I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1216 
To revise counseling requirements for certain borrowers of student loans, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 27, 2023 
Mrs. MILLER-MEEKS (for herself, Mr. GUEST, Mrs. HINSON, Mr. NUNN of 
Iowa, and Mr. FEENSTRA) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To revise counseling requirements for certain borrowers of 
student loans, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Know Before You Owe 
Federal Student Loan Act of 2023’’. 
SEC. 2. PRE-LOAN COUNSELING AND CERTIFICATION OF 
LOAN AMOUNT. 
Section 485(l) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1092(l)) is amended— 
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(1) in the subsection heading, by striking ‘‘EN-
TRANCE COUNSELING’’ and inserting ‘‘PRE-LOAN 
COUNSELING’’; 
(2) in paragraph (1)(A)— 
(A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by 
striking ‘‘a disbursement to a first-time bor-
rower of a loan’’ and inserting ‘‘the first dis-
bursement of each new loan (or the first dis-
bursement in each award year if more than one 
new loan is obtained in the same award year)’’; 
and 
(B) in clause (ii)(I), by striking ‘‘an en-
trance counseling’’ and inserting ‘‘a coun-
seling’’; 
(3) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) by striking subparagraph (G) and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(G) An estimate of the borrower’s month-
ly payment amount compared to the borrower’s 
estimated monthly income after taxes, after liv-
ing expenses (using Consumer Expenditure 
Survey data from the Bureau of Labor Statis-
tics), after estimated health insurance costs, 
and after any other relevant expenses, based 
on— 
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‘‘(i) the best available data on starting 
wages for the borrower’s program of study, 
if available; and 
‘‘(ii) the estimated total student loan 
debt of the borrower, including— 
‘‘(I) Federal debt; 
‘‘(II) to the best of the institu-
tion’s knowledge, private loan debt al-
ready incurred; and 
‘‘(III) the estimated future debt 
required to complete the program of 
study.’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(L) A statement that the borrower should 
borrow the minimum amount necessary to cover 
expenses and that the borrower does not have 
to accept the full amount of loans for which the 
borrower is eligible. 
‘‘(M) A warning that the higher the bor-
rower’s debt-to-income ratio is, the more dif-
ficulty the borrower is likely to experience in re-
paying the loan. 
‘‘(N) Options for reducing borrowing 
through scholarships, reduced expenses, work- 
study, or other work opportunities. 
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‘‘(O) An explanation of the importance of 
graduating on time to avoid additional bor-
rowing, what course load is necessary to grad-
uate on time, and information on how adding 
an additional year of study impacts total in-
debtedness.’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3)(A) In addition to the other requirements 
of this subsection and in accordance with subpara-
graph (B), each eligible institution shall ensure that 
the student manually enter, either in writing or 
through electronic means, the exact dollar amount of 
Federal Direct Loan funding under part D that 
such student desires to borrow. 
‘‘(B) The eligible institution shall ensure that 
the student carries out the activity described in sub-
paragraph (A)— 
‘‘(i) in the course of the process used by 
the institution for students to accept a student 
loan award; 
‘‘(ii) prior to the institution certifying a 
Federal Direct Loan under part D for disburse-
ment to a student (other than a Federal Direct 
Consolidation Loan or a Federal Direct PLUS 
loan made on behalf of a student); and 
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‘‘(iii) after ensuring that the student has 
completed all of the pre-loan counseling require-
ments under this subsection.’’. 
SEC. 3. REQUIRED PERIODIC DISCLOSURES DURING PERI-
ODS WHEN LOAN PAYMENTS ARE NOT RE-
QUIRED. 
Section 433 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1083) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub-
section (g); and 
(2) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(f) REQUIRED PERIODIC DISCLOSURES DURING PE-
RIODS WHEN LOAN PAYMENTS ARE NOT REQUIRED.— 
During any period of time when a borrower of one or more 
loans, made, insured, or guaranteed under this part or 
part D is not required to make a payment to an eligible 
lender on the borrower’s loan from that eligible lender, 
such eligible lender shall provide such borrower with a 
quarterly statement that includes, in simple and under-
standable terms— 
‘‘(1) the original principal amount of each of 
the borrower’s loans, and the original principal 
amount of those loans in the aggregate; 
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‘‘(2) the borrower’s current balance, as of the 
time of the statement, as applicable; 
‘‘(3) the interest rate on each loan; 
‘‘(4) the total amount the borrower has paid in 
interest on each loan; 
‘‘(5) the aggregate amount the borrower has 
paid for each loan, including the amount the bor-
rower has paid in interest, the amount the borrower 
has paid in fees, and the amount the borrower has 
paid against the balance; 
‘‘(6) the lender’s or loan servicer’s address, toll- 
free phone number, and webpage for payment and 
billing error purposes, including information about 
how a borrower can make voluntary payments when 
a loan is not in repayment status; 
‘‘(7) an explanation— 
‘‘(A) that the borrower has the option to 
pay the interest that accrues on each loan while 
the borrower is a student at an institution of 
higher education or during a period of 
deferment or forbearance, if applicable; and 
‘‘(B) if the borrower does not pay such in-
terest while attending an institution or during 
a period of deferment or forbearance, any accu-
mulated interest on the loan will be capitalized 
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when the loan goes into repayment, resulting in 
more interest being paid over the life of the 
loan; 
‘‘(8) the amount of interest that has accumu-
lated since the last statement based on the typical 
installment time period and the aggregate interest 
accrued to date; and 
‘‘(9) an explanation that making even small 
payments of any unspecified amount while the bor-
rower is a student at an institution of higher edu-
cation, or during a period of deferment or forbear-
ance, if applicable, can help to offset interest accrual 
over the life of the loan.’’. 
SEC. 4. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 
(a) PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AGREEMENTS.—Sec-
tion 487(e)(2)(B)(ii)(IV) of the Higher Education Act of 
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(e)(2)(B)(ii)(IV)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Entrance and exit counseling’’ 
and inserting ‘‘Pre-loan and exit counseling’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘entrance and exit counseling’’ 
and inserting ‘‘pre-loan and exit counseling’’. 
(b) REGULATORY RELIEF AND IMPROVEMENT.—Sec-
tion 487A of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1094a) is amended by striking ‘‘entrance and exit 
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interviews’’ and inserting ‘‘pre-loan and exit interviews’’ 
each place the term appears. 
Æ 
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