I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6557 
To establish the Higher Education Regulatory Reform Task Force, to estab-
lish procedures for the presentation and expedited consideration by Con-
gress of the recommendations of the Higher Education Regulatory Re-
form Task Force, to establish requirements for college cost reduction, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 21, 2012 
Mr. WELCH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on 
Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 
case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To establish the Higher Education Regulatory Reform Task 
Force, to establish procedures for the presentation and 
expedited consideration by Congress of the recommenda-
tions of the Higher Education Regulatory Reform Task 
Force, to establish requirements for college cost reduc-
tion, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘College Cost Reduction 
Act of 2012’’. 
SEC. 2. HIGHER EDUCATION REGULATORY REFORM TASK 
FORCE. 
(a) TASK FORCE ESTABLISHED.—Not later than 6 
months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary of Education shall establish the Higher Education 
Regulatory Reform Task Force. 
(b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Higher Education Regu-
latory Reform Task Force shall include— 
(1) the Secretary of Education or the Sec-
retary’s designee; 
(2) the head of each other Federal agency (or 
such head’s designee) that the Secretary of Edu-
cation determines to be relevant to the activities of 
the Higher Education Regulatory Reform Task 
Force; 
(3) a representative of the Advisory Committee 
on Student Financial Assistance established under 
section 491 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1098); 
(4) representatives from the higher education 
community, including— 
(A) institutions of higher education, with 
equal representation of public and private non-
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profit institutions, and two-year and four-year 
institutions, and with not less than 25 percent 
of such representative institutions carrying out 
distance education programs; and 
(B) nonprofit organizations representing 
institutions of higher education; and 
(5) any other entity or individual the Secretary 
of Education determines appropriate. 
(c) ACTIVITIES.— 
(1) REPORT
REQUIRED.—Not later than one 
year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Education shall submit to Congress and 
make available on a publicly available website a re-
port (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Higher Edu-
cation Regulatory Reform Report’’) prepared by the 
Higher Education Regulatory Reform Task Force on 
Federal regulatory requirements for institutions of 
higher education. In prioritizing the review and con-
sideration of such regulatory requirements for the 
purposes of the Higher Education Regulatory Re-
form Report, the Higher Education Regulatory Re-
form Task Force shall give highest priority to regu-
lations related to— 
(A) State authorization of distance edu-
cation; 
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(B) the Integrated Postsecondary Edu-
cation Data System (IPEDS); 
(C) the Office of Management and Budg-
et’s A–21 Circular; 
(D) reporting under the Jeanne Clery Dis-
closure of Campus Security Policy and Campus 
Crime Statistics Act; 
(E) calculation of default rates under sec-
tion 435(a) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965; 
(F) gainful employment; 
(G) revenue requirements for institutions 
of higher education under section 487(a)(24) 
and (d) of the Higher Education Act of 1965; 
and 
(H) the Single Audit Act of 1984 and the 
Office of Management and Budget’s A–133 Cir-
cular. 
(2) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—The Higher Edu-
cation Regulatory Reform Report shall contain the 
following with respect to regulatory requirements for 
institutions of higher education: 
(A) A list of rules that are determined to 
be outmoded, duplicative, ineffective, or exces-
sively burdensome. 
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(B) For each rule listed in accordance with 
subparagraph (A), an analysis of how the costs 
outweigh the benefits for such rule. 
(C) Recommendations to consolidate, mod-
ify, simplify, or repeal such rules to make such 
rules more effective or less burdensome. 
(D) A description of the justification for 
and impact of the recommendations described 
in subparagraph (C), as appropriate and avail-
able, including supporting data for such jus-
tifications and the financial impact of such rec-
ommendations on institutions of higher edu-
cation of varying sizes and types. 
(E) Recommendations on the establish-
ment of a permanent entity to review new regu-
latory requirements affecting institutions of 
higher education. 
(3) NOTICE AND COMMENT.—At least 60 days 
before submission of the Higher Education Regu-
latory Reform Report required under paragraph (1), 
the Secretary of Education shall publish the report 
in the Federal Register for public notice and com-
ment. The Higher Education Regulatory Reform 
Task Force may modify the report in response to 
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consider the vote by which the draft bill is 
agreed to or disagreed to is not in order. 
(D) 
AMENDMENTS
PROHIBITED.—No 
amendment to, or motion to strike a provision 
from, the draft bill considered under this sec-
tion shall be in order in either the House of 
Representatives or the Senate. 
(E) COORDINATION
WITH
ACTION
BY 
OTHER HOUSE.—If, before passing the bill, one 
House receives from the other a bill— 
(i) the bill of the other House shall 
not be referred to a committee; and 
(ii) the procedure in the receiving 
House shall be the same as if no bill had 
been received from the other House until 
the vote on passage, when the bill received 
from the other House shall supplant the 
bill of the receiving House. 
(F) LIMITATION.—This paragraph shall 
apply only to the bill referred to in subpara-
graph (A), introduced pursuant to such sub-
paragraph. 
(b) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, con-
tinuity of a session of either House of Congress shall be 
considered as broken only by an adjournment of that 
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House sine die, and the days on which that House is not 
in session because of an adjournment of more than 3 days 
to a date certain shall be excluded in the computation of 
any period. 
Æ 
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