Student Loan Advocacy Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4596 To improve service to students and other participants in the Federal student financial assistance programs, to establish the Office of the Borrower Advocate to replace the Student Loan Ombudsman, and for other pur- poses. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OCTOBER 1, 2019 Ms. OMAR (for herself and Ms. SCANLON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To improve service to students and other participants in the Federal student financial assistance programs, to establish the Office of the Borrower Advocate to replace the Student Loan Ombudsman, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Student Loan Advo- 4 cacy Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 4596 IH SEC. 2. PERFORMANCE-BASED ORGANIZATION FOR DELIV- 1 ERY OF FEDERAL STUDENT FINANCIAL AS- 2 SISTANCE. 3 (a) PBO.—Section 141 of the Higher Education Act 4 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1018) is amended— 5 (1) in subsection (a), by amending paragraph 6 (2) to read as follows: 7 ‘‘(2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the PBO are 8 as follows: 9 ‘‘(A) To prioritize students and borrowers 10 in the decisionmaking process of the PBO. 11 ‘‘(B) To improve service to students and 12 other participants in the Federal student finan- 13 cial assistance programs authorized under title 14 IV. 15 ‘‘(C) To make such programs more under- 16 standable to students and their parents. 17 ‘‘(D) To increase the efficiency and effec- 18 tiveness of such programs for students and 19 their parents. 20 ‘‘(E) To manage the costs of administering 21 such programs. 22 ‘‘(F) To increase the accountability of the 23 officials responsible for administering the oper- 24 ational aspects of such programs. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 4596 IH ‘‘(G) To increase oversight of institutions, 1 contractors, and third party servicers that par- 2 ticipate in the Federal student financial assist- 3 ance programs authorized under title IV. 4 ‘‘(H) To provide greater flexibility in the 5 management and administration of such pro- 6 grams. 7 ‘‘(I) To implement open, common, inte- 8 grated systems for the delivery of Federal stu- 9 dent financial assistance programs authorized 10 under title IV. 11 ‘‘(J) To develop and maintain a student fi- 12 nancial assistance system that contains com- 13 plete, accurate, and timely data to ensure pro- 14 gram integrity. 15 ‘‘(K) To increase transparency in the oper- 16 ations and outcomes of Federal student finan- 17 cial assistance programs authorized under title 18 IV.’’; 19 (2) in subsection (b)— 20 (A) in paragraph (1)— 21 (i) by redesignating subparagraphs 22 (B) and (C) as subparagraphs (C) and 23 (D), respectively; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 4596 IH (ii) by inserting after subparagraph 1 (A) the following: 2 ‘‘(B) implement oversight and account- 3 ability measures to ensure that the PBO carries 4 out its duties under this section efficiently, ef- 5 fectively, and in a manner that accomplishes 6 the purposes specified in subsection (a)(2);’’; 7 (B) in paragraph (2)(A)— 8 (i) by redesignating clauses (ii) 9 through (vi) as clauses (iii) through (vii); 10 (ii) by inserting after clause (i) the 11 following: 12 ‘‘(ii) in accordance with paragraph 13 (3), the collection, publication, and sharing 14 of longitudinal data that may be used to 15 evaluate Federal student financial assist- 16 ance programs authorized under title IV, 17 including the outcomes such programs 18 achieve;’’; and 19 (iii) in clause (vii), as so redesignated, 20 by inserting ‘‘, including oversight of insti- 21 tutions, contractors, and third party 22 servicers that participate in such pro- 23 grams’’ after ‘‘title IV’’ ; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 4596 IH (C) by redesignating paragraphs (3) 1 through (6) as paragraphs (4) through (7), re- 2 spectively; and 3 (D) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 4 following: 5 ‘‘(3) COLLECTION, SHARING, AND PUBLICATION 6 OF DATA.— 7 ‘‘(A) COLLECTION.—The PBO shall collect 8 longitudinal data, including student-level data, 9 that shall be used to evaluate Federal student 10 financial assistance programs authorized under 11 title IV. 12 ‘‘(B) SHARING WITH NCES.—The PBO 13 shall make the data collected under subpara- 14 graph (A) available to the Commissioner of the 15 National Center for Education Statistics for 16 purposes of research and policy analysis. 17 ‘‘(C) SHARING WITH RESEARCHERS.—The 18 Commissioner of the National Center for Edu- 19 cation Statistics shall make the data shared 20 under subparagraph (B) available to research- 21 ers for vetted research and evaluation purposes. 22 Data made available to researchers under this 23 subparagraph shall not include any data that 24 would reveal personally identifiable information. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 4596 IH ‘‘(D) PUBLICATION.— 1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not less fre- 2 quently than once annually, and subject to 3 clause (ii), the PBO shall make the data 4 collected under subparagraph (A) available 5 on a publicly accessible website of the De- 6 partment of Education in a format that 7 enables members of the public to easily re- 8 trieve, sort, and analyze the data. 9 ‘‘(ii) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—The 10 data made available under clause (i) shall 11 not include— 12 ‘‘(I) student-level data; or 13 ‘‘(II) any data that would reveal 14 personally identifiable information 15 about an individual student.’’. 16 (3) by amending subsection (c) to read as fol- 17 lows: 18 ‘‘(c) PERFORMANCE PLAN, REPORT, AND BRIEF- 19 ING.— 20 ‘‘(1) PERFORMANCE PLAN.— 21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one 22 year after the date of the enactment of the Stu- 23 dent Loan Advocacy Act, and not less than 24 once every five years thereafter, the Secretary 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 4596 IH and Chief Operating Officer shall agree on a 1 performance plan for the PBO for the suc- 2 ceeding 5 years that— 3 ‘‘(i) establishes measurable quan- 4 titative and qualitative goals and objectives 5 for the organization; and 6 ‘‘(ii) aligns such goals and objectives 7 with the purposes specified in subsection 8 (a)(2). 9 ‘‘(B) CONSULTATION.—In developing the 10 five-year performance plan and any revision to 11 the plan, the Secretary and the Chief Operating 12 Officer shall consult with students, institutions, 13 Congress, contractors, the Borrower Advocate, 14 student aid experts, including consumer advo- 15 cacy and research groups, the Director of the 16 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, 17 State attorneys general, and other relevant par- 18 ties. 19 ‘‘(C) REVISIONS.—The Secretary and 20 Chief Operating Officer may annually update 21 the plan under paragraph (1) to incorporate the 22 recommendations made pursuant to the con- 23 sultation required under subparagraph (B) that 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 4596 IH are accepted by the Secretary and the Chief 1 Operating Officer. 2 ‘‘(D) AREAS.—The plan developed under 3 subparagraph (A) shall address the responsibil- 4 ities of the PBO in the following areas: 5 ‘‘(i) Improving service to students and 6 other participants in the Federal student 7 financial assistance programs authorized 8 under title IV, including making those pro- 9 grams more understandable and accessible 10 to students and their parents. 11 ‘‘(ii) Managing the costs and increas- 12 ing the efficiency of such programs. 13 ‘‘(iii) Improving, integrating, and in- 14 vesting in the systems that support such 15 programs. 16 ‘‘(iv) Developing open, common, and 17 integrated systems for such programs. 18 ‘‘(v) The collection, publication, and 19 sharing of data on such programs as de- 20 scribed in subsection (b)(3). 21 ‘‘(vi) Improving performance stand- 22 ards and outcomes with respect to institu- 23 tions, contractors, and third party servicers 24 that act as agents of the Department or as 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 4596 IH agents of institutions that participate in 1 such programs. 2 ‘‘(vii) Any other areas identified by 3 the Secretary. 4 ‘‘(E) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Each plan 5 developed under subparagraph (A) shall be 6 made available on a publicly accessible website 7 of the Department of Education. 8 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORT.— 9 ‘‘(A) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 10 one year after the date of the enactment of the 11 Student Loan Advocacy Act and annually there- 12 after, the Secretary, acting through the Chief 13 Operating Officer, shall submit to Congress an 14 annual report on the performance of the PBO. 15 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The annual report shall 16 include the following: 17 ‘‘(i) An evaluation of the extent to 18 which the PBO met the goals and objec- 19 tives contained in the five-year perform- 20 ance plan described in paragraph (1) for 21 the preceding year. 22 ‘‘(ii) A summary of the consultation 23 process under paragraph (1)(B) for the 24 preceding year, including the recommenda- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 4596 IH tions that were accepted or denied by the 1 Chief Operating Officer during such year, 2 and the rationale for accepting or denying 3 such recommendations. 4 ‘‘(iii) An independent financial audit 5 of the expenditures of both the PBO and 6 the programs administered by the PBO. 7 ‘‘(iv) A summary of the actions taken 8 by the PBO to address— 9 ‘‘(I) the findings of the audit de- 10 scribed in clause (iii); and 11 ‘‘(II) consumer feedback. 12 ‘‘(v) Financial and performance re- 13 quirements applicable to the PBO under— 14 ‘‘(I) the Chief Financial Officers 15 Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–576); 16 or 17 ‘‘(II) the Government Perform- 18 ance and Results Act of 1993 (Public 19 Law 103–62). 20 ‘‘(vi) The results achieved by the PBO 21 during the preceding year and whether 22 such results met the goals specified in the 23 performance plan under paragraph (1). 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 4596 IH ‘‘(vii) With respect to the preceding 1 year, the evaluation rating of the perform- 2 ance of the Chief Operating Officer and 3 senior managers under subsections (d)(5) 4 and (e)(2), including the amounts of bonus 5 compensation awarded to the Chief Oper- 6 ating Officer and senior managers. 7 ‘‘(viii) Recommendations for legisla- 8 tive and regulatory changes to improve 9 service to students and their families, and 10 to improve the efficiency and integrity of 11 Federal student financial assistance pro- 12 grams authorized under title IV. 13 ‘‘(ix) Financial statements that pro- 14 vide a rationale for appropriately funding 15 the activities of the PBO. 16 ‘‘(x) A summary of the management 17 and compliance of contractors managed by 18 the PBO in the preceding year, including 19 corrective actions taken by the PBO with 20 respect to such contractors. 21 ‘‘(xi) A description of how the PBO 22 used the authority under paragraph (5) of 23 subsection (b) for making personnel and 24 procurement decisions in the preceding 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 4596 IH year, including the number of individuals 1 hired through such authority and the bo- 2 nuses provided to staff during such year. 3 ‘‘(xii) A summary of the oversight ac- 4 tivities of institutions, contractors, and 5 third party servicers that participate in the 6 Federal student financial assistance pro- 7 grams authorized under title IV includ- 8 ing— 9 ‘‘(I) fines levied on such institu- 10 tions, contractors, and third party 11 servicers, disaggregated by entity; 12 ‘‘(II) instances of fraud or mis- 13 representation by such institutions, 14 contractors, or third party servicers; 15 and 16 ‘‘(III) violations of provisions in 17 this Act by such institutions, contrac- 18 tors, or third party servicers 19 disaggregated by entity and type of 20 violation. 21 ‘‘(xiii) A summary of any improve- 22 ments made with respect to transparency 23 and any new types of data made available 24 in the preceding year. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 •HR 4596 IH ‘‘(xiv) A description of the progress 1 made in the preceding year towards the 2 specific measurable organization and indi- 3 vidual goals specified in subsection 4 (d)(5)(A). 5 ‘‘(xv) The report submitted to the 6 Secretary under subsection (f)(7). 7 ‘‘(xvi) Other such information as the 8 Director of the Office of Management and 9 Budget shall prescribe for performance 10 based organizations. 11 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS.— 12 The Chief Operating Officer, in preparing the an- 13 nual report described in paragraph (2), shall estab- 14 lish appropriate means to consult with students, bor- 15 rowers, institutions, student aid experts, including 16 consumer advocacy and research groups, the Direc- 17 tor of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, 18 and others involved in the delivery and evaluation of 19 student aid under title IV— 20 ‘‘(A) regarding the degree of satisfaction 21 with the delivery system; and 22 ‘‘(B) to seek suggestions on means to im- 23 prove the performance of the delivery system. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:06 Oct 07, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4596.IH H4596 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 14 •HR 4596 IH ‘‘(4) BRIEFING ON ENFORCEMENT OF PROGRAM 1 INTEGR [Text truncated for display. 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