	Introduction

The Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. During the 115 th Congress, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce marked up and reported with amendments the Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform Act (PROSPER Act; H.R. 4508 ), which would provide for the comprehensive reauthorization of the HEA. 4508 amendments would extend the authorization of most HEA programs through FY2024. 4508 reflect several key themes: (1) simplifying the federal approach to providing student aid; (2) modifying federal student aid rules; (3) eliminating or winding down programs; (4) revising the educational quality and financial accountability requirements applicable to IHEs; (5) revising public accountability, transparency, and consumer information requirements; and (6) establishing specified limitations to the Secretary of Education's (the Secretary's) authority. They include the following:
Three grant programs: the Federal Pell Grant program, the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) program, and the Scholarships for Veteran's Dependents program (also known as the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants). 4508 would redesign the current federal approach to student aid programs by transitioning toward the provision of aid through a smaller number of programs. To do so, the bill would eliminate those student aid programs that are not currently operational, immediately eliminate or phase-out some others that are currently funded and operational (e.g., TEACH Grants, FSEOG, Direct Loans), continue to wind down the Perkins Loan program (current statute specifies new Perkins Loans may not be made after September 30, 2017), and create a new federal student loan program, the Federal ONE Loan program. Under the amendments proposed in H.R. 4508 , the availability of need-based aid would be limited to undergraduate students and made available through the Pell Grant and FWS programs. All other forms of federal student aid would be made available without regard to a student's financial need. In the Federal Pell Grant program, a new Pell Grant bonus would be made available to students who enroll for at least 30 credit hours per award year. For undergraduate students, annual borrowing limits would be set at $2,000 above what may currently be borrowed through the Direct Loan program. Elimination and Winding Down of Programs

The HEA authorizes numerous programs to support both individuals pursuing postsecondary education and institutions of higher education. All of the programs in Title VIII were incorporated into the HEA by the HEOA and most of them have never been funded. 4508 would make adjustments to the standards IHEs must meet to participate in the Title IV student aid programs. 4508 would make several changes to current fiscal accountability provisions. Among other amendments, H.R. A different type of Federal ONE Loan would be made available to each of three borrower types: Federal ONE Loans to undergraduate students, Federal One Loans to graduate and professional students, and Federal ONE Parent Loans to parents of dependent undergraduate students. Loan Repayment Plans. Programmatic Loan Repayment Rate

For accountability purposes, the HEA currently requires the use of limited student outcome metrics as indicators of institutional quality. If the student completed
0% to 24% of the payment or enrollment period, 0% of Title IV aid would be earned and 100% would be unearned; 25% to 49% of the payment or enrollment period, 25% of Title IV aid would be earned and 75% would be unearned; 50% to 74% of the payment or enrollment period, 50% of Title IV aid would be earned and 50% would be unearned; or 75% to 99% of the payment or enrollment period, 75% of Title IV aid would be earned and 25% would be unearned. The 90/10 Rule

To address issues of waste and abuse in the Title IV aid programs and concerns that proprietary institutions were failing to consistently provide students with a quality education or training and focusing instead on obtaining federal student aid dollars, Congress adopted the predecessor to the 90/10 Rule (the 85/15 Rule) in the Higher Education Amendments of 1992 ( P.L. Repeals

H.R. 4508 would make several changes to the HEA that relate to campus security in general and specifically to sexual violence. 4508 would add some specificity to procedures for institutional disciplinary actions that must be used by IHEs. 4508 would require most domestic IHEs that receive federal financial assistance under the HEA to conduct campus climate surveys regarding attitudes on campus toward sexual assault and the institution's treatment of sexual assault at least once every three academic years. 4508 would repeal the entirety of the existing Title II and replace it with a competitive grant program to expand "earn-and-learn programs" developed by partnerships of employers and IHEs. An earn-and-learn program would be defined as "an education program, including an apprenticeship program, that provides students with structured, sustained, and paid on-the-job training and accompanying, for credit classroom instruction[.]" Grantees are required to submit annual program reports to ED. Table A-1 presents information on the authorization of appropriations and budget authorities for HEA programs and activities that would be authorized under the HEA, should the amendments proposed in H.R. Table A-2 lists existing HEA programs and other related programs (e.g., programs authorized under the Education for the Deaf Act) that under H.R.
During the 115th Congress, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce marked up and ordered reported with amendments the Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform Act (PROSPER Act; H.R. 4508), which would provide for the comprehensive reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA).
H.R. 4508 would make numerous amendments to the HEA, many of which address six themes: (1) redesigning the federal approach to providing student aid; (2) modifying federal student aid rules; (3) eliminating or winding down programs; (4) revising the educational quality and financial accountability requirements applicable to institutions of higher education (IHEs); (5) amending public accountability, transparency, and consumer information requirements; and (6) establishing limits on the Secretary of Education's authority.
H.R. 4508 would extend the authorization of many currently operating HEA programs through FY2024, repeal or wind down many HEA programs and activities, and make amendments to myriad HEA programs and activities.
The amendments proposed in H.R. 4508 signal an attempt to redesign the federal approach to providing student aid by transitioning toward the delivery of student aid through fewer programs. The bill would terminate or phase-out several programs (e.g., TEACH Grants, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Direct Loans), establish a new Federal ONE Loan program, and eliminate programs that have not been funded in recent years or that have never been funded. By 2024, the Title IV federal student aid programs would include two grant programs (Pell Grants and Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants), the Federal ONE Loan program, and the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program.
Regarding changes to student aid benefit levels and award rules, under H.R. 4508 a new Pell Grant bonus would be available to students who enroll for at least 30 credit hours per award year. In the Federal ONE Loan program, annual loan limits would be increased by $2,000 above what undergraduate students may borrow through the Direct Loan program, while firm loan limits would be established for graduate students and parent borrowers. Federal ONE Loans would be repaid according to a limited set of repayment plans, and fewer loan forgiveness benefits would be available compared with what is offered under the Direct Loan program. FWS funds would be awarded to institutions according to a restructured allocation formula. Need-based aid would be made available only to undergraduate students through the Pell Grant and FWS programs. All other federal student aid would be made available without regard to financial need.
Aside from changes to the types of aid available and to student aid benefit levels and award rules, other amendments proposed in H.R. 4508 include the following:
changes to rules for disbursing Title IV aid to recipients, which would include annual aid counseling for recipients and more-frequent, smaller disbursements; the elimination or wind down of numerous programs supporting IHEs and programs they operate, which are authorized under the HEA and other higher education laws, including the Strengthening Institutions Program, programs to enhance teacher education and preparation (HEA Title II), and all of the programs in HEA Title VIII; changes to HEA provisions designed to hold IHEs accountable for the educational programs they offer, including the repeal of the gainful employment regulations, the establishment of a programmatic loan repayment rate metric, and amendments to Department of Education recognition criteria for accrediting agencies that would require accreditors to examine student learning and other student outcomes relative to what should be expected from institutions or educational programs; adjustments to the fiscal accountability standards institutions must meet to participate in the HEA Title IV programs, including the repeal of the 90/10 Rule, which requires that at least 10% of institutional revenues come from sources other than HEA Title IV aid at proprietary schools; amendments to institutional information gathering and reporting requirements, which are designed to generate information that can assist students in making college-going decisions; changes to ED's administrative functions and the establishment of specified limitations on the Secretary's authority to promulgate regulations; amendments to address campus safety and sexual violence issues at IHEs that would add specificity to procedures for institutional disciplinary actions that must be used by IHEs in alleged incidents of sexual violence and would require most domestic IHEs to administer campus climate surveys of attitudes on campus toward sexual assault; and creation of a new competitive grant program to expand earn-and-learn programs developed by partnerships of employers and IHEs that would provide students with on-the-job training and accompanying for-credit classroom instruction.