Higher Ed. Lobbyists Against HR 4283
Published in the latest issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education (sorry, subscription only) is an interesting article about how Congress will not receive support from the American Council on Education (ACE) and other similar organizations for H.R. 4283. Most the of details can be found online in a letter to Reps. John Boehner and Howard "Buck McKeon from ACE President David Ward stating it "cannot support" the College Access and Opportunity Act of 2004 in its current form.
Unfortunately, they disagree with the act for reasons quite the opposite of our stated goals. As Mr. Ward states in his letter "In particular, we are deeply concerned by the enormous regulatory and reporting burden imposed by the bill." One of the stated "burdens" as defined by the American Council on Education is SEC. 485:
Loan exit counseling requirements expanded to include disclosure of consequences of consolidation including:
- Impact on total interest paid, fees paid and length of repayment
- Impact on underlying loan benefits including forgiveness, cancellation and deferment
- Ability to prepay, pay on shorter schedule and change payment plans
- Tax benefits for which borrower may be eligible, and
- Consequences of default
So it appears that ACE doesn't want to disclose to student borrowers the rules on their consolidated loans?