Higher Education Standards Improvement Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 5148 To improve program integrity through State evaluation of institutions of higher education, requirements for student complaint submissions, and the establishment of policies and procedures to address closure of institu- tions of higher education, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NOVEMBER 18, 2019 Mr. LEVIN of California (for himself, Ms. BROWNLEY of California, and Mr. CISNEROS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Education and Labor A BILL To improve program integrity through State evaluation of institutions of higher education, requirements for student complaint submissions, and the establishment of policies and procedures to address closure of institutions of high- er education, 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 ‘‘Higher Education 4 Standards Improvement Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5148.IH H5148 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 5148 IH SEC. 2. STATE RESPONSIBILITIES. 1 Section 495(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 2 (20 U.S.C. 1099a(a)) is amended— 3 (1) in paragraph (2)— 4 (A) by inserting ‘‘and the accrediting agen- 5 cy or association involved’’ after ‘‘Secretary’’; 6 (B) by striking ‘‘revokes a license’’ and in- 7 serting ‘‘takes a negative action, or revokes a li- 8 cense,’’; and 9 (C) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 10 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at 11 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 13 ‘‘(4) evaluate each institution of higher edu- 14 cation located in the State or seeking authorization 15 to operate in the State to determine if such institu- 16 tion of higher education meets the applicable stand- 17 ards of the State relating to— 18 ‘‘(A) facilities, equipment, and supplies; 19 and 20 ‘‘(B) measures of program length and 21 other factors relevant for a student or graduate 22 to receive a professional license from the State; 23 ‘‘(5) certify to the Secretary that the State 24 shall— 25 ‘‘(A) accept student complaints from— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5148.IH H5148 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 5148 IH ‘‘(i) all students attending an institu- 1 tion of higher education located in the 2 State; and 3 ‘‘(ii) all students who are residents of 4 the State and attend an institution of 5 higher education not located in the State 6 through correspondence or distance edu- 7 cation; and 8 ‘‘(B) report to the Secretary and accred- 9 iting bodies— 10 ‘‘(i) relevant student complaints re- 11 ceived by the State, including multiple stu- 12 dent complaints that present consistent al- 13 legations with respect to an institution of 14 higher education in the State; and 15 ‘‘(ii) such other complaints the Sec- 16 retary determines necessary; and 17 ‘‘(6) establish policies and procedures to antici- 18 pate and respond to the closure of an institution of 19 higher education, which shall include— 20 ‘‘(A) the maintenance of sufficient cash re- 21 serves (or an equivalent alternative) in accord- 22 ance with regulations issued pursuant to section 23 498(c)(6)(A) to ensure repayment of any re- 24 quired refunds; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5148.IH H5148 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 5148 IH ‘‘(B) a plan to address ensuring custodial 1 record-keeping of institutional records and stu- 2 dent transcripts in the case of such a closure; 3 ‘‘(C) the maintenance of contact informa- 4 tion adequate to ensure communication directly 5 between the State and each student in the case 6 of such a closure; and 7 ‘‘(D) in the case of an institution of higher 8 education located in the State, to develop a 9 process to identify when a campus of such insti- 10 tution of higher education closes in any State.’’. 11 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:46 Nov 27, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H5148.IH H5148 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS