Higher Education Technical Amendments Act of 2003

Bill: 108-s-901
Sponsor: Sen. Gregg, Judd [R-NH]
Introduced: 2003-04-11 in the Senate
Policy area: Education
Subjects: Agriculture and Food
Americans in foreign countries
Animals
Bank records
Collection of accounts
Colleges
Congress
Congressional Record
Congressional investigations
Congressional reporting requirements
Correspondence schools and courses
Debt
Disabled
Distance education
Drug abuse
Economics and Public Finance
Educational accountability
Educational tests
Electronic data interchange
Electronic government information
Electronic mail systems
Elementary and secondary education
Families
Federal advisory bodies
Federal aid to education
Federally-guaranteed loans
Finance and Financial Sector
Government Operations and Politics
Government lending
Government paperwork
Graduate education
Guardian and ward
Health
Higher education
International Affairs
Internet
Law
Legal education
Loan defaults
Medical education
Military personnel
Minorities
Minority education
Scholarships
Science, Technology, Communications
State laws
Student aid
Student loan funds
Students
Teacher education
Veterinary medicine
Vocational and technical education
Voter registration
Web sites

Summary:
action_date: 2003-04-11
text: Higher Education Technical Amendments of 2003 - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to make various technical revisions regarding access to student aid programs.
Revises the HEA general definition of institution of higher education (IHE) to include one that admits as regular students those who have been home-schooled, thus conforming it with provisions that make such home-schooled students eligible for student aid under HEA title IV.
Makes students attending nonprofit foreign veterinary schools eligible for the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) student loan program if the school does not meet certain requirements, but only if: (1) it was certified as eligible by the Secretary of Education; and (2) students complete their clinical training at an approved veterinary school in the United States.
Allows IHEs to make mandatory reports on teacher preparation program quality by electronic means under HEA title II.
Eliminates a HEA title IV requirement that new forbearance agreements between lenders and borrowers be in writing; but requires lenders to notify borrowers of their terms.
Requires students withdrawing from an IHE to return only HEA title IV grant aid amounts exceeding 50 percent of the total (if more than $50).
Permits Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) to apply for Federal HSI grants under HEA title V without waiting two years between applications.
Authorizes the use of HEA title VII funds for: (1) Federal scholarship aid to low-income and minority students for summer institutes to prepare for law school; and (2) Thurgood Marshall Fellowships to attend law school.
Directs the Comptroller General to study and report on teacher preparation requirements of States and IHEs.
Exempts courses offered through telecommunications by qualifying IHEs from certain HEA title IV limitations on student financial assistance that otherwise apply to correspondence courses.

Legislative actions:
action_date: 2003-04-11
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
action_date: 2003-04-11
text: Introduced in Senate