprehensive review 
of each such application, and may not provide an abbre-
viated or partial review. 
‘‘(iii) If an institution submits a materially complete 
pretransaction review application at least 90 days prior to 
the transaction and the Secretary approves the application, 
the subsequent change in ownership application shall also 
be approved and the institution shall be certified as meeting 
the requirements for such transaction, provided that the in-
stitution— 
‘‘(I) complies with the applicable terms of this 
section; and 
‘‘(II) the transaction resulting in a change of 
control does not differ materially in its terms from 
the transaction proposed in the pretransaction review 
application.’’; 
(C) in paragraph (2)— 
(i) in subparagraph (E), by striking 
‘‘or’’ at the end; 
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(ii) in subparagraph (F), by striking 
the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 
and 
(iii) by adding the following at the 
end: 
‘‘(G) in the case of a proprietary institution of 
higher education, a conversion to a public or other 
nonprofit institution of higher education.’’; 
(D) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(5)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), when any insti-
tution submits an application for a change in ownership 
resulting in a change in control under this section or sub-
mits a pretransaction review application under paragraph 
(1)(B) (other than in the case of a conversion transaction), 
the institution shall be required to pay to the Secretary an 
administrative fee that shall— 
‘‘(i) be in an amount equal to 0.15 percent of the 
total institutional revenue derived from this title by 
such institution for the most fiscal year for which 
data is available; and 
‘‘(ii) be used exclusively for expenses related to 
the processing of such application, and be available to 
the Secretary without further appropriation, exclu-
sively for expenses related to the processing of such 
approval or application. 
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‘‘(B) In the case of a proprietary institution submit-
ting an application for conversion, or a pretransaction re-
view application for conversion, the institution shall be re-
quired to pay to the Secretary an administrative fee that 
shall— 
‘‘(i) be in an amount equal to 0.30 percent of the 
total institutional revenue derived from this title by 
such institution for the most fiscal year for which 
data is available; and 
‘‘(ii) be used exclusively for expenses related to 
the processing of such application, and of which— 
‘‘(I) 50 percent shall be available to the Sec-
retary without further appropriation, exclusively 
for expenses related to the processing of such ap-
plication; and 
‘‘(II) 50 percent shall be remitted by the 
Secretary to the Commissioner of the Internal 
Revenue, and shall be available, without further 
appropriation, to the Commissioner of Internal 
Revenue exclusively for purposes of determining 
whether the institution seeking such conversion 
or pretransaction review is an institution ex-
empt from tax and is otherwise in compliance 
with applicable requirements of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986. 
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‘‘(C) An institution that pays a fee under subpara-
graph (A) or (B) for a pretransaction application with re-
spect to a proposed transaction shall not be required to pay 
another fee under such subparagraph for a change in owner-
ship application with respect to such transaction. 
‘‘(D) In no case may any fee remitted under subpara-
graph (A) or (B) exceed $120,000 for any transaction (or 
pretransaction) application, nor may the Secretary require 
an institution that has paid a fee under subparagraph (B) 
to pay an additional fee under subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(6)(A) The Secretary shall approve or deny a materi-
ally complete application (including pretransaction reviews 
and conversion applications) submitted under this section 
as soon as practicable and not later than the 90-day period 
beginning on the date of receipt of such an application, ex-
cept that in a case in which the Secretary determines, on 
a nondelegable basis, that good cause exists to not make the 
determination during such 90-day period, the Secretary 
shall notify the institution in writing detailing the reasons 
for a good cause extension. 
‘‘(B) If the Secretary fails to approve or deny a mate-
rially complete application during the period described in 
subparagraph (A) and does not find good cause for exten-
sion, the materially complete application shall be deemed 
approved. 
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‘‘(C) In no case may the Secretary grant a good cause 
extension under this section to an institution for more than 
one month at a time, or for a total of more than more than 
12 months. 
‘‘(D) To ensure timely submission of all relevant docu-
mentation, the Secretary may deny an application if an 
institution does not make a good faith effort to submit to 
the Secretary, in a timely manner— 
‘‘(i) all relevant documentation; or 
‘‘(ii) a materially complete application. 
‘‘(E)(i) Upon approving or denying an application 
under this paragraph, the Secretary shall publish in the 
Federal Register the reasoning for such approval or denial, 
including— 
‘‘(I) a copy of the approval or denial letter 
sent to the institution; and 
‘‘(II) any analysis regarding how the Sec-
retary determined under paragraph 7(A)(iii) 
that a director of the institution was an inter-
ested or disinterested party to the transaction. 
‘‘(ii) The Secretary shall not publish under clause (i) 
any information that is otherwise exempt from disclosure 
under section 552 of title 5, United States Code (relating 
to the Freedom of Information Act), including trade secrets 
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and commercial or financial information that is privileged 
or confidential. 
‘‘(7)(A) In the case of a proprietary institution that 
subsequent to the transaction would be owned and operated 
by an entity (in this paragraph referred to as the ‘buyer’) 
seeking to be recognized as a public or other nonprofit insti-
tution, the buyer shall meet the definition of a nonprofit 
institution under section 103(13) if— 
‘‘(i) the buyer pays no more than fair market 
value for any assets of the proprietary institution; 
‘‘(ii) the buyer pays no more than fair market 
value for any service or lease contracts, including 
such service and lease contracts provided by the entity 
selling the proprietary institution; and 
‘‘(iii) to prevent self-dealing in the case where 
one or more individuals with a substantial ownership 
or controlling interests in the proprietary institution 
will also have substantial or controlling interests in 
the institution seeking to be recognized as a public or 
other nonprofit institution (meaning that one or more 
individuals are on both sides of the transaction), the 
change of control transaction, and any substantial 
asset acquisition, service, or lease agreements with the 
proprietary institution shall be approved by a disin-
terested committee of directors of the entity that seeks 
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to be recognized as a public or other nonprofit insti-
tution. 
‘‘(B) For the purposes of this paragraph, parties to 
the transaction are entitled to a rebuttable presumption 
that the assets, lease contracts, and service contracts that 
are part of the transaction are purchased at fair market 
value if— 
‘‘(i) the acquiring entity pays no more than fair 
market value for such assets, lease contracts, or service 
contracts; and 
‘‘(ii) the value of the assets, lease contracts, or 
service contracts are evaluated by at least one inde-
pendent third-party entity hired by parties on both 
sides of the transaction. 
‘‘(8)(A) An institution that has been approved for con-
version by the Secretary shall be subject to a monitoring 
period for a 5-year period beginning on the day after the 
date of such approval. In conducting the monitoring of the 
institution under this paragraph, the Secretary— 
‘‘(i) shall only conduct monitoring to ensure that 
the institution is in compliance with the requirements 
of section 103(13) and paragraph (7) of this sub-
section; and 
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‘‘(ii) may require the institution to submit reg-
ular reports or conduct audits of such institution re-
lating to such compliance. 
‘‘(B) Each institution that is subject to the monitoring 
period under this paragraph shall remit an annual fee to 
the Secretary— 
‘‘(i) in an amount equal to 0.15 percent of the 
total revenue derived from this title by such institu-
tion for the most recent fiscal year for which data is 
available; and 
‘‘(ii) that shall be exclusively for expenses related 
to monitoring of the institution for the period de-
scribed in subparagraph (A)— 
‘‘(I) of which 50 percent shall be used by the 
Secretary, without further appropriation, exclu-
sively for expenses related to monitoring of the 
institution during such period; and 
‘‘(II) of which 50 percent shall be remitted 
by the Secretary to the Commissioner of Internal 
Revenue, to be available to such Commissioner, 
without further appropriation, exclusively for 
monitoring compliance with the Internal Rev-
enue Code of such institution during such period. 
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‘‘(C) An institution may not be subject to an annual 
fee under subparagraph (B) for monitoring related to a con-
version that exceeds $60,000. 
‘‘(D) If the Secretary determines that an institution 
should be subject to the monitoring under this paragraph 
beyond the 5-year period described in subparagraph (A), 
the Secretary shall provide the reasons justifying an exten-
sion in writing to the institution (and in the Federal Reg-
ister) at least 30 days before the expiration of such period. 
‘‘(E) Any institution that is subject to monitoring 
under this paragraph may seek a waiver to be exempt from 
such monitoring (including the annual fee under subpara-
graph (B)) on an annual basis for any year during the 
monitoring period and the Secretary shall grant such waiv-
er if there is no ongoing contractual or financial relation-
ship between the institution and the former entity or indi-
viduals that previously owned the institution. The Sec-
retary may grant a waiver for more than 1 year in the 
case where the entity that formerly owned the proprietary 
institution has closed or no longer exists and the Secretary 
determines the institution is not at risk of violating the re-
quirements of section 103(13) or paragraph (7) of this sub-
section. 
‘‘(9) Any institution that submits an application for 
conversion shall not promote or market itself, in any man-
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ner, as a public or other nonprofit institution of higher edu-
cation unless— 
‘‘(A) the Secretary has provided final approval 
of the conversion of the institution to a public or 
other nonprofit institution of higher education under 
this section; 
‘‘(B) an accrediting agency or association recog-
nized by the Secretary pursuant to section 496 has 
approved such public or nonprofit status of the insti-
tution; 
‘‘(C) the State has given final approval to the 
institution as a public or nonprofit institution of 
higher education, as applicable; and 
‘‘(D) in the case of an institution seeking non-
profit status, the Commissioner of Internal Revenue 
has approved the institution as tax exempt pursuant 
to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 
‘‘(10) Not later than 270 days after the date of enact-
ment of the College Cost Reduction Act, and periodically 
thereafter, the Secretary shall publish (and update as nec-
essary) in the Federal Register— 
‘‘(A) descriptions of the documents and materials 
the Secretary expects or requires institutions of higher 
education to submit (including any standardized 
forms) as part of any pretransaction application or 
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change in ownership application under this section, 
including a description of what the Secretary con-
siders to be a materially complete application; and 
‘‘(B) after at least a 30-day notice and comment 
period, responses to any public comments received 
with respect to such descriptions or updates to such 
descriptions. 
‘‘(11) In a case in which the Secretary requests a docu-
ment under this section as part of a pretransaction or 
change in ownership application that is not described in 
the Federal Register under paragraph (10), the Secretary 
shall— 
‘‘(A) substantiate, in writing to the institution, 
the reasons why the Secretary is requesting such docu-
ments; and 
‘‘(B) publish such reasons in the Federal Reg-
ister, including whether the Secretary may request 
other institutions that submit applications under this 
section to produce similar documentation. 
‘‘(12)(A) Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, and annually 
thereafter, the Secretary shall submit a report to author-
izing committees, and post such report on a publicly avail-
able website regarding implementation of the amendments 
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made to this section by such Act, including the following 
information: 
‘‘(i) The mean and median length of time taken 
by the Secretary to review applications under this 
section during the preceding 12-month period. 
‘‘(ii) The number of applications approved or de-
nied during the preceding 12-month period. 
‘‘(iii) For any application not processed during 
the 90-day period beginning on the date of receipt of 
the application for which the Secretary found good 
cause under paragraph (6)(A) to extend the deadline 
in which the application shall be processed, a copy of 
the letter sent to the institution explaining why the 
Secretary believed good cause existed for such exten-
sion. 
‘‘(iv) For any application not processed during 
such 90-day period, which was deemed to be auto-
matically approved by the requirements of this section 
under paragraph (6)(B), the name of each institution 
involved and an explanation for why the application 
was not processed in a timely manner. 
‘‘(v) Any legislative suggestions the Secretary 
may have to improve the application or monitoring 
process under this section. 
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‘‘(B) If the Secretary fails to submit a report under 
this paragraph by not later than 90 days after the deadline 
for such submission under subparagraph (A), the Secretary 
may not, for the 12-month period following such failure, 
spend the fees remitted by institutions under this section 
or remit such fees to the Commissioner unless Congress pro-
vides for such use by further appropriation. 
‘‘(13) For the purposes of this subsection, the term 
‘conversion’ means any transaction under which— 
‘‘(A) a proprietary institution is reorganized 
and seeks recognition as a public or other nonprofit 
institution; or 
‘‘(B) the control of a proprietary institution is 
transferred as a result of a sale, donation, or other 
method to an entity that seeks certification under this 
section as a public or other nonprofit institution.’’. 
(3) APPLICATION.—The amendments made by 
this section shall be apply with respect to applica-
tions submitted for change of control or conversion 
submitted on or after January 1, 2023. 
(4) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 
shall submit to the Committee on Education and 
Labor of the House of Representatives and the Com-
mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 
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the Senate, a report on the implementation of the 
amendments made by this subsection, including rec-
ommendations to improve— 
(A) the application process under section 
498(i) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1099c(i)), as amended by paragraph (2), 
for institutions of higher education seeking a 
change in ownership resulting in a change in 
control; or 
(B) the monitoring process under such sec-
tion for institutions of higher education that 
have recently converted from being recognized as 
a proprietary institution to a public or other 
nonprofit institution. 
(d) FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY.— 
(1) REGULATION
REPEALED.—Sections 668.15, 
668.23, 668.171, and 668.174 through 668.177 of title 
34, Code of Federal Regulations (relating to financial 
responsibility), as added or amended by the final reg-
ulations published by the Department of Education in 
the Federal Register on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. 
Reg. 74568 et seq.) are repealed and will have no 
force or effect. 
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(2) AMENDMENTS.—Section 498(c) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 6 U.S.C. 1099c(c)) is 
amended— 
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (3), (4), 
(5), and (6) as paragraphs (4), (5), (6), and (7), 
respectively; 
(B) in paragraph (2)— 
(i) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1), if’’ and 
inserting ‘‘paragraph (1), the Secretary 
shall prescribe criteria regarding ratios that 
aid in the determination financial responsi-
bility. Such ratios shall be first issued in 
draft form to the institution to allow for 
adequate review, consisting of an appeals 
process, by such institutions of higher edu-
cation. If’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘prescribed by the Sec-
retary regarding ratios’’ and inserting 
‘‘prescribed by the Secretary regarding the 
final ratios’’; 
(C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the Secretary 
shall take into account an institution’s current total finan-
cial circumstances, including any subsequent change in the 
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institution’s overall fiscal health based on the standards in 
paragraph (2), when making a determination of its ability 
to meet the standards herein required before any subsequent 
action is taken under paragraph (4). If an institution meets 
the standards in paragraph (2), the institution shall be seen 
as financially responsible.’’; 
(D) in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (4), 
as so redesignated, by striking ‘‘establishes to the 
satisfaction of the Secretary, with’’ and inserting 
‘‘establishes, with’’; 
(E) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated— 
(i) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 
‘‘and’’ after the semicolon at the end; 
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
‘‘; and’’ and inserting a period; and 
(iii) by striking subparagraph (C); 
(F) in paragraph (6), as so redesignated, by 
striking ‘‘(3)(C)’’ and inserting ‘‘(4)(C)’’; and 
(G) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(8) Not later than 18 months after the date of enact-
ment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Secretary shall 
pursue a process to update the ratios regarding financial 
responsibility as identified in paragraph (2). The Secretary 
shall report the revised ratios to— 
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‘‘(A) the Committee on Education and the Work-
force of the House of Representatives; and 
‘‘(B) the Committee on Health, Education, 
Labor, and Pensions of the Senate.’’. 
(e) 
INCENTIVE
COMPENSATION; 
THIRD
PARTY 
SERVICER.— 
(1) 
AMENDMENTS.—Section 
487(a)(20) 
(20 
U.S.C. 1094(a)(20)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(20) The institution will not provide any com-
mission, bonus, or other incentive payment based di-
rectly or indirectly on success in securing enrollments 
or financial aid to any persons or entities engaged in 
any student recruiting or admission activities, or in 
making decisions regarding the award of student fi-
nancial assistance, except that this paragraph shall 
not apply— 
‘‘(A) to the recruitment of foreign students 
residing in foreign countries who are not eligible 
to receive Federal student assistance; or 
‘‘(B) to a third party where— 
‘‘(i) the third party is providing the 
institution recruiting or admissions activi-
ties as part of a larger bundle of services 
not covered by this paragraph and which 
may include marketing or advertising ac-
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tivities that broadly disseminate or dis-
tribute widely available information; 
‘‘(ii) the third party does not provide 
any commission, bonus, or other incentive- 
based payments to its employees or sub-
contractors who are providing services to 
the institution covered in this paragraph; 
and 
‘‘(iii) the third party is not awarding 
or 
disbursing 
Federal 
financial 
aid 
awards.’’. 
(2) DEFINITION.—Section 481(c) (20 U.S.C. 
1088(c)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(c) THIRD PARTY SERVICER.— 
‘‘(1) For purposes of this title, the term ‘third 
party servicer’— 
‘‘(A) means any individual, any State, or 
any private, for-profit or nonprofit organization, 
which enters into a contract with— 
‘‘(i) any eligible institution of higher 
education to administer, through either 
manual or automated processing, any as-
pect of such institution’s student assistance 
programs under this title; or 
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‘‘(ii) any guaranty agency, or any eli-
gible lender, to administer, through either 
manual or automated processing, any as-
pect of such guaranty agency’s or lender’s 
student loan programs under part B of this 
title, including originating, guaranteeing, 
monitoring, processing, servicing, or col-
lecting loans; and 
‘‘(B) does not include any individual, any 
State, or any private, for-profit or nonprofit or-
ganization, which conducts activities or interacts 
with prospective or enrolled students for the pur-
poses of— 
‘‘(i) marketing or recruiting, such as 
soliciting potential enrollments through the 
dissemination of information and adver-
tising; 
‘‘(ii) assisting with the completion of 
applications for enrollment, such as screen-
ing pre-enrollment information and offering 
admission counseling; 
‘‘(iii) administering ability-to-benefit 
tests or establishing any aspect of an eligi-
ble career pathway program; 
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‘‘(iv) conducting activities for the re-
tention of students, such as monitoring aca-
demic engagement and conducting outreach 
to student regarding attendance; and 
‘‘(v) providing instructional content, 
such as evaluating course completion, deliv-
ering mandatory tutoring, assessing student 
learning, 
including 
through 
electronic 
means, or developing curricula or course 
materials. 
‘‘(2) The Secretary shall not regulate on the defi-
nition of a ‘third party servicer’.’’. 
(f) OTHER REPEALS.—The following regulations (in-
cluding any supplement or revision to such regulations) are 
repealed and shall have no legal effect: 
(1) CLOSED
SCHOOL
DISCHARGES.—Sections 
674.33(g), 682.402(d), and 685.214 of title 34, Code 
of Federal Regulations (relating to closed school dis-
charges), as added or amended by the final regula-
tions published by the Department of Education in 
the Federal Register on November 1, 2022 (87 Fed. 
Reg. 65904 et seq.). 
(2) BORROWER DEFENSE TO REPAYMENT.—Sec-
tion 685.401 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations 
(relating to borrower defense to repayment), as added 
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154 
as added or amended by the final regulations pub-
lished by the Department of Education in the Federal 
Register on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. Reg. 74568 et 
seq.). 
(7) ABILITY
TO
BENEFIT.—Sections 
668.2, 
668.32, 668.156, and 668.157 of title 34, Code of Fed-
eral Regulations (relating to ability to benefit) as 
added or amended by the final regulations published 
by the Department of Education in the Federal Reg-
ister on October 31, 2023 (87 Fed. Reg. 74568 et seq.). 
(8) PERSONAL
LIABILITY.—The electronic an-
nouncement titled ‘‘Establishing Personal Liability 
Requirements for Financial Losses Related to the 
Title IV Programs’’ (GENERAL–23–11, published on 
March 1, 2023). 
(g) EFFECT OF REPEAL.—Any regulations repealed by 
subsections (c) through (e) that were in effect on June 30, 
2023, are restored and revived as if the repeal of such regu-
lations under such subsections had not taken effect. 
(h) PROHIBITION.—The Secretary of Education may 
not implement any rule, regulation, policy, or executive ac-
tion specified in this section (or a substantially similar 
rule, regulation, policy, or executive action) unless author-
ity for such implementation is explicitly provided in an 
Act of Congress. 
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(i) PROGRAM REVIEW AND DATA.—Section 498A (20 
U.S.C. 1099c–1) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(f) TIME LIMIT ON PROGRAM REVIEW ACTIVITIES.— 
In conducting, responding to, and concluding program re-
view activities, the Secretary shall— 
‘‘(1) provide to the institution the initial report 
finding not later than 90 days after concluding an 
initial site visit; 
‘‘(2) upon each receipt of an institution’s re-
sponse during a program review inquiry, respond in 
a substantive manner within 90 days; 
‘‘(3) upon each receipt of an institution’s written 
response to a draft final program review report, pro-
vide the final program review report and accom-
panying enforcement actions, if any, within 90 days; 
and 
‘‘(4) conclude the entire program review process 
not later than 2 years after the initiation of a pro-
gram review, unless the Secretary determines that 
such a review is sufficiently complex and cannot rea-
sonably be concluded before the expiration of such 2- 
year period, in which case the Secretary shall 
promptly notify the institution of the reasons for such 
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delay and provide an anticipated date for conclusion 
of the review.’’. 
SEC. 303. LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY TO 
PROPOSE OR ISSUE REGULATIONS AND EXEC-
UTIVE ACTIONS. 
Part G of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1088 et seq.) is amended by inserting after sec-
tion 492 the following: 
‘‘SEC. 492A. LIMITATION ON AUTHORITY OF THE SEC-
RETARY TO PROPOSE OR ISSUE REGULA-
TIONS AND EXECUTIVE ACTIONS. 
‘‘(a) DRAFT REGULATIONS.—Beginning after the date 
of enactment of this section, a draft regulation imple-
menting this title (as described in section 492(b)(1)) that 
is determined by the Secretary to be economically signifi-
cant shall be subject to the following requirements (regard-
less of whether negotiated rulemaking occurs): 
‘‘(1) The Secretary shall determine whether the 
draft regulation, if implemented, would result in an 
increase in a subsidy cost. 
‘‘(2) If the Secretary determines under para-
graph (1) that the draft regulation would result in an 
increase in a subsidy cost, then the Secretary may 
take no further action with respect to such regulation. 
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‘‘(b) PROPOSED OR FINAL REGULATIONS AND EXECU-
TIVE ACTIONS.—Beginning after the date of enactment of 
this section, the Secretary may not issue a proposed rule, 
final regulation, or executive action implementing this title 
if the Secretary determines that the rule, regulation, or exec-
utive action— 
‘‘(1) is economically significant; and 
‘‘(2) would result in an increase in a subsidy 
cost. 
‘‘(c) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER REQUIREMENTS.—The 
analyses required under subsections (a) and (b) shall be in 
addition to any other cost analysis required under law for 
a regulation implementing this title, including any cost 
analysis that may be required pursuant to Executive Order 
12866 (58 Fed. Reg. 51735; relating to regulatory planning 
and review), Executive Order 13563 (76 Fed. Reg. 3821; 
relating to improving regulation and regulatory review), or 
any related or successor orders. 
‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘economi-
cally significant’, when used with respect to a draft, pro-
posed, or final regulation or executive action, means that 
the regulation or executive action is likely, as determined 
by the Secretary— 
‘‘(1) to have an annual effect on the economy of 
$100,000,000 or more; or 
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‘‘(2) adversely to affect in a material way the 
economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, com-
petition, jobs, the environment, public health or safe-
ty, or State, local, or tribal governments or commu-
nities.’’. 
SEC. 304. OFFICE OF FEDERAL STUDENT AID. 
(a) FEDERAL PREEMPTION.—Section 456 (20 U.S.C. 
1087f) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(c) FEDERAL PREEMPTION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Covered activities shall not 
be subject to any law or other requirement of any 
State or political subdivision of a State with respect 
to— 
‘‘(A) disclosure requirements; 
‘‘(B) requirements or restrictions on the 
content, time, quantity, or frequency of commu-
nications with borrowers, endorsers, or references 
with respect to such loans; or 
‘‘(C) any other requirement relating to the 
servicing or collection of a loan made under this 
title. 
‘‘(2) COVERED
ACTIVITIES
DEFINED.—In this 
subsection, the term ‘covered activities’ means any of 
the following activities, as carried out by a qualified 
entity: 
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‘‘(A) Origination of a loan made under this 
title. 
‘‘(B) Servicing of a loan made under this 
title. 
‘‘(C) Collection of a loan made under this 
title. 
‘‘(D) Any other activity related to the ac-
tivities described in subparagraphs (A) through 
(C).’’. 
(b) PROCUREMENT FLEXIBILITY.—Section 142 (20 
U.S.C. 1018a) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (l) as subsection 
(m); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (k) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(l) GUIDANCE TO STUDENT LOAN SERVICERS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In notifying a student loan 
servicer of a final contract modification (as such term 
is defined in section 2.101 of title 48, Code of Federal 
Regulations) that instructs such loan servicer to per-
form a function that is new or different from a func-
tion such servicer performs pursuant to an existing 
contract, the PBO shall, not later than 30 days before 
such contract change takes effect, provide such 
servicers with written guidance in the form of— 
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‘‘(A) a change order (as such term is de-
fined in section 2.101 of title 48, Code of Federal 
Regulations); 
‘‘(B) a dear colleague letter; or 
‘‘(C) an electronic announcement. 
‘‘(2) NON-BINDING DIRECTIVES.—A student loan 
servicer that is notified of a final contract modifica-
tion described in paragraph (1) and receives guidance 
in a form other than a form described in paragraph 
(1) (including through emails or phone calls) shall 
not be subject to such contract modification.’’. 
Subpart 2—Accreditors 
SEC. 311. ACCREDITING AGENCY RECOGNITION. 
(a) CRITERIA REQUIRED.—Section 496(a) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)) is 
amended— 
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), in 
the first sentence, by striking ‘‘or training’’ and in-
serting ‘‘skills development’’; 
(2) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(1) the accrediting agency or association (other 
than an accrediting agency or association described 
in paragraph (2)(D)) shall be a State or national 
agency or association and shall demonstrate the abil-
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ity to operate as an institutional or programmatic 
accrediting agency or association within the State or 
nationally, as appropriate;’’; 
(3) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A)— 
(i) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘prin-
cipal’’; and 
(ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘its 
principal’’ and inserting ‘‘a’’; and 
(B) in subparagraph (C), by inserting ‘‘or’’ 
at the end; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(D) is an entity (such as an industry-spe-
cific quality assurance entity) that has been— 
‘‘(i) determined by a State to be a reli-
able authority as to the quality of education 
or skills development offered in such State 
for the purposes of this Act; and 
‘‘(ii) designated (in accordance with 
subsection (b)(1)) by such State as an ac-
crediting agency or association with respect 
to such State for such purposes;’’; 
(4) in paragraph (3)— 
(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read 
as follows: 
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‘‘(A) subparagraph (A), (C), or (D) of para-
graph (2), then such agency or association is— 
‘‘(i) distinctly incorporated or orga-
nized; and 
‘‘(ii) both administratively and finan-
cially separate from, and independent of, 
any related, associated, or affiliated trade 
association or membership organization, by 
ensuring that— 
‘‘(I) the members of the board or 
governing body of the accrediting agen-
cy or association are not elected or se-
lected by the board or chief executive 
officer (or the representative of such 
board or officer) of any related, associ-
ated, or affiliated trade association or 
membership organization; 
‘‘(II) among the membership of 
the board or governing body of the ac-
crediting agency or association— 
‘‘(aa) if such board or body 
is comprised of 5 or fewer mem-
bers, there is a minimum of one 
public member who represents 
business and who is not a member 
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of any related, associated, or af-
filiated trade association or mem-
bership organization; and 
‘‘(bb) if such board or body is 
comprised of 6 or more members, 
there is a minimum of 1 such 
public member for every 6 mem-
bers; 
‘‘(III) guidelines are established 
for such members to avoid conflicts of 
interest, including specific guidelines 
to ensure that no such member is an 
employee of any institution accredited 
by the agency or association or has a 
financial interest in any such institu-
tion; 
‘‘(IV) dues to the accrediting 
agency or association are paid sepa-
rately from any dues paid to any re-
lated, associated, or affiliated trade as-
sociation or membership organization; 
and 
‘‘(V) the budget of the accrediting 
agency or association is developed, de-
cided, and maintained by the accred-
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164 
iting agency or association without 
any review by, consultation with, or 
approval by any related, associated, or 
affiliated trade association or member-
ship organization;’’; 
(B) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subpara-
graph (B); and 
(C) by striking subparagraph (C); 
(5) in paragraph (4)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘(in the manner de-
scribed in subparagraph (B))’’ after ‘‘reli-
gious missions’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 
(B) by striking subparagraph (B) and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(B) such accrediting agency or association 
consistently applies and enforces standards that 
respect the stated religious mission of an institu-
tion of higher education by— 
‘‘(i) basing decisions regarding accred-
itation and preaccreditation on the stand-
ards of accreditation of such agency or asso-
ciation; and 
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‘‘(ii) not using as a negative factor the 
institution’s religious mission based poli-
cies, decisions, and practices in the areas 
covered by subparagraphs (B), (C), (D), 
(E), and (F) of paragraph (5), except that 
the agency or association may require that 
the institution’s or a program of study’s 
curricula include all core components re-
quired by the agency or association that are 
not inconsistent with the institution’s reli-
gious mission; and 
‘‘(C) such agency or association dem-
onstrates the ability to review, evaluate, and as-
sess the quality of any instruction delivery model 
or method such agency or association has or 
seeks to include within its scope of recognition, 
without giving preference to or differentially 
treating a particular instruction delivery model 
or method offered by an institution of higher 
education or program, except that— 
‘‘(i) in a case in which the instruction 
delivery model allows for the separation of 
the student from the instructor, the agency 
or association shall not be required to have 
separate standards, procedures, or policies 
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for the evaluation of the quality of any in-
struction delivery model or method in order 
to meet the requirements of this subpara-
graph; and 
‘‘(ii) in the case in which the instruc-
tion delivery model allows for the separa-
tion of the student from the instructor— 
‘‘(I) the agency or association re-
quires the institution to have processes 
through which the institution estab-
lishes that the student who registers in 
a course or program is the same stu-
dent who participates in the program 
(including, to the extent practicable, 
the testing or other assessments re-
quired under the program), completes 
the program, and receives the academic 
credit; and 
‘‘(II) the agency or association re-
quires that any process used by an in-
stitution to comply with the require-
ment under clause (I) does not infringe 
upon student privacy and is imple-
mented in a manner that is minimally 
burdensome to the student;’’; and 
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(6) in paragraph (5)— 
(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(A) success with respect to student achieve-
ment outcomes in relation to the institution’s 
mission and to the programs the institution of-
fers, or the mission of a specific degree, certifi-
cate, or credential program, which may include 
different standards for different institutions or 
programs, and which shall include— 
‘‘(i) standards for consideration of the 
median total price charged to students for a 
program of study in relation to the median 
value-added earnings of students who com-
pleted such program; 
‘‘(ii) standards for consideration of 
learning outcomes measures (such as com-
petency attainment and licensing examina-
tion passage rates); 
‘‘(iii) standards for consideration of 
labor market outcomes measures (such as 
employer satisfaction surveys, employability 
measures, 
earnings 
gains, 
employment 
rates, or other similar approaches); and 
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‘‘(iv) standards for consideration of 
student success outcomes measures (such as 
completion rates, retention rates, and loan 
repayment rates);’’; 
(B) by amending subparagraph (I) to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(I) record of student complaints received 
by, or available to, the agency or association, 
and a process for resolving complaints received 
by the institution; and’’; and 
(C) in subparagraph (J), by inserting ‘‘and 
the median total price charged to students for a 
program of study in relation to the median 
value-added earnings of students who completed 
such program provided by the Secretary’’ after 
‘‘student loan default rate data provided by the 
Secretary’’. 
(b) SECRETARIAL REQUIREMENTS AND AUTHORITY.— 
Subsection (b) of section 496 of the Higher Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(b) SECRETARIAL REQUIREMENTS
AND AUTHOR-
ITY.— 
‘‘(1) STATE
DESIGNATED
ACCREDITING
AGEN-
CY.— 
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‘‘(A) APPROVAL
OF
STATE
PLANS.—The 
Secretary shall— 
‘‘(i) approve a State’s designation of 
an entity as an accrediting agency or asso-
ciation for the purposes described in sub-
section (a)(2)(D) for a 5-year period, begin-
ning not later than 30 days after receipt of 
the plan from such State with respect to 
such designation, if such plan includes each 
of the elements listed in subparagraph (B); 
‘‘(ii) submit to the State and the au-
thorizing committees, and make publicly 
available the Secretary’s response to the 
State with respect to such plan, including 
whether the plan includes each of the ele-
ments listed in subparagraph (B); and 
‘‘(iii) if a State’s designation of an en-
tity as an accrediting agency or association 
is approved pursuant to this subparagraph, 
publish in the Federal Register with a 30- 
day public comment period— 
‘‘(I) the plan submitted by such 
State with respect to such designation; 
and 
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‘‘(II) the Secretary’s response to 
such plan. 
‘‘(B) REQUIRED PLAN ELEMENTS.—The re-
quired elements of a State plan submitted under 
subparagraph (A) with respect to the designation 
of an entity as an accrediting agency or associa-
tion are as follows: 
‘‘(i) A description of the process the 
State used to select the entity for such des-
ignation. 
‘‘(ii) A justification of the State’s deci-
sion to select the entity for such designation. 
‘‘(iii) A description of any require-
ments (in addition to the requirements of 
this section), that the State required the en-
tity to comply with as a condition of receiv-
ing and maintaining such designation. 
‘‘(iv) A copy of the standards, policies, 
and procedures of the entity that the State 
considered in selecting the entity for such 
designation. 
‘‘(v) The State’s assessment of how the 
standards for accreditation of the entity 
will be effective in meeting the requirements 
of subsection (a)(5). 
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171 
‘‘(vi) Evidence that at least one other 
State has determined that such entity is a 
reliable authority as to the quality of edu-
cation offered for the purposes of this Act. 
‘‘(vii) An assurance that the State will 
comply with the monitoring requirements 
described in subparagraph (C). 
‘‘(C) STATE MONITORING.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—A State that has 
designated an entity as an accrediting 
agency or association for the purposes de-
scribed in subsection (a)(2)(D) shall submit 
to the Secretary, and to the State author-
izing entity, as appropriate, a report at the 
end of the 5-year period for which the entity 
has received such designation, which shall 
include, with respect to each postsecondary 
education program or institution that has 
been accredited by such entity during such 
period, and disaggregated by type of creden-
tial, certification, or degree— 
‘‘(I) the number and percentage of 
students who have successfully obtained 
a postsecondary education credential, 
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172 
certification, or degree offered by such 
program or institution; and 
‘‘(II) the number and percentage 
of students who were enrolled and did 
not successfully obtain such a creden-
tial, certification, or degree within 150 
percent of the program length. 
‘‘(ii) 
COUNTING
TRANSFER
STU-
DENTS.—For purposes of clause (i)(I), a 
student shall be counted as obtaining a cre-
dential, certification, or degree offered by a 
program or institution that was accredited 
by the entity during the period for which 
the report under this subparagraph is being 
submitted, if the student obtains such cre-
dential, certification, or degree after trans-
ferring to another institution during such 
period. 
‘‘(2) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE AN ACCELERATED 
PATH TO RECOGNITION.—With respect to a prospec-
tive accrediting agency or association that submits to 
the Secretary an application for initial recognition 
under this Act, the Secretary may provide such rec-
ognition to such agency or association within 2 years 
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173 
after receipt of such application, if such applica-
tion— 
‘‘(A) demonstrates that the agency or asso-
ciation— 
‘‘(i) has at least one year of experience 
in making accreditation or preaccreditation 
decisions; and 
‘‘(ii) has policies in place that meet all 
the criteria under subsection (a) for recogni-
tion covering the range of the specific de-
grees, certificates, institutions, or program 
of study for which the agency or association 
seeks such recognition; and 
‘‘(B) provides an assurance that if the agen-
cy or association receives such recognition, the 
agency or association will submit to the Sec-
retary monitoring reports regarding accredita-
tion or preaccreditation decisions, as appro-
priate. 
‘‘(3) 
DEVELOPMENT
OF
COMMON
TERMI-
NOLOGY.—Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of the College Cost Reduction Act, the Sec-
retary shall— 
‘‘(A) convene a panel of experts to develop 
common terminology for accrediting agencies or 
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174 
associations to use in making accrediting deci-
sions with respect to program of study or insti-
tutions, such as a common understanding of 
monitoring, warning, show cause, and other rel-
evant statuses, as appropriate; and 
‘‘(B) publish the recommendations for such 
common terminology in the Federal Register 
with a 60-day public comment period.’’. 
(c) OPERATING PROCEDURES REQUIRED.— 
(1) ON-SITE INSPECTIONS AND REVIEWS.—Para-
graph (1) of section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is 
amended— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘(which may vary based 
on institutional risk consistent with policies pro-
mulgated by the agency or association to deter-
mine such risk and interval frequency as author-
ized under subsection (p))’’ after ‘‘intervals’’; 
and 
(B) by striking ‘‘, including those regarding 
distance education’’. 
(2) MECHANISM TO IDENTIFY INSTITUTIONS AND 
PROGRAMS
EXPERIENCING
DIFFICULTIES.—Section 
496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended— 
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(A) 
by 
redesignating 
paragraphs 
(2) 
through (9) as paragraphs (3) through (10), re-
spectively; and 
(B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(2) develops a policy process to identify any in-
stitution or program of study accredited by the agen-
cy or association that is not meeting the standards for 
accreditation of the agency or association, with a 
focus on the standards assessing an institution’s or 
program of study’s student achievement outcomes de-
scribed in subsection (a)(5)(A), and other indicators, 
which shall include— 
‘‘(A) not less than annually, evaluating the 
extent to which such an identified institution or 
program of study continues to be in compliance 
with such standards or other indicators; and 
‘‘(B) as appropriate, requiring the institu-
tion or program of study to submit a plan, on 
an annual basis, to the accrediting agency or as-
sociation to— 
‘‘(i) address and remedy performance 
issues with respect to such compliance; and 
‘‘(ii) ensure that such plan is success-
fully implemented;’’. 
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(3) PROCEDURES
WITH
RESPECT
TO
SUB-
STANTIVE CHANGES.—Paragraph (5) of section 496(c) 
(20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) (as redesignated by paragraph 
(2)(A)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(5) establishes and applies or maintains poli-
cies, which ensure that any substantive change to the 
educational mission, program of study, or program of 
study of an institution after the agency or association 
has 
granted 
the 
institution 
accreditation 
or 
preaccreditation status does not adversely affect the 
capacity of the institution to continue to meet the 
agency’s or association’s standards for such accredita-
tion or preaccreditation status, which shall include 
policies that— 
‘‘(A) require the institution to obtain the 
agency’s or association’s approval of the sub-
stantive change before the agency or association 
includes the change in the scope of the institu-
tion’s accreditation or preaccreditation status; 
and 
‘‘(B) define substantive change to include, 
at a minimum— 
‘‘(i) any change in the established mis-
sion or objectives of the institution; 
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‘‘(ii) any change in the legal status, 
form of control, or ownership of the institu-
tion, including the acquisition or addition 
of any other institution or new location 
where more than 50 percent of a program 
is offered; 
‘‘(iii) the addition of program of study 
at a higher credential level from the creden-
tial level previously accredited by the agen-
cy or association; or 
‘‘(iv) the entering into a contract 
under which an institution or organization 
not certified to participate in programs 
under this title offers more than 25 percent 
but less than 50 percent of the instruction 
of an educational program of the institution 
with such accreditation or preaccreditation 
status;’’. 
(4) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Section 496(c) (20 
U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended— 
(A) in paragraph (8) (as redesignated by 
paragraph (2)(A))— 
(i) in the matter preceding subpara-
graph (A), by inserting ‘‘, on the agency’s 
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178 
or association’s website,’’ after ‘‘public’’; 
and 
(ii) in subparagraph (C), by inserting 
before the semicolon at the end the fol-
lowing: ‘‘, and a summary of why such ac-
tion was taken or such placement was 
made’’; 
(B) in paragraph (9) (as so redesignated), 
by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(C) in paragraph (10)(B) (as so redesig-
nated), by striking the period at the end and in-
serting the following: ‘‘, including an assurance 
that the institution does not deny a transfer of 
credit based solely on the accreditation of the in-
stitution at which the credit was earned;’’; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(11) such agency or association shall make pub-
licly available, on the agency or association’s website, 
a list of the institutions of higher education or pro-
gram of study accredited by such agency or associa-
tion, which includes, with respect to each such insti-
tution or program of study— 
‘‘(A) the year accreditation was granted; 
‘‘(B) the most recent date of an award of 
accreditation or reaccreditation; and 
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‘‘(C) the anticipated date of the institution’s 
next evaluation for reaccreditation;’’. 
(5) PROHIBITION
ON
LITMUS
TESTS.—Section 
496(c) (20 U.S.C. 1099b(c)) is further amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(12) confirms that the standards for accredita-
tion of the agency or association do not— 
‘‘(A) except as provided in subparagraph 
(B)— 
‘‘(i) require, encourage, or coerce any 
institution to— 
‘‘(I) support, oppose, or commit to 
supporting or opposing— 
‘‘(aa) a specific partisan, po-
litical, or ideological viewpoint or 
belief or set of such viewpoints or 
beliefs; or 
‘‘(bb) a specific viewpoint or 
belief or set of viewpoints or be-
liefs on social, cultural, or polit-
ical issues; or 
‘‘(II) support or commit to sup-
porting the disparate treatment of any 
individual or group of individuals on 
the basis of any protected class under 
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180 
Federal civil rights law, except as re-
quired by Federal law or a court order; 
or 
‘‘(ii) assess an institution’s or program 
of study’s commitment to any ideology, be-
lief, or viewpoint; or 
‘‘(B) prohibit an institution— 
‘‘(i) from having a religious mission or 
from requiring an applicant, student, em-
ployee, or independent contractor (such as 
an adjunct professor) of such an institution 
to— 
‘‘(I) provide or adhere to a state-
ment of faith; or 
‘‘(II) adhere to a code of conduct 
consistent with the stated religious 
mission of such institution or the reli-
gious tenets of such organization; or 
‘‘(ii) from requiring an applicant, stu-
dent, employee, or contractor to take an 
oath to uphold the Constitution of the 
United States; or 
‘‘(C) require, encourage, or coerce an insti-
tution of higher education to violate any right 
protected by the Constitution;’’. 
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181 
(6) PROHIBITION ON ASSESSMENT OF ELECTED 
OR APPOINTED OFFICIALS.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 
1099b(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(13) confirms that the standards for accredita-
tion of the agency or association do not assess the 
roles (including actions or statements) of elected and 
appointed State and Federal officials and legislative 
bodies; and’’. 
(7) PROHIBITION
OF
PRACTICES
THAT
DRIVE 
CREDENTIAL INFLATION.—Section 496(c) (20 U.S.C. 
1099b(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(14) confirms that the standards for accredita-
tion of the agency or association do not require an in-
stitution to develop a program of study leading to a 
degree, certificate, or recognized postsecondary creden-
tial that is not in response to the needs of an industry 
or occupation.’’. 
(d) LENGTH OF RECOGNITION.—Subsection (d) of sec-
tion 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘No accrediting’’ and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided 
in paragraph (2), no accrediting’’; and 
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182 
(2) by adding at the end the following new para-
graph: 
‘‘(2) LONGER
RECOGNITION
AUTHORIZED
FOR 
CERTAIN
AGENCIES
AND
ASSOCIATIONS.—Notwith-
standing paragraph (1), an accrediting agency or as-
sociation that has been recognized by the Secretary for 
the purpose of this Act for a period of 5 years, may 
be recognized for an additional period of up to 3 
years, if the Secretary determines, based on the per-
formance of the accrediting agency or association dur-
ing its recognition period under this Act, that the ac-
crediting agency or association— 
‘‘(A) has the capability to evaluate the qual-
ity of institutions or program of study; and 
‘‘(B) has maintained compliance with the 
criteria for accrediting agencies or associations 
required by this section.’’. 
(e) LIMITATION ON SCOPE OF CRITERIA.—Section 496 
(20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending sub-
section (g) to read as follows: 
‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON SCOPE OF CRITERIA.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall not es-
tablish criteria for accrediting agencies or associa-
tions that are not required by this section. 
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183 
‘‘(2) INSTITUTIONAL
ELIGIBILITY.—An institu-
tion of higher education shall be eligible for participa-
tion in programs under this title if the institution is 
in compliance with the standards of its accrediting 
agency or association that assess the institution in ac-
cordance with subsection (a)(5), regardless of any ad-
ditional standards adopted by the agency or associa-
tion for purposes unrelated to participation in pro-
grams under this title.’’. 
(f) CHANGE OF ACCREDITING AGENCY.—Section 496 
(20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending sub-
section (h) to read as follows: 
‘‘(h) CHANGE OF ACCREDITING AGENCY OR ASSOCIA-
TION.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall recognize 
the accreditation of any otherwise eligible institution 
or program of study if the institution (or program) 
is in the process of changing its accrediting agency or 
association, unless the institution (or program) is 
subject to one or more covered actions. 
‘‘(2) COVERED ACTION DEFINED.—For purposes 
of this subsection, the term ‘covered action’ means one 
or more of the following, when used with respect to an 
institution or program of study: 
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184 
‘‘(A) A pending or final action brought by 
a State agency to suspend, revoke, withdraw, or 
terminate the institution’s legal authority to pro-
vide postsecondary education in the State. 
‘‘(B) A decision by a recognized accrediting 
agency or association to deny accreditation or 
preaccreditation to the institution or program of 
study. 
‘‘(C) A pending or final action brought by 
a recognized accrediting agency or association to 
suspend, revoke, withdraw, or terminate the in-
stitution’s or program of study’s accreditation or 
preaccreditation. 
‘‘(D) Probation or an equivalent status im-
posed on the institution or program of study by 
a recognized accrediting agency or association. 
‘‘(3) INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION NOT 
SUBJECT TO COVERED ACTIONS.—An institution (or 
program of study ) that is not subject to a covered ac-
tion described in paragraph (1) and that desires to 
change its accrediting agency or association for a rea-
son not related to any such covered action (such as 
compliance with State law) may make such a change 
without the approval of the Secretary, as long as the 
institution (or program) and the new accrediting 
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185 
agency or association of the institution (or program), 
not later than 30 days after the accreditation decision 
by such agency or association, notify the Secretary, in 
writing, of the effective date of the institution’s (or 
program’s)accreditation by such agency or associa-
tion.’’. 
(g) DUAL ACCREDITATION RULE.—Section 496 (20 
U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending subsection 
(i) to read as follows: 
‘‘(i) DUAL ACCREDITATION RULE.— 
‘‘(1) RECOGNITION
BY
SECRETARY.—The Sec-
retary shall recognize the accreditation of any other-
wise eligible institution of higher education if the in-
stitution of higher education is accredited, as an in-
stitution, by more than one accrediting agency or as-
sociation. 
‘‘(2) DESIGNATION BY INSTITUTION.—If the in-
stitution is accredited, as an institution, by more 
than one accrediting agency or association, the insti-
tution— 
‘‘(A) shall designate which agency’s or asso-
ciation’s accreditation shall be utilized in deter-
mining the institution’s eligibility for participa-
tion in programs under this Act; and 
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186 
‘‘(B) may change this designation at the 
end of the institution’s period of recognition.’’. 
(h) RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS RULE.—Section 496 (20 
U.S.C. 1099b) is further amended by amending subsection 
(k) to read as follows: 
‘‘(k) RELIGIOUS INSTITUTION RULE.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection 
(j), the Secretary shall allow an institution that has 
had its accreditation withdrawn, revoked, or other-
wise terminated, or has voluntarily withdrawn from 
an accreditation agency, to remain certified as an in-
stitution of higher education under section 102 and 
subpart 3 of this part for a period sufficient to allow 
such institution to obtain alternative accreditation, if 
the Secretary determines that the withdrawal, revoca-
tion, or termination— 
‘‘(A) is related to the religious mission or 
affiliation of the institution; and 
‘‘(B) is not related to the accreditation cri-
teria provided for in this section. 
‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLAINT FOR FAILURE 
TO RESPECT RELIGIOUS MISSION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.— 
‘‘(i) INSTITUTION.—If an institution of 
higher education believes that an adverse 
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action of an accrediting agency or associa-
tion fails to respect the institution’s reli-
gious mission in violation of subsection 
(a)(4)(B), the institution— 
‘‘(I) may file a complaint with 
the Secretary to review the adverse ac-
tion of the agency or association; and 
‘‘(II) prior to filing such com-
plaint, shall notify the Secretary and 
the agency or association of an intent 
to file such complaint not later than 30 
days after— 
‘‘(aa) receiving the adverse 
action from the agency or associa-
tion; or 
‘‘(bb) determining that dis-
cussions with or the processes of 
the agency or association to rem-
edy the failure to respect the reli-
gious mission of the institution 
will fail to result in the with-
drawal of the adverse action by 
the agency or association. 
‘‘(ii) ACCREDITING AGENCY OR ASSO-
CIATION.—Upon notification of an intent to 
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file a complaint and through the duration 
of the complaint process under this para-
graph, the Secretary and the accrediting 
agency or association shall treat the accred-
itation status of the institution of higher 
education as if the adverse action for which 
the institution is filing the complaint had 
not been taken. 
‘‘(B) COMPLAINT.—Not later than 45 days 
after providing notice of the intent to file a com-
plaint, the institution shall file the complaint 
with the Secretary (and provide a copy to the 
accrediting agency or association), which shall 
include— 
‘‘(i) a description of the adverse action; 
‘‘(ii) how the adverse action fails to re-
spect the institution’s religious mission in 
violation of subsection (a)(4)(B); and 
‘‘(iii) any other information the insti-
tution determines relevant to the complaint. 
‘‘(C) RESPONSE.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—The accrediting 
agency or association shall have 30 days 
from the date the complaint is filed with the 
Secretary to file with the Secretary (and 
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provide a copy to the institution) a response 
to the complaint, which response shall in-
clude— 
‘‘(I) how the adverse action is 
based on a violation of the agency or 
association’s standards for accredita-
tion; and 
‘‘(II) how the adverse action does 
not fail to respect the religious mission 
of the institution and is in compliance 
with subsection (a)(4)(B). 
‘‘(ii) BURDEN OF PROOF.— 
‘‘(I) IN
GENERAL.—The accred-
iting agency or association shall bear 
the burden of proving that the agency 
or association has not taken the ad-
verse action as a result of the institu-
tion’s religious mission, and that the 
action does not fail to respect the insti-
tution’s religious mission in violation 
of subsection (a)(4)(B), by showing 
that the adverse action does not impact 
the aspect of the religious mission 
claimed to be affected in the complaint. 
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‘‘(II) INSUFFICIENT PROOF.—Any 
evidence that the adverse action results 
from the application of a neutral and 
generally applicable rule shall be insuf-
ficient to prove that the action does not 
fail to respect an institution’s religious 
mission. 
‘‘(D) 
ADDITIONAL
INSTITUTION
RE-
SPONSE.—The institution shall have 30 days 
from the date on which the agency or associa-
tion’s response is filed with the Secretary to— 
‘‘(i) file with the Secretary (and pro-
vide a copy to the agency or association) a 
response to any issues raised in the response 
of the agency or association; or 
‘‘(ii) inform the Secretary and the 
agency or association that the institution 
elects to waive the right to respond to the 
response of the agency or association. 
‘‘(E) SECRETARIAL ACTION.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 
days of receipt of the institution’s response 
under subparagraph (D) or notification 
that the institution elects not to file a re-
sponse under such subparagraph— 
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‘‘(I) the Secretary shall review the 
materials to determine if the accred-
iting agency or association has met its 
burden of proof under subparagraph 
(C)(ii)(I); or 
‘‘(II) in a case in which the Sec-
retary fails to conduct such review— 
‘‘(aa) the Secretary shall be 
deemed as determining that the 
adverse action fails to respect the 
religious mission of the institu-
tion; and 
‘‘(bb) the accrediting agency 
or association shall be required to 
reverse the action immediately 
and take no further action with 
respect to such adverse action. 
‘‘(ii) REVIEW OF COMPLAINT.—In re-
viewing the complaint under clause (i)(I)— 
‘‘(I) the Secretary shall consider 
the institution to be correct in the as-
sertion that the adverse action fails to 
respect the institution’s religious mis-
sion and shall apply the burden of 
proof 
described 
in 
subparagraph 
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(C)(ii)(I) with respect to the accred-
iting agency or association; and 
‘‘(II) if the Secretary determines 
that the accrediting agency or associa-
tion fails to meet such burden of 
proof— 
‘‘(aa) the Secretary shall no-
tify the institution and the agency 
or association that the agency or 
association is not in compliance 
with subsection (a)(4)(B), and 
that such agency or association 
shall carry out the requirements of 
item (bb) to be in compliance 
with subsection (a)(4)(B); and 
‘‘(bb) the agency or associa-
tion shall reverse the adverse ac-
tion immediately and take no fur-
ther action with respect to such 
adverse action. 
‘‘(iii) 
FINAL
DEPARTMENTAL
AC-
TION.—The Secretary’s determination under 
this subparagraph shall be the final action 
of the Department on the complaint. 
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‘‘(F) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 
this paragraph shall prohibit— 
‘‘(i) an accrediting agency or associa-
tion from taking an adverse action against 
an institution of higher education for a fail-
ure to comply with the agency or associa-
tion’s standards of accreditation as long as 
such standards are in compliance with sub-
section (a)(4)(B) and any other applicable 
requirements of this section; or 
‘‘(ii) an institution of higher education 
from exercising any other rights to address 
concerns with respect to an accrediting 
agency or association or the accreditation 
process of an accrediting agency or associa-
tion. 
‘‘(G) GUIDANCE.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 
only issue guidance under this paragraph 
that explains or clarifies the process for pro-
viding notice of an intent to file a com-
plaint or for filing a complaint under this 
paragraph. 
‘‘(ii) CLARIFICATION.—The Secretary 
may not issue guidance, or otherwise deter-
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mine or suggest, when discussions to remedy 
the failure by an accrediting agency or as-
sociation to respect the religious mission of 
an institution of higher education referred 
to in subparagraph (A)(i)(II)(bb) have 
failed or will fail. 
‘‘(3) RELIGIOUS MISSION DEFINED.—In this Act, 
the term ‘religious mission’— 
‘‘(A) means a published institutional mis-
sion that is approved by the governing body of 
an institution of higher education and that in-
cludes, refers to, or is predicated upon religious 
tenets, beliefs, or teachings; and 
‘‘(B) may be reflected in any of the institu-
tion’s policies, decisions, or practices related to 
such tenets, beliefs, or teachings (including any 
policies or decisions concerning housing, employ-
ment, curriculum, self-governance, or student ad-
mission, continuing enrollment, or gradua-
tion).’’. 
(i) INDEPENDENT EVALUATION.—Section 496(n)(3) 
(20 U.S.C. 1099b(n)(3)) is amended by striking the last sen-
tence. 
(j) 
REGULATIONS.—Section 
496(o) 
(20 
U.S.C. 
1099b(o)) is amended by inserting before the period at the 
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end the following: ‘‘, or with respect to the policies and pro-
cedures of an accreditation agency or association described 
in paragraph (2) or (5) of subsection (c) or how the agency 
or association carries out such policies and procedures’’. 
(k) RISK-BASED REVIEW PROCESSES
OR PROCE-
DURES; WAIVER.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) is further 
amended— 
(1) by striking subsections (p) and (q); and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(p) RISK-BASED OR DIFFERENTIATED REVIEW PROC-
ESSES OR PROCEDURES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law (including subsection (a)(4)(A)), an 
accrediting agency or association shall establish risk- 
based processes or procedures for assessing compliance 
with the accrediting agency or association’s standards 
(including policies related to substantive change and 
award of accreditation statuses) under which the 
agency or association— 
‘‘(A) creates a system for understanding an 
institution’s or program of study’s performance 
in comparison with other similarly situated in-
stitutions or programs of study (which may in-
clude past performance with respect to meeting 
the accrediting agency or association’s stand-
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ards, including the standards relating to the stu-
dent achievement outcomes described in sub-
clauses (I) through (IV) of subsection (a)(5)(A)); 
‘‘(B) requires for each institution and pro-
gram of study designated as high-risk, in accord-
ance with the accrediting agency or association’s 
system in subparagraph (A), to submit the an-
nual plans described in subsection (c)(2)(B) to 
the agency or association that address the per-
formance issues of such institution or program of 
study that resulted in such designation; 
‘‘(C) with respect to institutions or program 
of study meeting or exceeding performance as de-
scribed in subparagraph (A), reduces any com-
pliance requirements with the standards of ac-
creditation of the agency that are not assessing 
an institution or program of study under sub-
section (a)(5), such as on-site inspections; and 
‘‘(D) may require an institution or pro-
gram of study that has declining performance 
(such as an institution or program of study with 
a high-risk designation under subparagraph 
(B)), which has not improved as required by the 
annual 
plan 
submitted 
under 
subsection 
(c)(2)(B), to take actions to avoid or minimize 
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the risks that may lead to revocation of accredi-
tation (such as limiting certain program of 
study enrollment or recommending to the Sec-
retary to limit funds under this title for such an 
institution or program. 
‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.—Any risk-based review proc-
ess or procedure established pursuant to this sub-
section shall not discriminate against, or otherwise 
preclude, institutions of higher education based on in-
stitutional sector or category, including an institution 
of higher education’s tax status.’’. 
(l) TOTAL PRICE DEFINED.—Section 496 (20 U.S.C. 
1099b) is further amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(q) TOTAL PRICE DEFINED.—For purposes of this 
section, the term ‘total price’ has the meaning given such 
term in section 454(d)(3).’’. 
SEC. 312. NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON INSTITU-
TIONAL QUALITY AND INTEGRITY (NACIQI). 
Section 114 (20 U.S.C. 1011c) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (2), by redesignating sub-
paragraphs (A) through (C) as clauses (i) 
through (iii), respectively, and adjusting the 
margins accordingly; 
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(B) by striking ‘‘Individuals’’ and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Individuals’’; 
(C) in clause (ii), as so redesignated, by 
striking ‘‘and training’’ and inserting ‘‘skills de-
velopment’’; 
(D) by adding at the end of paragraph (2) 
the following: 
‘‘(B) DISQUALIFICATION.—No individual 
may be appointed as a member of the Committee 
if such individual has a significant conflict of 
interest, such as being a current regulator (such 
as a State authorizer), that would require the in-
dividual to frequently be recused from serving as 
a member of the Committee.’’; and 
(E) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘Except 
as provided in paragraph (5), the term’’ and in-
serting ‘‘The term’’; 
(2) in subsection (c)— 
(A) in paragraph (4), by adding ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(B) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 
at the end and inserting a period; and 
(C) by striking paragraph (6); 
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(3) in subsection (d)(2), by inserting at the end 
the following: ‘‘The name of any member of the Com-
mittee who has been recused with respect to an agen-
da item of the meeting shall be included in such agen-
da.’’; 
(4) in subsection (e)(2)(D), by striking ‘‘, includ-
ing any additional functions established by the Sec-
retary through regulation’’; and 
(5) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘September 30, 
2021’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 2028’’. 
SEC. 313. ALTERNATIVE QUALITY ASSURANCE EXPERI-
MENTAL SITE INITIATIVE. 
Section 487A of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1094a) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection 
(d); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (b) the end the 
following: 
‘‘(c) ALTERNATIVE QUALITY ASSURANCE EXPERI-
MENTAL SITE INITIATIVE.— 
‘‘(1) EXPERIMENTAL
SITE
AUTHORIZED.—The 
Secretary shall select, in accordance with paragraph 
(4), eligible entities that voluntarily seek to partici-
pate in an Alternative Quality Assurance experi-
mental site initiative for a duration of 5 years and 
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receive the waivers or other flexibility described in 
paragraph (5) to evaluate whether the eligible entities, 
during such 5-year period, can maintain high student 
achievement outcomes while participating in pro-
grams under this title without being accredited by an 
accrediting agency or association recognized under 
section 496. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY DEFINED.—For purposes 
of this subsection, an eligibility entity means— 
‘‘(A) an institution of higher education (as 
defined in section 102); or 
‘‘(B) an educational provider that— 
‘‘(i) is not an institution of higher edu-
cation; 
‘‘(ii) does not receive funding under 
this Act; 
‘‘(iii) is not accredited by an accred-
iting agency or association for the purposes 
of this title; and 
‘‘(iv) is authorized to operate in the 
State in which the provider is located. 
‘‘(3) APPLICATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible entity de-
siring to participate in the experimental site ini-
tiative under this subsection shall submit an ap-
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plication to the Secretary, at such time and in 
such manner as the Secretary may require, 
which shall contain the information described in 
subparagraph (B). The Secretary may not re-
quire any information in such an application 
that is not described in subparagraph (B). 
‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each application under 
paragraph (1) shall include— 
‘‘(i) a description of which program of 
study offered at the eligible entity will be 
included in the experimental site initiative, 
including— 
‘‘(I) in the case of an eligible enti-
ty that is an institution of higher edu-
cation, an attestation that such pro-
gram meets the standards of accredita-
tion of the institution’s accrediting 
agency or association described in 
clauses (i) through (iv) of section 
496(a)(5)(A) (including the standard 
requiring that the median value-added 
earnings of students who complete the 
program are greater than the median 
total price charged to students for the 
program); and 
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‘‘(II) in the case of an eligible en-
tity defined in paragraph (2)(B), docu-
mentation and verified administrative 
data that the program meets standards 
similar to the standards of accredita-
tion referenced in subclause (I); 
‘‘(ii) a justification of the reason why 
the eligible entity seeks to receive the waiver 
described in paragraph (5)(A), including es-
timates or documentation of the potential 
savings to the entity of receiving such waiv-
er; and 
‘‘(iii) a description of how the eligible 
entity plans to share the financial risk with 
the Secretary of receiving the waivers de-
scribed in paragraph (5), such as by— 
‘‘(I) providing matching non-Fed-
eral funds to the Secretary to cover the 
cost of at least half of the expected dis-
bursements under this title to the stu-
dents that enroll in such program for 
the first year of the experiment; 
‘‘(II) providing a letter of credit 
to the Secretary to cover the cost de-
scribed in subclause (I); or 
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‘‘(III) requesting to be placed on a 
reimbursement system of payment. 
‘‘(4) SELECTION.—No later than 6 months after 
the experimental site initiative is announced, the Sec-
retary shall select eligible entities to participate in the 
initiative based on the applications submitted under 
paragraph (3). In making such selections, the Sec-
retary— 
‘‘(A) shall consider— 
‘‘(i) the number and quality of appli-
cations; 
‘‘(ii) each applicant’s ability to effec-
tively share the financial risk as required 
under paragraph (3)(B)(iii); and 
‘‘(iii) in the case of an applicant that 
is an institution of higher education, the 
applicant’s history of compliance with the 
requirements of this Act; 
‘‘(B) shall ensure that the selected eligible 
entities represent a variety of eligible entities 
with respect to size, mission, and geographic dis-
tribution; 
‘‘(C) shall ensure that the number of eligible 
entities selected that are institutions of higher 
education described in paragraph (2)(B) is equal 
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to the number of eligible entities selected that are 
educational providers described in paragraph 
(2)(B); and 
‘‘(D) may not select any eligible entity 
whose approval to operate in a State is at risk. 
‘‘(5) WAIVERS.—The Secretary is authorized to 
waive, for any eligible entity participating in the ex-
perimental site initiative under this subsection— 
‘‘(A) any requirements conditioning an eli-
gible entity’s eligibility to participate in pro-
grams under this title to being accredited by an 
accrediting agency or association recognized 
under section 496; and 
‘‘(B) any other requirements of this title de-
termined necessary by the Secretary to carry out 
such initiative (including requirements related to 
the award process and disbursement of student 
financial aid, or other management procedures 
or processes), except that the Secretary shall not 
waive any provisions with respect to award rules 
(other than an award rule related to an experi-
ment in modular or compressed schedules), grant 
and loan maximum award amounts, and need 
analysis requirements, unless the waiver of such 
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provisions is authorized by another provision 
under this title. 
‘‘(6) REVIEW AND EVALUATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall re-
view and evaluate the experimental site initia-
tive conducted under this subsection, including 
by evaluating, with respect to each participating 
program of each participating eligible entity, 
whether— 
‘‘(i) the median value-added earnings 
of students who complete the program of 
study are greater than the median total 
price charged to students for such program; 
and 
‘‘(ii) the program of study is meeting 
other student achievement outcomes (such as 
outcomes based on standards of accredita-
tion described in section 496(a)(5)(A)), as 
appropriate for the program. 
‘‘(B) RECOMMENDATIONS.—If, based on 
such evaluation, the Secretary determines that 
participating eligible entities were able to meet 
the requirement of subparagraph (A)(i) and the 
other student achievement outcomes evaluated by 
the Secretary under subparagraph (A)(ii), the 
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Secretary shall submit to the authorizing com-
mittees recommendations regarding amendments 
to this Act that will streamline and enhance the 
quality assurance process of institutions of high-
er education, and educational providers de-
scribed in paragraph (2)(B).’’. 
PART B—STUDENT SUCCESS 
SEC. 321. POSTSECONDARY STUDENT SUCCESS GRANTS. 
Part B of title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1138 et seq.) is amended— 
(1) in section 741— 
(A) by striking subsections (b), (c), (e), and 
(f); 
(B) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub-
section (c); and 
(C) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(b) GRANTS.— 
‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
‘‘(A) COMPLETION RATE.—The term ‘com-
pletion rate’ means— 
‘‘(i) the percentage of students from an 
initial cohort enrolled at an institution of 
higher education that is a 2-year institution 
who have graduated from the institution or 
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transferred to a 4-year institution of higher 
education; or 
‘‘(ii) the percentage of students from 
an initial cohort enrolled at an institution 
of higher education in the State that is a 4- 
year institution who have graduated from 
the institution. 
‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible 
entity’ means— 
‘‘(i) an institution of higher education; 
‘‘(ii) a partnership between a non-
profit educational organization and an in-
stitution of higher education; and 
‘‘(iii) a consortium of institutions of 
higher education. 
‘‘(C) ELIGIBLE INDIAN ENTITY.—The term 
‘eligible Indian entity’ means the entity respon-
sible for the governance, operation, or control of 
a Tribal College or University. 
‘‘(D) EVIDENCE-BASED.—The term ‘evi-
dence-based’ has the meaning given the term in 
section 8101(21)(A) of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
7801(21)(A)), except that such term shall also 
apply to institutions of higher education. 
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‘‘(E) EVIDENCE TIERS.— 
‘‘(i) EVIDENCE
TIER
REFORM
OR 
PRACTICE.—The term ‘evidence tier 1 re-
form or practice’ means a reform or prac-
tice that prior research suggests has promise 
for the purpose of successfully improving 
student achievement or attainment for high- 
need students. 
‘‘(ii) EVIDENCE
TIER
REFORM
OR 
PRACTICE.—The term ‘evidence tier 2 re-
form or practice’ means a reform or prac-
tice described in clause (i), or other practice 
meeting similar criteria, that measures im-
pact and cost effectiveness of student success 
activities, and, through rigorous evaluation 
(including through the use of existing ad-
ministrative data, as applicable), has been 
found to be successfully implemented. 
‘‘(iii) EVIDENCE TIER 3 REFORM OR 
PRACTICE.—The term ‘evidence tier 3 re-
form or practice’ means a reform or prac-
tice described in clause (ii), or other prac-
tice meeting similar criteria, that has been 
found to produce sizable, important impacts 
on student success and— 
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‘‘(I) determines whether such im-
pacts can be successfully reproduced 
and sustained over time; and 
‘‘(II) identifies the conditions in 
which such reform or practice is most 
effective. 
‘‘(F) FIRST
GENERATION
COLLEGE
STU-
DENT.—The term ‘first generation college stu-
dent’ has the meaning given the term in section 
402A(h) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1070a–11(h)). 
‘‘(G) HIGH-NEED
STUDENT.—The term 
‘high-need student’ means— 
‘‘(i) a student from low-income back-
ground; 
‘‘(ii) first generation college students; 
‘‘(iii) caregiver students; 
‘‘(iv) students with disabilities; 
‘‘(v) students who stopped out before 
completing; 
‘‘(vi) reentering justice-impacted stu-
dents; and 
‘‘(vii) military-connected students. 
‘‘(H) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ 
means the Secretary of Education. 
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‘‘(I) TRIBAL
COLLEGE
OR
UNIVERSITY.— 
The term ‘Tribal College or University’ has the 
meaning given the term in section 316(b) of the 
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1059c(b)). 
‘‘(2) RESERVATION OF FUNDS FOR ELIGIBLE IN-
DIAN
ENTITIES.—From the total amount appro-
priated to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year, 
the Secretary shall reserve 2 percent for grants to eli-
gible Indian entities to increase participation and 
completion rates of high-need students. 
‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION OF POSTSECONDARY STU-
DENT SUCCESS COMPETITIVE GRANTS.— 
‘‘(A) GRANT AUTHORIZATION.—For each of 
fiscal years 2025 through 2030, the Secretary 
shall award, on a competitive basis, grants to el-
igible entities to provide student services to in-
crease participation, retention, and completion 
rates of high-need students. 
‘‘(B) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity de-
siring a grant under this section shall submit an 
application to the Secretary at such time, in 
such manner, and containing the information re-
quired under subparagraph (C). 
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‘‘(C) CONTENTS.—An application submitted 
under this paragraph shall include the following: 
‘‘(i) A plan to increase, with respect to 
all students enrolled at the institution of 
higher education, attainment and comple-
tion rates or graduation rates, including— 
‘‘(I) a description of which evi-
dence tiers would be met by the evi-
dence-based reforms or practices; and 
‘‘(II) a particular focus on serv-
ing high-need students through student 
services and collaboration among 2- 
year programs, 4-year programs, and 
workforce systems. 
‘‘(ii) Annual benchmarks for student 
outcomes with respect to evidence-based re-
forms or practices. 
‘‘(iii) A plan to evaluate the evidence- 
based reforms or practices carried out pur-
suant to a grant received under this sub-
section. 
‘‘(iv) Rates of enrolled students who re-
ceived a Federal Pell Grant under section 
401. 
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‘‘(v) Demographics of enrolled students, 
including high-need students. 
‘‘(vi) A description of how the eligible 
entity will, directly or in collaboration with 
institutions of higher education or nonprofit 
organizations, use the grant funds to imple-
ment 1 or more of the following evidence- 
based reforms or practices: 
‘‘(I) Providing comprehensive aca-
demic, career, and student services, 
which may include mentoring, advis-
ing, or case management services. 
‘‘(II) Providing accelerated learn-
ing opportunities, which may include 
dual or concurrent enrollment pro-
grams and early college high school 
programs. 
‘‘(III) Reforming course sched-
uling or credit-awarding policies. 
‘‘(IV) Improving transfer path-
ways between the institution of higher 
education, or eligible Indian entity, 
and other institutions of higher edu-
cation. 
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‘‘(vii) A description of how the evi-
dence-based reforms or practices carried out 
pursuant to a grant under this subsection 
will be sustained once the grant expires. 
‘‘(D) EVIDENCE-BASED STUDENT SUCCESS 
PROGRAMS.—From the total amount appro-
priated to carry out this subsection for a fiscal 
year and not reserved under paragraph (4), the 
Secretary shall reserve not less than 20 percent 
to award grants to eligible entities with applica-
tions that propose to include reforms or prac-
tices— 
‘‘(i) at least 1 of which is a tier 3 re-
form or practice; and 
‘‘(ii) the rest of which are tier 1 or tier 
2 reforms or practices. 
‘‘(E) REQUIRED USE OF FUNDS.—An eligi-
ble entity that receives a grant under this section 
shall use the grant funds to carry out the plans 
submitted pursuant to subparagraph (C) and for 
evidence-based reforms or practices for improv-
ing retention and completion rates of students 
that may include the following: 
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‘‘(i) Student services to support reten-
tion, completion, and success, which may 
include— 
‘‘(I) faculty and peer counseling; 
‘‘(II) use of real-time data on stu-
dent progress; 
‘‘(III) improving transfer student 
success; and 
‘‘(IV) incentives for students to re- 
enroll or stay on track. 
‘‘(ii) Direct student support services, 
including a combination of— 
‘‘(I) tutoring, academic supports, 
and enrichment services; and 
‘‘(II) emergency financial assist-
ance. 
‘‘(iii) Efforts to prepare students for a 
career, which may include— 
‘‘(I) career coaching, career coun-
seling and planning services, and ef-
forts to lower student to advisor ratios; 
‘‘(II) networking and work-based 
learning opportunities to support the 
development of skills and professional 
relationships; 
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‘‘(III) utilizing career pathways; 
and 
‘‘(IV) boosting experiences nec-
essary to obtain and succeed in high- 
wage, high-skilled, (as described in sec-
tion 122 of the Carl D. Perkins Career 
and Technical Education Act of 2006 
(20 U.S.C. 2342)) or in-demand indus-
try sectors or occupations (as defined 
in section 3 of the Workforce Innova-
tion and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 
3102)). 
‘‘(iv) Efforts to recruit and retain fac-
ulty and other instructional staff. 
‘‘(F) PERMISSIVE
USE
OF
FUNDS.—From 
the total amount appropriated to carry out this 
subsection for a fiscal year, and not reserved 
under paragraph (4) or subparagraph (D), the 
Secretary may set aside— 
‘‘(i) not more than 5 percent for ad-
ministration, capacity building, research, 
evaluation, and reporting; and 
‘‘(ii) not more than 2 percent for tech-
nical assistance to eligible entities. 
‘‘(G) EVALUATIONS.— 
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‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of 
improving the effectiveness of the evidence- 
based reforms or practices carried out by el-
igible entities pursuant to a grant under 
this subsection, the Secretary shall make 
grants to or enter into contracts with one or 
more organizations to— 
‘‘(I) evaluate the effectiveness of 
such reforms or practices; and 
‘‘(II) disseminate information on 
the impact of such reforms or practices 
in increasing completion and retention 
activities of students, as well as other 
appropriate measures. 
‘‘(ii) ISSUES TO BE EVALUATED.—The 
evaluations required under clause (i) shall 
measure the effectiveness of the evidence- 
based reforms or practices carried out by el-
igible entities pursuant to a grant under 
this subsection in— 
‘‘(I) whether such eligible entity 
implemented the plans, and carried out 
the activities, described in subpara-
graph (C); and 
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‘‘(II) comparing the completion 
and retention rates of students who 
participated in such reforms or prac-
tices with the rates of students of simi-
lar backgrounds who did not partici-
pate in such reforms or practices. 
‘‘(iii) RESULTS.—Not later than 18 
months after the date of the enactment of 
this subsection, the Secretary shall submit 
to the authorizing committees a final report. 
‘‘(H) GRANT
LIMIT.—An institution with 
branch campuses that is an eligible entity may 
only receive a grant under this subsection for 1 
campus of such institution at a time. 
‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this subsection, $45,000,000, for each of fiscal years 
2026 through 2031.’’; and 
(2) by striking sections 742 through 745. 
SEC. 322. REVERSE TRANSFER EFFICIENCY ACT. 
Section 444(b)(1) of the General Education Provisions 
Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)) is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (K)(ii), by striking ‘‘; and’’ 
and inserting a semicolon; 
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