Title: Transparency for Student Veterans Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Transparency for Student Veterans Act
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide student outcome information to veterans and members of the Armed Forces under its comprehensive policy to provide education information on institutions of higher learning and training opportunities via the GI Bill comparison tool.
Specifically, the VA must enter into a memorandum of understanding with specified agencies (e.g., Department of Defense) to receive specified information from such agencies about student outcomes with respect to students who are veterans, members of the Armed Forces, or dependents of such veterans or members. The bill requires the agencies to provide information including, but not limited to, graduation rates, student loan default rates, and median earnings for graduates.
The VA must develop a plan to protect personally identifiable information when providing information on aggregate student outcomes.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6157 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6157

  To amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of 
    Veterans Affairs to collect and include certain student outcome 
    information in the GI Bill comparison tool of the Department of 
               Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 2020

  Mrs. Luria (for herself and Mr. Bilirakis) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of 
    Veterans Affairs to collect and include certain student outcome 
    information in the GI Bill comparison tool of the Department of 
               Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Transparency for Student Veterans 
Act''.

SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF CERTAIN STUDENT OUTCOME INFORMATION IN GI BILL 
              COMPARISON TOOL OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Section 3698 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
    ``(4)(A) The Secretary shall enter into a memorandum of 
understanding with the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of 
Defense, the Secretary of Labor, the Director of the Consumer Financial 
Protection Bureau, the Director of the Census Bureau, and the 
Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service under which the 
Secretaries, the Directors, and the Commissioner shall provide to the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs the following information about student 
outcomes with respect to students who are veterans, members of the 
Armed Forces, or dependents of veterans or members of the Armed Forces 
at educational institutions:
            ``(i) Persistence rate.
            ``(ii) Course and program completion rates.
            ``(iii) Transfer-out rate.
            ``(iv) Graduation rate.
            ``(v) Number and type of each of the following completed 
        credentials, degrees, and certificates, expressed separately:
                    ``(I) Credentials.
                    ``(II) Certificates.
                    ``(III) Associates degrees.
                    ``(IV) Bachelors degrees.
                    ``(V) Postbaccalaureate degrees.
            ``(vi) Average number of years to complete each of the 
        credentials, degrees, and certificates referred to in clause 
        (v).
            ``(vii) Employment rates of graduates and of individuals 
        who attended but did not complete a degree or certificate 
        program.
            ``(viii) Median earnings for graduates.
            ``(ix) Average salary for graduates with each major or 
        certificate available at the institution.
            ``(x) Median amount of Federal student loans expressed 
        separately for--
                    ``(I) individuals who completed a credential, 
                degree, or certificate; and
                    ``(II) individuals who attended a program of 
                education leading to a credential, degree, or 
                certificate but did not complete a credential, degree, 
                or certificate.
            ``(xi) Student loan default rate.
            ``(xii) Student loan repayment rates and the proportion of 
        student loans in deferment or forbearance, expressed separately 
        for--
                    ``(I) individuals who completed a credential, 
                degree, or certificate; and
                    ``(II) individuals who attended a program of 
                education leading to a credential, degree, or 
                certificate but did not complete a credential, degree, 
                or certificate.
            ``(xiii) Types of student loan repayment plans, expressed 
        separately for--
                    ``(I) individuals who completed a credential, 
                degree, or certificate; and
                    ``(II) individuals who attended a program of 
                education leading to a credential, degree, or 
                certificate but did not complete a credential, degree, 
                or certificate.
    ``(B) The information required under subparagraph (A) shall be 
expressed separately for students who are veterans, students who are 
members of the Armed Forces, and students who are dependents of 
veterans or members of the Armed Forces.''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (1)(C)--
                            (i) in clause (xi), by striking ``and'' at 
                        the end;
                            (ii) in clause (xii), by striking the 
                        period and inserting ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end the following 
                        new clause:
                    ``(xiii) the student outcome information collected 
                pursuant to paragraph (4).'';
            (2) by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection (g); and
            (3) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new 
        subsection (f):
    ``(f) Privacy Protections.--To the extent practicable, the 
Secretary shall develop a comprehensive plan to protect the personally 
identifiable information of individuals when providing information on 
aggregate student outcomes under this section.''.
    (b) Deadline for Implementation.--
            (1) MOU deadline.--Not later than 24 months after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act--
                    (A) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall enter 
                into the memoranda of understanding required by 
                subsection (c)(4) of section 3698 of title 38, United 
                States Code, as added by subsection (a); and
                    (B) collect the data on student outcomes required 
                to be provided pursuant to such memoranda of 
                understanding.
            (2) Briefing.--Not later than 12 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall provide to the 
        Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives 
        a briefing on the implementation of such memoranda of this Act 
        and the amendments made by this Act.
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