National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST) March 2022
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST)
March 2022
Elementary/Secondary and Higher Education Issues
Federal Funds Facts
• $112 billion being spent annually on student aid by government1
• $1.61 trillion in loans outstanding2
o 2008 – 29 million people held student debt / 2021 – 43.4 million people hold student
debt.
o Cost of college on the rise/State funding is declining.
o Second to mortgage debt = $17.6 trillion (Q3 2021)
• 43.4 million Americans are carrying student loan debt.3
• 5.3% delinquency rate (90 days + delinquent or in default) (Q3 2021). The lower level of
delinquency at this time may suggest that some federal student loans are covered by
forbearances under CARES. (Federal Reserve Bank of New York)
• As part of the CARES Act, payments on USDE-held student loans were paused on March
13, 2020. As a result, over 40 million student loan borrowers are in forbearance for a total of
$967 billion. During forbearance, loan interest is 0%. The date to start repayment has been
repeatedly extended by the current administration and is currently set for May 1, 2022.4
• $124.4 billion in student debt is in defaulted student loans.5
• Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plan
o IDR based on repayment of 10-15 percent of discretionary income. Repayment plans
maximized at 20 or 25 years respectively for undergraduate and graduate loans.
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)6
o On Oct. 6, 2021, Department of Education announced a temporary period during
which borrowers may receive credit for payments that previously did not qualify for
PSLF or Temporarily Expanded PSLF. Program expires October 31, 2022.
o PSLF included in negotiated rulemaking process announced by USDE in December
of 2021.
o $115.9 billion is total outstanding balance of borrowers eligible for PSLF.
o 463,444 students had their loans forgiven, either in part or full, through federal
forgiveness programs prior to 2021. In 2021, at least 30,000 additional borrowers
had debts reduced to $0 under the PSLF temporary expansion.
o 1.3 million borrowers with an average balance of $87K (Q2 2020).
1
Page 8 of FY 2021 Annual Report published by Federal Student Aid, an Office of the USDE. https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/fy2021-fsa-annual-
report.pdf
2
https://studentaid.gov/data-center/student/portfolio and https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/fy2021-fsa-annual-report.pdf),
https://educationdata.org/student-loan-debt-statistics
3
https://educationdata.org/student-loan-debt-statistics
4
https://fsapartners.ed.gov/knowledge-center/library/electronic-announcements/2021-10-26/federal-student-aid-posts-quarterly-portfolio-reports-fsa-data-
center
5
https://educationdata.org/student-loan-debt-statistics
6
https://educationdata.org/student-loan-debt-statistics
1• Accreditation designated as gatekeeper in 1952.
• Coronavirus supplemental appropriations awarded through Higher Education Emergency
Relief Fund (HEERF) in CARES Act includes over $14 billion to institutions of higher
education. HEERF is not Title IV aid, but Title IV eligibility is required. Subsequent
funding included HEERF II – $23 billion in aid, signed December 27, 2020 (through
Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act) and $39.6 billion
through HEERF III, created through the American Rescue Plan.
• $17.6 billion FAFSAs processed in FY21.
Elementary/Secondary/Higher Education
• Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965
o Designed to manage the flow of federal monies earmarked for elementary and
secondary education
o Reauthorized on December 10, 2015 with the approval of the Every Student
Succeeds Act (ESSA) (S.1177).
o Current Issues
§ Application of law and regulation
• Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965
o Designed to manage the flow of federal monies earmarked for higher education
o Expired December 31, 2013/Reauthorization Timeline
§ FUTURE Act (H.R.5363) (Adams D-NC)
• Signed into law on December 19, 2019
• Permanently authorizes funding for minority-serving institutions and
historically black colleges and universities, increase appropriation for
Pell Grants, and allows for the Department of Education to gather
information directly from the IRS for FAFSA applications, income-
drive student loan applications and other uses.
§ Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (H.R.133)
• Signed into law on December 27, 2020.
• Includes the FAFSA Simplification Act of 2021.
• Includes package of federal funding bills for FY 2021 (known as an
omnibus). Bill provides $22.7 billions for higher education
institutions and students ($20.002 billion for HEERF). The bill
simplifies the process of applying for federal student aid and changes
how aid is awarded. While not a reauthorization of the HEA, the bill
includes many higher education provisions. The bill increases
maximum Pell grant by $150, allows incarcerated students to receive
Pell Grants, forgives $1.3 billion in debt from federal loan made to 44
HBCUs and MSIs, reduces the number of questions on the FAFSA
from 108 to around 36, and changes federal student aid award
calculation methodologies and terminologies taking effect in 2023-24.
2o Current Issues
§ Cost, access, local authority, over-regulation, simplification of the
application process, NDG credentials, student loan repayment and
forgiveness, Pell Grant expansion
§ November 19, 2021 – House of Representatives passed Build Back Better
Reconciliation bill by a vote of 220-213. Bill presently resides in the Senate.
o Congress
§ Senate
• Introduced (Hatch R-UT) (5/15/17) S.1121 – College Transparency
Act. To require the National Center for Education Statistics to
establish a secure and privacy-protected data system that
contains information about postsecondary students. Included in
H.R.4521 COMPETE Act of 2022.
• Introduced (Wyden D-OR) (11/29/17) S.2169 – Student Right to
Know Before You Go Of 2017. To establish a new higher education
data system to allow for more accurate, complete, and secure data on
student retention, graduation, and earnings outcomes, at all levels of
postsecondary enrollment, and for other purposes.
• Introduced (Durbin D-IL) (7/12/18) S.3205 – Know Before You Owe
Private Education Act of 2018. To amend the Truth in Lending Act
and the Higher Education Act to require certain creditors to obtain
certifications from institutions of higher education, and for other
purposes.
• Introduced (Alexander R-TN) (9/26/19) S.2557 – Student Aid
Improvement Act of 2019. To amend the Higher Education Act to
improve the financial aid process for students, to provide continued
support for minority-serving institutions, and for other purposes.
• Introduced (Sanders I-VT) (4/21/21) S.1288 – College for All Act of
2021. To amend the Higher Education Act to ensure college for all
through expanding access to higher education. reauthorizing Pell
Grant maximums and durations limits, and make DREAMERS
eligible for federal student aid.
• Passed (Schumer D-NY) (6/8/21) S.1260 – US Innovation and
Competition Act (USICA) of 2021 (to be conferenced with H.R.5421
after the latter passes the House). The USICA bill contains provisions
related to higher education, including those reauthorizing through
FY2027 international education programs, revising institutional
procedures for reporting foreign gifts, and addressing research
security.
§ House
• Introduced (Mitchell R-MI) (5/16/17) H.R.2434 – College
Transparency Act. To establish a postsecondary student data system.
3• Introduced (Hunter R-CA) (11/29/17) H.R.4479– Student Right to
Know Before You Go. To establish a new higher education data
system to allow for more accurate, complete, and secure data on
student retention, graduation, and earnings outcomes, at all levels of
postsecondary enrollment, and for other purposes.
• Introduced (Polis D-CO) (7/12/18) H.R.6352 – Know Before You
Owe Private Education Loan Act of 2018. To amend the Truth in
Lending Act and the Higher Education Act to require certain creditors
to obtain certifications from institutions of higher education, and for
other purposes.
• Passed committee (Foxx R-NC)) (12/13/17) H.R.4508 – Promoting
Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform
(PROSPER) Act. To amend the Higher Education Act to revise the
governance of federal financial aid provided to students pursuing a
postsecondary education and institutions of higher education.
• Introduced (Scott D-VA) (7/26/18) H.R.6543 – Aim Higher Act. To
amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to reauthorize and revise
federal financial aid programs for postsecondary education and
institutions of higher education.
• Passed committee (Scott D-VA) (10/31/19) H.R.4674 – College
Affordability Act. To amend and strengthen the Higher Education Act
of 1965 to lower the cost of college for students and families, to hold
colleges accountable for students' success, and to give a new
generation of students the opportunity to graduate on-time and
transition to a successful career.
• Introduced (Krishnamoorthi D-IL) (3/18/21) H.R.2030 – College
Transparency Act. To amend Section 143 of the Higher Education
Act to establish a student data system. Identical bill, H.R. 839,
introduced on same date.
• Introduced (Jayapal D-WA) (4/21/21) H.R.2730 – College for All Act
of 2021. To amend the Higher Education Act to ensure college for all
through expanding access to higher education. reauthorizing Pell
Grant maximums and durations limits, and make DREAMERS
eligible for federal student aid.
• Introduced (Pocan D-WI) (6/16/21) H.R.3946 – Pell Grant
Preservation and Expansion Act of 2021. To improve the structure of
the Federal Pell Grant program, and for other purposes. Identical bill,
H.R.2081, introduced on same date.
• Introduced (Pocan D-WI) (9/22/21) H.R.5342 – Tyler Clementi
Higher Education Anti-Harassment Act of 2021. Act would require
colleges and universities receiving federal student aid funding to
enact an anti-harassment policy. Identical bill, S. 2791, introduced
on same date.
4• Introduced (Grothman R-WI) (11/9/21) H.R.5926 – Pell Grant
Modernization Act. To amend the Higher Education Act to adjust the
period of eligibility for Federal Pell Grants, and for other purposes.
• Introduced (Williams D-GA) (1/21/22) H.R.6466 – Student Loan
Rehabilitation and Credit Score Improvement Act of 2022. To amend
the Higher Education Act to remove all adverse credit history related
to a loan from the credit history of a borrower who has rehabilitated
the loan.
• Introduced (Clark D-MA) (7/28/21) H.R.4751 – Exposing
Discrimination in Higher Education Act. To amend the Higher
Education Act to require publication of information relating to
religious exemptions to the requirements of title IX.
• Passed (Johnson D-TX) (2/4/22) H.R.4521 – America Creating
Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-eminence in Technology and
Economic Strength (COMPETES) Act of 2022. To authorize funding
impacting scientific research and enhanced research security in higher
education. College Transparency Act of 2022 was amended to
H.R.4521 on 2/7/22. To be reconciled with Senate USICA bill prior
to being sent to the President.
116th Congress (1/3/19 – 1/3/21)
• Senate: 53 Republicans/45 Democrats/2 Independents = 100
o Senate Committee – Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
§ Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Chair
• Focus is on institutional autonomy, streamlined process, and
deregulation of higher education.
• Intention is to rewrite HEA from scratch
§ Patty Murray (D-WA), Ranking Member
• Transparency
• Affordability and growing student debt
• House: 232 Democrats/198 Republicans/1 Libertarian/4 vacant = 435
o House Committee – Committee on Education and Labor
§ Robert “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), Chair
§ Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Ranking Member
117th Congress (1/3/21 – 1/3/23) (as of February 1, 2022)
• Senate: 50 Republicans/48 Democrats/2 Independents = 100
o Senate Committee – Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
§ Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair
§ Richard Burr (R-NC), Ranking Member
• House: 222 Democrats/212 Republicans/1 vacant = 435
o House Committee – Committee on Education and Labor
§ Robert “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), Chair
§ Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Ranking Member
5United States Department of Education (ED)
• Recognition
o Gatekeeper Function
o National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI)
o Future Schedule
• Negotiated Rulemaking
o Process
(https://www2.ed.gov/policy/highered/reg/hearulemaking/2021/index.html?src=rn)
• Barriers to Regulation Implementation or Continuation
o Funding
o Congressional Review Act (CRA)
o Executive Orders
• Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) Comment Consideration
o Title IX (Notice dated May 20, 2021)
o Ability to Benefit; Borrower Defense to Repayment; Gainful Employment; Financial
Responsibility for Institutions of Higher Education; Public Service Loan
Forgiveness, etc. (Notice dated May 26, 2021)
o Affordability and Student Loans (Borrower Defense to Repayment, Public Service
Loan Forgiveness, and Federal Student Aid Issues) (Notice dated August 10, 2021)
o Institutional and Programmatic Eligibility (90/10 rule that applies to proprietary
institutions; Ability to benefit; Certification procedures for participation in Title IV,
HEA programs; Change of ownership and change in control of institutions of higher
education; Financial responsibility for participating institutions of higher
education; Gainful employment; and Standards of administrative capability) (Notice
dated December 8, 2021)
• Rules (Final Regulations) Released
o Gainful Employment (ED/HEA) (34 CFR Parts 600, 668) (July 1, 2019)
o State Authorization (ED/HEA) (34 CFR Parts 600, 668) (July 29, 2019)
o Borrower Defense to Repayment (ED/HEA) (34 CFR Part 668, 682, 685) (August
30, 2019)
o Overtime Rule (DOL/FLSA) (29 CFR Part 541) (September 27, 2019)
o Accreditation and Innovation (ED/HEA) (34 CFR Parts 600, 602, 603, 654, 668,
674) (November 1, 2019)
o Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex (OCR/Title IX) (34 CFR Part 106) (May 19,
2020)
o Distance Education and Innovation (ED/HEA) (34 CFR Parts 600, 602, and 668)
(September 2, 2020). Ruling to correct amendments effective September 3, 2021.
o Final Rule Response to Executive Order 13864 (OCR-OPE/EO 13864) (34 CFR
Parts 75 and 76; CFR Part 106; CFR Parts 606, 607, 608, and 609) (September 23,
2020)
o Excise Tax Applicable to Certain Colleges and Universities (USDT-IRS/TCJA) (26
CFR Part 53) (October 15, 2020)
o Disability Discharge from Federal Student Loans for Veterans (84 FR 65000,
(DE/HEA) (August 23, 2021)
6o Statutory changes to the Pell Grant Program (ED/HEA) (34 CFR Parts 690, 604,
691) (October 28, 2021)
• Guidance/Dear Colleague Communications
o Guidance for interruptions of study related to Coronavirus (OPE), March 5, April 3,
May 15, June 9, and August 21, 2020
o Guidance regarding Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Reporting (OPE),
May 6, July 9, August 31, September 23, October 2, October 14, 2020, and March
19, 2021
o Questions and Answers on the Title IX Regulations on, July 20, 2021
o Guidance regarding Federal Aid: Pell Grant Schedules, FAFSA administration,
public service loan forgiveness, June 11, December 7, 2021, January 20, January 31,
2022.
• Federal Advisories
Issues/Initiatives of Note
• Pandemic legislation impacting higher education.
o Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (Public Law 116-
136). Signed into law March 27, 2020. Section 18004 establishes the Higher
Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF). CARES Act amended May 14, 2020,
to allow institutions of higher education to determine which individuals are eligible
to receive aid.
o Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act, 2021
(Public Law 116-260). Signed into law December 27, 2020, establishing support for
higher education due to Coronavirus (December 27, 2020). Referred to as HEERF II.
o American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2). Signed into law March 11,
2021, establishing support for higher education due to Coronavirus. Referred to as
HEERF III.
7You can also read
