Student Debt Relief for the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (Direct Loans), the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program, the Federal Perkins Loan (Perkins) Program, and the Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) Program; Withdrawal, 104939-104940 [2024-30606]

Download as PDF ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules in which almost all states across the country participate for purposes of providing state authorization and reciprocity. NC–SARA first started using a policy modification process in January 2023 to create a formal mechanism for addressing issues with state authorization and reciprocity.1 That process continues to be refined. As many commenters noted during the public hearings and negotiated rulemaking sessions on state authorization, allowing this policy modification process to continue is one way to address the Department’s goals. Regarding accreditation, the Department adopted a series of final regulations in this area that went into effect on July 1, 2020. See 84 FR 58834. These regulations made significant changes to the Department’s process for reviewing and recognizing accrediting agencies. Although these regulations went into effect four years ago, the Department is still in the midst of the first cycle of implementing these changes across all accrediting agencies. That is a result of the five-year timeframe on renewal of recognition for accrediting agencies, as well as the requirements that agencies submit applications for renewal two years before their deadline for renewal and the additional periods institutions have for submitting compliance or monitoring reports. Allowing a full 5year review cycle under the 2020 regulations for all accrediting agencies provides a greater opportunity to demonstrate the effectiveness of the existing rules and evaluate outcomes before making other changes to the process. This also allows Department staff to focus on existing reviews instead of directing focus away from these key activities. Seeing the effects across a full cycle will help us better identify any needed modifications. The Department also has decided to terminate the negotiated rulemaking process on the third remaining regulatory area, cash management. While we discussed several regulatory changes to this topic, the most significant was a proposal addressing textbook billing practices. That issue generated significant discussion during negotiated rulemaking and from public commenters, among all the cash management proposals. We are persuaded by concerns raised during the negotiated rulemaking sessions about the need to gather additional data, assess evolving industry practices, and evaluate how policies related to the costs of books and supplies as part of 1 https://www.nc-sara.org/sara-policymodification-process. VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:56 Dec 23, 2024 Jkt 265001 tuition and fees best serve students and their use of financial aid. The current provisions are in § 668.164(c) and (m). The Department received public feedback during the negotiated rulemaking process articulating the benefits of these policies. The Department also acknowledges concerns from commenters, including from students who have experience navigating these products, that these policies may not always deliver costs to students that are below market rates or may not give students a true opportunity to opt out. Given this mix of input, we believe further research to assess the benefits or drawbacks of this way of billing for textbooks is needed before proceeding with rulemaking. Additionally, because textbook billing is the most significant issue related to cash management addressed by the committee, we do not believe exploring further regulatory changes in this part of the regulations is the best use of limited Department resources at this time. Any institution that includes the costs of books and supplies as part of tuition and fees as described in 668.164(c) must ensure they have a clearly communicated and actionable policy under which the student may opt out of the method the institution provides for students to obtain books and supplies. If the Department continues to find that institutions are not complying with the current requirements in § 668.164(c) and (m), we may propose additional protective or restrictive measures to ensure that students have access to books or supplies at below competitive market rates. For the reasons described above, at this time the Secretary exercises his discretion to terminate the negotiated rulemaking process for issues related to accreditation, state authorization, and cash management. Were the Department to issue a regulation in this area in the future, it would be bound by the requirements of Section 492(a) and (b) of the HEA, 20 U.S.C. 1098a(a) and (b). Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3 file, braille, large print, audiotape, compact disc, or other accessible format. Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations at PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 104939 www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this document, as well as all other Department documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the site. You may also access Department documents published in the Federal Register by using the article search feature at www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published by the Department. Miguel Cardona, Secretary of Education. [FR Doc. 2024–30919 Filed 12–20–24; 2:00 pm] BILLING CODE 4000–01–P DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 34 CFR Parts 30 and 682 [Docket ID ED–2023–OPE–0123] RIN 1840–AD93 Student Debt Relief for the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program (Direct Loans), the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program, the Federal Perkins Loan (Perkins) Program, and the Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) Program; Withdrawal Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education. ACTION: Withdrawal of notice of proposed rulemaking and termination of rulemaking proceeding. AGENCY: The U.S. Department of Education (Department) is withdrawing a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that, under the Secretary’s authority to waive repayment of a loan provided by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), proposed to do the following: amend regulations regarding waiver of certain student loan debts; provide targeted debt relief as part of efforts to address the burden of student loan debt; and modify the Department’s existing debt collection regulations to provide greater specificity regarding certain non-exhaustive situations in which the Secretary may exercise discretion to waive all or part of any debts owed to the Department. DATES: The notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Federal Register at 89 FR 27564 on April 17, 2024, is withdrawn as of December 20, 2024. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tamy Abernathy, U.S. Department of SUMMARY: E:\FR\FM\26DEP1.SGM 26DEP1 104940 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 247 / Thursday, December 26, 2024 / Proposed Rules Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 5th Floor, Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 245–4595. Email: NegRegNPRMHelp@ed.gov. If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and wish to access telecommunications relay services, please dial 7–1–1. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with PROPOSALS1 Background On April 17, 2024, the Department published an NPRM in the Federal Register that, in accordance with the Secretary’s authority to waive repayment of a loan provided by section 432(a) of the HEA, would specify the Secretary’s discretion to provide debt relief targeted to specific circumstances. See 89 FR 27564. The proposed regulations would modify the Department’s existing debt collection regulations to provide greater specificity regarding the Secretary’s discretion to waive Federal student loan debt. It would also specify the Secretary’s authority to waive all or part of any debts owed to the Department based on a number of different circumstances, such as the following: growth in a borrower’s loan balance beyond what was owed upon entering repayment; the amount of time since a loan first entered repayment; whether the borrower is otherwise eligible for loan forgiveness or discharge under existing authority but has not successfully applied; and whether a borrower obtained a loan to attend an institution or program that was subject to secretarial actions to end its title IV eligibility, that closed prior to such secretarial actions, or was associated with closed Gainful Employment programs with high debtto-earnings rates or low median earnings. The Department accepted public comments on the NPRM from April 17, 2024 through May 17, 2024. In response to the NPRM, the Department received 148,567 written comments, and the Department has reviewed such comments. Withdrawal of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Termination of the Rulemaking Proceeding In accordance with the Secretary’s authority under section 432(a) of the HEA to waive repayment of a loan, the Department issued the NPRM to specify the Secretary’s discretion to provide targeted debt relief to borrowers facing specific challenges repaying their student loans. The NPRM also proposed revisions to update and clarify various references and provisions in subparts A, C, E, and F of 34 CFR part 30 and VerDate Sep<11>2014 16:56 Dec 23, 2024 Jkt 265001 proposed to amend part 682 by adding a new § 682.403. The Department believed clarifying the circumstances in which the Secretary may use the existing and longstanding waiver authority under section 432(a) of the HEA would better inform the public about how the Secretary may exercise this waiver authority in a consistent and equitable manner. Current regulations do not describe how the Secretary uses this waiver authority. We also believed that providing such specificity would allow the Department to highlight circumstances where we are particularly concerned about borrowers’ inability to successfully repay their debt in full in a reasonable period, where the Department anticipated that the costs of collection would exceed the amount recoverable, and in circumstances that would implicate equity and fairness. However, upon further consideration of the operational challenges in implementing the proposals in the NPRM, the Secretary withdraws the NPRM and terminates the rulemaking proceeding. In making this decision, we considered the Department’s ability to implement the proposed rules if they were finalized in a form identical or largely similar to what was included in the NPRM. With the time remaining in this administration, the Department is focused on several priorities including court-ordered settlements and helping borrowers manage the final elements of the return to repayment following the Fall 2024 end of the 12-month on-ramp period designed to assist borrowers who were unable to make their payments or who needed more time to access information to determine the right repayment plan for their circumstances. With the end of the on-ramp period, some borrowers may start becoming delinquent and start down the path to default. Given that many newer borrowers are at risk of default, and many of these borrowers would not have been otherwise affected by the proposed rules in the NPRM, along with the uncertainty around the implementation of the NPRM proposals, at this time the Department intends to commit its limited operational resources to helping at-risk borrowers return to repayment successfully. The Department has also concluded that withdrawing the NPRM will assure agency flexibility in re-examining the issues and exploring options and alternatives with stakeholders in the future. For all of these independently sufficient reasons, the Department is withdrawing this NPRM. PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 9990 Importantly, the Department is not withdrawing this NPRM and terminating this rulemaking proceeding based upon a changed view of the Secretary’s authority under section 432(a) of the HEA, or based upon any preliminary determination about the limitations of such authority. See Missouri v. Biden, No. 24–cv–1316, ECF No. 57 (granting preliminary injunction). Rather, the Department continues to believe that the NPRM is authorized by the Secretary’s longstanding and existing authority under the HEA, as explained in the NPRM. See 89 FR 27564. We do not intend for a final rule to be issued on this NPRM. Were the Department to issue a regulation in this area in the future, it would be bound by the requirements of Section 492(a) and (b) of the HEA, 20 U.S.C. 1098a(a) and (b). Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3, braille, large print, audiotape, compact disc, or other accessible format. Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this document, as well as all other Department documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the site. You may also access Department documents published in the Federal Register by using the article search feature at www.Federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published by the Department. Miguel Cardona, Secretary of Education. [FR Doc. 2024–30606 Filed 12–20–24; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4000–01–P E:\FR\FM\26DEP1.SGM 26DEP1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 247 (Thursday, December 26, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 104939-104940]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30606]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

34 CFR Parts 30 and 682

[Docket ID ED-2023-OPE-0123]
RIN 1840-AD93


Student Debt Relief for the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan 
Program (Direct Loans), the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) 
Program, the Federal Perkins Loan (Perkins) Program, and the Health 
Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) Program; Withdrawal

AGENCY: Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Withdrawal of notice of proposed rulemaking and termination of 
rulemaking proceeding.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Education (Department) is withdrawing a 
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that, under the Secretary's 
authority to waive repayment of a loan provided by the Higher Education 
Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), proposed to do the following: amend 
regulations regarding waiver of certain student loan debts; provide 
targeted debt relief as part of efforts to address the burden of 
student loan debt; and modify the Department's existing debt collection 
regulations to provide greater specificity regarding certain non-
exhaustive situations in which the Secretary may exercise discretion to 
waive all or part of any debts owed to the Department.

DATES: The notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Federal 
Register at 89 FR 27564 on April 17, 2024, is withdrawn as of December 
20, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tamy Abernathy, U.S. Department of

[[Page 104940]]

Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, 
5th Floor, Washington, DC 20202. Telephone: (202) 245-4595. Email: 
[email protected].
    If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and 
wish to access telecommunications relay services, please dial 7-1-1.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    On April 17, 2024, the Department published an NPRM in the Federal 
Register that, in accordance with the Secretary's authority to waive 
repayment of a loan provided by section 432(a) of the HEA, would 
specify the Secretary's discretion to provide debt relief targeted to 
specific circumstances. See 89 FR 27564. The proposed regulations would 
modify the Department's existing debt collection regulations to provide 
greater specificity regarding the Secretary's discretion to waive 
Federal student loan debt. It would also specify the Secretary's 
authority to waive all or part of any debts owed to the Department 
based on a number of different circumstances, such as the following: 
growth in a borrower's loan balance beyond what was owed upon entering 
repayment; the amount of time since a loan first entered repayment; 
whether the borrower is otherwise eligible for loan forgiveness or 
discharge under existing authority but has not successfully applied; 
and whether a borrower obtained a loan to attend an institution or 
program that was subject to secretarial actions to end its title IV 
eligibility, that closed prior to such secretarial actions, or was 
associated with closed Gainful Employment programs with high debt-to-
earnings rates or low median earnings.
    The Department accepted public comments on the NPRM from April 17, 
2024 through May 17, 2024. In response to the NPRM, the Department 
received 148,567 written comments, and the Department has reviewed such 
comments.
    Withdrawal of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Termination of 
the Rulemaking Proceeding
    In accordance with the Secretary's authority under section 432(a) 
of the HEA to waive repayment of a loan, the Department issued the NPRM 
to specify the Secretary's discretion to provide targeted debt relief 
to borrowers facing specific challenges repaying their student loans. 
The NPRM also proposed revisions to update and clarify various 
references and provisions in subparts A, C, E, and F of 34 CFR part 30 
and proposed to amend part 682 by adding a new Sec.  682.403.
    The Department believed clarifying the circumstances in which the 
Secretary may use the existing and longstanding waiver authority under 
section 432(a) of the HEA would better inform the public about how the 
Secretary may exercise this waiver authority in a consistent and 
equitable manner. Current regulations do not describe how the Secretary 
uses this waiver authority. We also believed that providing such 
specificity would allow the Department to highlight circumstances where 
we are particularly concerned about borrowers' inability to 
successfully repay their debt in full in a reasonable period, where the 
Department anticipated that the costs of collection would exceed the 
amount recoverable, and in circumstances that would implicate equity 
and fairness.
    However, upon further consideration of the operational challenges 
in implementing the proposals in the NPRM, the Secretary withdraws the 
NPRM and terminates the rulemaking proceeding.
    In making this decision, we considered the Department's ability to 
implement the proposed rules if they were finalized in a form identical 
or largely similar to what was included in the NPRM. With the time 
remaining in this administration, the Department is focused on several 
priorities including court-ordered settlements and helping borrowers 
manage the final elements of the return to repayment following the Fall 
2024 end of the 12-month on-ramp period designed to assist borrowers 
who were unable to make their payments or who needed more time to 
access information to determine the right repayment plan for their 
circumstances. With the end of the on-ramp period, some borrowers may 
start becoming delinquent and start down the path to default. Given 
that many newer borrowers are at risk of default, and many of these 
borrowers would not have been otherwise affected by the proposed rules 
in the NPRM, along with the uncertainty around the implementation of 
the NPRM proposals, at this time the Department intends to commit its 
limited operational resources to helping at-risk borrowers return to 
repayment successfully. The Department has also concluded that 
withdrawing the NPRM will assure agency flexibility in re-examining the 
issues and exploring options and alternatives with stakeholders in the 
future. For all of these independently sufficient reasons, the 
Department is withdrawing this NPRM.
    Importantly, the Department is not withdrawing this NPRM and 
terminating this rulemaking proceeding based upon a changed view of the 
Secretary's authority under section 432(a) of the HEA, or based upon 
any preliminary determination about the limitations of such authority. 
See Missouri v. Biden, No. 24-cv-1316, ECF No. 57 (granting preliminary 
injunction). Rather, the Department continues to believe that the NPRM 
is authorized by the Secretary's longstanding and existing authority 
under the HEA, as explained in the NPRM. See 89 FR 27564.
    We do not intend for a final rule to be issued on this NPRM. Were 
the Department to issue a regulation in this area in the future, it 
would be bound by the requirements of Section 492(a) and (b) of the 
HEA, 20 U.S.C. 1098a(a) and (b).
    Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities 
can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will 
provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich 
Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3, braille, 
large print, audiotape, compact disc, or other accessible format.
    Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this 
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may 
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of 
Federal Regulations at www.govinfo.gov. At this site you can view this 
document, as well as all other Department documents published in the 
Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To use 
PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the 
site.
    You may also access Department documents published in the Federal 
Register by using the article search feature at 
www.Federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

Miguel Cardona,
Secretary of Education.
[FR Doc. 2024-30606 Filed 12-20-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
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