Title: Student and Taxpayer Protection Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Student and Taxpayer Protection Act
This bill requires the Department of Education to establish performance metrics and a disclosure template to enable programs of training that prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation to be eligible to receive federal student aid funds.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4206 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4206

 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to include requirements for 
 programs of training to prepare students for gainful employment in a 
                         recognized occupation.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            August 23, 2019

Mr. Takano (for himself and Ms. Shalala) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to include requirements for 
 programs of training to prepare students for gainful employment in a 
                         recognized occupation.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Student and Taxpayer Protection 
Act''.

SEC. 2. GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMS.

    Part A of title I of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1001 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 104. PROGRAM OF TRAINING TO PREPARE STUDENTS FOR GAINFUL 
              EMPLOYMENT IN A RECOGNIZED OCCUPATION.

    ``(a) Gainful Employment Program Defined.--In this Act (including 
for purposes of sections 101 and 102), the term `program of training to 
prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation' (in 
this section referred to as `training program') means a training 
program that--
            ``(1) is in compliance with the performance metrics 
        (including the eligibility thresholds for each such metric) 
        established under subsection (b)(1);
            ``(2) is in compliance with the notice requirements under 
        subsection (b)(1)(C)(i)(II);
            ``(3) is otherwise eligible to receive funds under title 
        IV; and
            ``(4) is not a training program that is substantially 
        similar to a training program which, during a period determined 
        by the Secretary, did not meet one or more of the performance 
        metrics (such as an eligibility threshold) described in 
        paragraph (1).
    ``(b) Secretarial Requirements.--
            ``(1)  Establishment of requirements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 18 months after 
                the date of enactment of the Student and Taxpayer 
                Protection Act, the Secretary shall establish 
                requirements for training programs to be eligible 
                training programs for purposes of receiving funds under 
                title IV, which shall include--
                            ``(i) establishing performance metrics 
                        (including eligibility thresholds for each such 
                        metric) described in subparagraph (B); and
                            ``(ii) developing a disclosure template and 
                        a verification process for disclosures 
                        described in subparagraph (C).
                    ``(B) Performance metrics.--
                            ``(i) In general.--In establishing the 
                        performance metrics under subparagraph (A)(i), 
                        the Secretary shall, at a minimum, establish 
                        the requirements for a debt-to-earnings rate 
                        that serves the best interests of students and 
                        taxpayers, which shall include--
                                    ``(I) a methodology for calculating 
                                such debt-to-earnings rate for a 
                                training program, including--
                                            ``(aa) a definition of the 
                                        cohort of individuals on whom 
                                        such rate shall be based, who 
                                        shall be selected from the 
                                        individuals who were enrolled 
                                        in such training program 
                                        (without regard to whether the 
                                        individuals received a loan for 
                                        such enrollment);
                                            ``(bb) a determination of 
                                        the debt amount for such rate 
                                        based on the median annual loan 
                                        payment for the loans made 
                                        under title IV and the private 
                                        education loans received for 
                                        such enrollment by such cohort; 
                                        and
                                            ``(cc) a determination of 
                                        the earnings amount for such 
                                        rate based on the mean or 
                                        median of the actual, student-
                                        level annual earnings for such 
                                        cohort;
                                    ``(II) establishing a process (such 
                                as an appeals process) to authorize 
                                training programs to use alternate 
                                earnings in lieu of the mean or median 
                                of the actual, student-level annual 
                                earnings of a cohort; and
                                    ``(III) establishing a threshold 
                                rate that each training program shall 
                                meet to be eligible to receive funds 
                                under title IV.
                            ``(ii) Earnings data.--In determining the 
                        mean or median of the actual, student-level 
                        annual earnings for purposes of this 
                        subparagraph, the Secretary shall obtain and 
                        use the most currently available Federal data 
                        on such earnings.
                    ``(C) Disclosure template.--The Secretary shall 
                develop--
                            ``(i) a disclosure template that--
                                    ``(I) is consumer tested; and
                                    ``(II) is used by each training 
                                program to provide enrolled and 
                                prospective students (including through 
                                publication on the website of the 
                                program)--
                                            ``(aa) on an annual basis, 
                                        student outcome information for 
                                        such program (including the 
                                        debt-to-earnings rate and 
                                        whether the eligibility 
                                        threshold for any other 
                                        performance metric established 
                                        under subparagraph (A)(i) has 
                                        been met); and
                                            ``(bb) in a case in which 
                                        the training program receives a 
                                        notice of determination under 
                                        paragraph (2)(B) that the 
                                        program may be ineligible for 
                                        funds under title IV, or may 
                                        receive other sanctions, not 
                                        later than 30 days after 
                                        receipt of such notice, an 
                                        explanation of such notice of 
                                        determination; and
                            ``(ii) a process to annually verify that 
                        each training program is providing the 
                        disclosures required under clause (i)(II).
            ``(2) Enforcement of requirements.--Not later than 2 years 
        after the Secretary establishes requirements under paragraph 
        (1), and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall, with respect 
        to each training program--
                    ``(A) calculate the debt-to-earnings rate and 
                assess performance with respect to any other metric 
                established under paragraph (1)(A)(i) for the preceding 
                award year, and make such information publicly 
                available on the website of the Department of 
                Education;
                    ``(B) issue a notice of determination on whether 
                the program is meeting the requirements established by 
                the Secretary, including whether the program shall be 
                subject to sanctions (such as loss of eligibility under 
                title IV); and
                    ``(C) enforce the applicable sanctions.''.
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