[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5175 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5175

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
    Veterans Affairs to disapprove, for purposes of the educational 
assistance programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, programs of 
education determined to have utilized deceptive or misleading practices 
  in violation of section 3696 of such title, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 10, 2016

  Mr. Takano introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
    Veterans Affairs to disapprove, for purposes of the educational 
assistance programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, programs of 
education determined to have utilized deceptive or misleading practices 
  in violation of section 3696 of such title, and for other purposes.

    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 ``GI Bill Oversight Act of 2016''.

SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS INSPECTOR GENERAL HEIGHTENED 
              SCRUTINY OF PROGRAMS OF EDUCATION.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 36 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 3699. Inspector General heightened scrutiny of programs of 
              education
    ``(a) Heightened Scrutiny Required.--The Inspector General of the 
Department shall apply heightened scrutiny to any program of education 
if any Federal or State agency has made a final determination or 
settlement that the program of education used deceptive or misleading 
practices that are potentially in violation of section 3696 of this 
title.
    ``(b) Notice to Students.--(1) Upon commencement of heightened 
scrutiny with respect to a program of education under this section, the 
Secretary shall provide notice of the heightened scrutiny and the 
reasons for such heightened scrutiny to any individual who--
            ``(A) is enrolled in a course of education approved under 
        this chapter provided by the program of education; and
            ``(B) is entitled to educational assistance under the laws 
        administered by the Secretary.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall provide to any individual who receives 
notice under this subsection advice that the individual--
            ``(A) request a copy of the individual's transcript; and
            ``(B) seek counseling from an appropriate advisor about 
        transferring any credits earned at the program of education.
    ``(c) Monitoring of Allegations.--The Secretary shall monitor 
allegations of deceptive and misleading practices made against programs 
of education offering courses of education approved for purposes of 
this chapter, including Federal and State investigations. The Secretary 
shall include information about any such allegation on the GI Bill 
Comparison Tool, or any similar Internet website of the Department.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to 
subchapter II the following new item:

``3699. Inspector General heightened scrutiny of programs of 
                            education.''.

SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS DISAPPROVAL OF COURSES OF 
              EDUCATION OFFERED BY INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING 
              ACCUSED OF CERTAIN DECEPTIVE OR MISLEADING PRACTICES.

    Section 3679 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(d)(1) The Secretary shall disapprove a course of education 
provided by an institution of higher learning if the Secretary 
determines pursuant to heightened scrutiny applied by the Inspector 
General under section 3699 of this title that the institution of higher 
learning has engaged in practices that are in violation of section 3696 
of this title.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall provide counseling services to 
individuals enrolled in a course of education disapproved under 
paragraph (1) to assist such individuals in transferring to another 
institution of higher learning.''.

SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON PROGRAMS OF EDUCATION EMPLOYING 
              DECEPTIVE OR MISLEADING PRACTICES.

    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in collaboration with the 
Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Defense, the Commissioner of 
the Federal Trade Commission, the Commissioner of the Securities and 
Exchange Commission, and the Director of the Bureau of Consumer 
Financial Protection, shall establish an interagency working group to--
            (1) share information regarding programs of education that 
        employ deceptive or misleading practices; and
            (2) enter into memorandum of understanding under which the 
        Inspector Generals of each relevant department or agency agree 
        to share information to determine if funds from other Federal 
        programs are affected when one department or agency takes 
        action to investigate a program of education for deceptive or 
        misleading practices.
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