Consumer Information. NASFAA Task Force Report. Consumer Information
Author: National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA)
Date: 2014-00-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Student Financial Aid,Undergraduate Students,Graduate Students,Disclosure,Information Dissemination,Student Records,Student Loan Programs,Graduation Rate,School Holding Power,Reports,Counseling

The National Association of Student Financial Aid and Administrators (NASFAA) Consumer Information Task Force was convened to conduct a thorough review of the current student consumer information requirements and propose ways to streamline both the content and delivery of those requirements. The proposals in the this report were produced for incorporation into NASFAA's full set of recommendations for the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act and seek to: (1) Eliminate duplicative disclosures; (2) Differentiate appropriate disclosures for undergraduate vs. graduate students; (3) Improve the form and format of disclosures and provide flexibility for schools to determine the most effective form and format for their students; (4) Identify when disclosures are actually needed and most meaningful, particularly those disclosures not directly related to Title IV aid; (5) Consider who should distribute different disclosures (e.g., the school itself or, using reports from schools, the federal government); (6) Examine the effectiveness of current loan counseling and explore the need to counsel students about managing their debt and repayment; and (7) Identify improvements for the content and process (including the source and the division of responsibility) of disclosures surrounding private lender lists. The convened task force evaluated current consumer information requirements and has provided a series of recommendations for consideration by lawmakers and the policy community. Members of the task force were assigned to examine specific requirements, and the work of each individual was reviewed collaboratively and condensed into recommendations. In addition, recommendations from the full NASFAA Reauthorization Task Force related to consumer information were reviewed and incorporated into the work of this group. Recommendations described in this report: (1) Eliminate the annual notice and use the College Navigator as the primary way to disseminate information to students and parents; (2) Repeal the ban on the federal-level student unit record and work to develop a limited student unit record that collects more accurate and comprehensive data on contemporary student behavior; (3) Conduct a study to determine the usefulness and utility of the Campus Security Report, Fire Safety Report and the Fire Log, and Drug and Alcohol Prevention Information; (4) Eliminate non-Title IV related requirements concerning Constitution Day, Voter Registration, and Athletic Disclosures from Title IV administration; (5) Make the Department of Education and loan servicers responsible for developing and distributing loan-related consumer information, including debt management; (6) Reconsider the exclusive use of first-time/full-time degree- or certificate-seeking students in the calculation of graduation and retention rates; (7) Designate a loan entrance counseling &quot;safe harbor&quot;; (8) Exempt graduate programs from requirements that are generally inapplicable to them; (9) Eliminate from exit counseling the requirement to explain the use of the Master Promissory Note; and (10) Develop and consistently use a consumer testing model when implementing any new consumer information requirements. The task force conducted its work between November 2013 and June 2014, and its recommendations were accepted and approved by the NASFAA Board of Directors in June 2014. A list of currently required student consumer information disclosures is appended.