October 8, 2014
Las Vegas, NV – Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez
Masto, along with a bipartisan group of 13 other state attorneys general, sent a
letter to U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tom Harkin (D-IA), and U.S.
Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD) in support of their legislation,
S2204, that would improve coordination among federal agencies overseeing
the for-profit college industry.
“The current status quo allows for-profit colleges to focus more on obtaining
federal student loans and less on insuring their students receive a quality
education,” said Masto. “This trend is leaving students with sky-high
student debt and a degree they can’t use. Increased federal oversight of
for-profit schools will ensure students are being prepared to be competent
professionals in their field and are getting the quality education they
deserve.”
Currently, at least nine different federal agencies participate in the
oversight of for-profit school industry: the Department of Education; the
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; the Department of Justice; the Securities
and Exchange Commission; the Department of Defense; the Department of Veterans
Affairs; the Federal Trade Commission; the Department of Labor and the Internal
Revenue Service. The Propriety Education Oversight Coordination
Improvement Act would require representatives from each agency to coordinate
efforts and publish a report about for-profit colleges, which would allow Title
IV borrowers to make better informed decisions about the school they may want to
attend.
Additionally, the bill would require the interagency committee to hold
quarterly meetings as a group and annual meetings with state attorneys general
to coordinate federal and state activities related to for-profit school
oversight. The legislation would also charge the committee with publishing
a “For-Profit College Warning List” for parents and students, which would
identify schools that have engaged in illegal practices or where there is
evidence of widespread abuse - including unethical, fraudulent, and/or predatory
recruiting or lending practices.
“This bill will provide the federal government with a mechanism by which to
hold for-profit colleges more accountable for accepting billions of dollars in
taxpayer money and will not conflict with, nor pre-empt the important work of
the States in enforcing state law,” the letter states. “Further, this bill
will help prevent Title IV funds from continuing to line the pockets of some
for-profit colleges that offer deficient educations in a deceptive manner.”
In addition to General Masto, attorneys general from Arkansas, Connecticut,
Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico,
Oregon, Pennsylvania and Tennessee signed the letter supporting passage of the
legislation.
A copy of the letter is available
here.
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