[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5572 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5572

             To provide consumer protections for students.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 18, 2014

  Mr. Conyers (for himself, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Grijalva, and Mr. Ellison) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on Armed 
    Services and Veterans' Affairs, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
             To provide consumer protections for students.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Students from Worthless 
Degrees Act''.

SEC. 2. CONSUMER PROTECTIONS FOR STUDENTS.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Definitions.--In this section:
                    (A) Federal financial assistance program.--The term 
                ``Federal financial assistance program'' means a 
                program authorized and funded by the Federal Government 
                under any of the following provisions of law:
                            (i) Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 
                        1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070 et seq.).
                            (ii) Title I of the Workforce Investment 
                        Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.).
                            (iii) The Adult Education and Family 
                        Literacy Act (20 U.S.C. 9201 et seq.).
                            (iv) Chapter 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, or 35 of 
                        title 38, United States Code.
                            (v) Chapter 101, 105, 106A, 1606, 1607, or 
                        1608 of title 10, United States Code.
                            (vi) Section 1784a, 2005, or 2007 of title 
                        10, United States Code.
                    (B) Institution of higher education.--The term 
                ``institution of higher education''--
                            (i) with respect to a program authorized 
                        under subparagraph (A)(i), has the meaning 
                        given the term in section 102 of the Higher 
                        Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002);
                            (ii) with respect to a program authorized 
                        under subparagraph (A)(ii), has the meaning 
                        given the term ``postsecondary educational 
                        institution'' as defined in section 101 of the 
                        Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 
                        2801);
                            (iii) with respect to a program authorized 
                        under subparagraph (A)(iii), has the meaning 
                        given the term ``postsecondary educational 
                        institution'' as defined in section 203 of the 
                        Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (20 
                        U.S.C. 9202);
                            (iv) with respect to a program authorized 
                        under subparagraph (A)(iv), has the meaning 
                        given the term ``educational institution'' 
                        under section 3452 of title 38, United States 
                        Code;
                            (v) with respect to a program authorized 
                        under subparagraph (A)(v), means an educational 
                        institution that awards a degree or certificate 
                        and is located in any State; and
                            (vi) with respect to a program authorized 
                        under subparagraph (A)(vi), means an 
                        educational institution that awards a degree or 
                        certificate and is located in any State.
                    (C) State.--
                            (i) State.--The term ``State'' includes, in 
                        addition to the several States of the United 
                        States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
                        District of Columbia, Guam, American Samoa, the 
                        United States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth 
                        of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the freely 
                        associated States.
                            (ii) Freely associated states.--The term 
                        ``freely associated States'' means the Republic 
                        of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States 
                        of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.
            (2) Consumer protections.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law, an institution of higher education is not 
        eligible to participate in a Federal financial assistance 
        program with respect to any program of postsecondary education 
        or training, including a degree or certificate program, that is 
        designed to prepare students for entry into a recognized 
        occupation or profession that requires licensing or other 
        established requirements as a pre-condition for entry into such 
        occupation or profession, unless--
                    (A) the successful completion of the program fully 
                qualifies a student, in the Metropolitan Statistical 
                Area and State in which the student resides (and in any 
                State in which the institution indicates, through 
                advertising or marketing activities or direct contact 
                with potential students, that a student will be 
                prepared to work in the occupation or profession after 
                successfully completing the program), to--
                            (i) take any examination required for entry 
                        into the recognized occupation or profession in 
                        the Metropolitan Statistical Area and State in 
                        which the student resides, including satisfying 
                        all Federal, State, or professionally mandated 
                        programmatic and specialized accreditation 
                        requirements, if any; and
                            (ii) be certified or licensed or meet any 
                        other academically related pre-conditions that 
                        are required for entry into the recognized 
                        occupation or profession in the State; and
                    (B) the institution offering the program provides 
                timely placement for all of the academically related 
                pre-licensure requirements for entry into the 
                recognized occupation or profession, such as clinical 
                placements, internships, or apprenticeships.
            (3) Regulations on pre-accredited programs.--The Secretary 
        of Education shall promulgate regulations on requirements of an 
        institution of higher education with respect to any program of 
        the institution that is in a pre-accredited status, including 
        limitations on, or requirements of, advertisement of the 
        program to students. Such regulations shall be consistent with 
        the provisions of paragraph (2).
            (4) Loan discharge.--The Secretary of Education shall 
        promulgate regulations that condition eligibility for an 
        institution of higher education to participate in any Federal 
        financial assistance program on the institution signing with 
        each student enrolled in any program of the institution that is 
        in a pre-accredited status, a loan discharge agreement.
    (b) Effective Date.--This section shall be effective on the date 
that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.
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