[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4627 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4627
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish the Office of
the Borrower Advocate.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 8, 2019
Ms. Scanlon (for herself and Ms. Omar) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish the Office of
the Borrower Advocate.
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 ``Student Borrower Advocate Act''.
SEC. 2. PERFORMANCE-BASED ORGANIZATION FOR DELIVERY OF FEDERAL STUDENT
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.
(a) PBO.--Section 141(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1018(f)) is amended to read as follows:
``(f) Borrower Advocate.--
``(1) In general.--There is established in the PBO an
`Office of the Borrower Advocate' (referred to in this
subsection as the `Office'). The function of the Office shall
be to provide timely assistance to borrowers of loans made,
insured, or guaranteed under title IV by performing the duties
described in paragraph (6).
``(2) Head of office.--There shall be an official known as
the `Borrower Advocate' who shall serve as the head of the
Office. The Borrower Advocate shall be appointed by the
Secretary from among individuals who have worked closely with
the Federal student loan programs authorized under title IV.
``(3) Removal.--The Borrower Advocate may be removed only
by the Secretary who shall communicate the reasons for any such
removal to the authorizing committees.
``(4) Restrictions.--
``(A) Preservice and in-service restrictions.--An
individual may not serve as the Borrower Advocate if
such individual--
``(i) is employed by, or has a financial
interest in, an entity that contracts with the
PBO; or
``(ii) was employed by, or had a financial
interest in, any such entity in any of the
five-years preceding the date of the
individual's appointment as the Borrower
Advocate.
``(B) Postservice restrictions.--An individual who
served as the Borrower Advocate may not accept
employment with an entity that contracts with the PBO
until a period of five years has elapsed following the
date on which such individual's service as the Borrower
Advocate terminated.
``(5) Staff.--The Office shall be staffed sufficiently to
carry out the responsibilities of the Office under this
subsection.
``(6) Duties of the borrower advocate.--The Office of the
Borrower Advocate shall--
``(A) assist borrowers of loans made, insured, or
guaranteed under title IV in resolving problems with
the PBO and its contractors or other agents, including
by--
``(i) receiving and reviewing complaints of
such problems from borrowers;
``(ii) working to resolve such complaints
in a manner that is in the best interests of
borrowers; and
``(iii) transmitting such complaints to
States and recognized accrediting agencies or
associations, as appropriate;
``(B) attempt to resolve complaints within the
Department of Education and with institutions of higher
education, lenders, guaranty agencies, loan servicers,
and other participants in the Federal student loan
programs authorized under title IV in a manner that
will improve the experience of the borrower;
``(C) compile and analyze data on borrower
complaints and share such data with the Director of the
Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection;
``(D) publish, with any personally identifiable
information redacted, such complaints and responses of
the Secretary to such complaints on the website of the
Department; and
``(E) make appropriate recommendations to Congress,
the Chief Operating Officer, and Secretary with respect
to Federal student loan programs authorized under title
IV and the experiences of borrowers in repayment of
loans under such programs.
``(7) Public information.--The Chief Operating Officer
shall establish and maintain a public page on the website of
the Department of Education exclusively to provide members of
the public with information about the role of the PBO with
respect to the oversight of institutions of higher education,
lenders, guaranty agencies, contractors that contract with the
PBO, subcontractors of such contractors, and third party
servicers.
``(8) Report.--On an annual basis, the Borrower Advocate
shall submit to the Chief Operating Officer a report on the
activities of the Office during the preceding year that--
``(A) identifies the activities carried out by the
Borrower Advocate;
``(B) summarizes the complaints received from
borrowers, including the number of such complaints, and
explains the activities undertaken by the PBO to
address such complaints;
``(C) proposes changes in the administrative
practices of the PBO to mitigate problems experienced
by borrowers; and
``(D) identifies potential legislative changes
which may be appropriate to mitigate such problems.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Section 433(b)(13) of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1083(b)(13)) is amended by striking ``Student Loan
Ombudsman'' and inserting ``Borrower Advocate''.
(2) Section 433(e)(3)(E) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1083(e)(3)(E)) is amended by striking ``Student
Loan Ombudsman'' and inserting ``Borrower Advocate''.
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