The Policies & Procedures (P&P) Builder, a module of NASFAA’s Compliance Engine, guides you step-by-step through the creation of a centralized, accessible policies and procedures manual. Due to the timing of the release of the P&P Builder template each year, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) may provide new guidance which affects the existing template. In response, updates will be made to the P&P Builder template. 

The P&P Builder template for the 2023-24 award year was released in April and it provides references to guidance related to the COVID-19 national emergency, as well as regulatory changes associated with FAFSA Simplification. Additional guidance has been released in the interim and areas where additional information is needed have been identified. These updates have been summarized below:

Electronic Announcement, 11/8/23 (GENERAL-23-96) - Borrower Defense School Notification Process Under the 2016 Regulation (34 C.F.R. 685.222)

• The Borrower Defense to Repayment Regulations were under litigation. As part of the settlement, ED must review and adjudicate applications submitted between June 23, 2022 and November 15, 2022 under the 2016 regulations. The electronic announcement details the notification process to schools, with all initial notifications due to be sent to schools by April 2024. Details of note include:

  • Schools will be notified prior before ED does a full investigation

  • Under the 2016 rules, schools may choose not to respond to any claims

  • Claims of substantial misrepresentation by the institution will only be approved if ED finds evidence the institution misrepresented itself and it was reasonable that the borrower relied on this misrepresentation to their detriment

  • ED will determine whether to recoup any costs from approved claims and will notify the school separately if it pursues action

• Schools may want to document any policies and procedures for how they address claims in section 17 of the P&P Builder

Electronic Announcement, 9/21/23 (GENERAL-23-77) -  Compliance with the Change in Ownership 90-Day Advance Notification

• Effective July 1, 2023, , institutions must notify ED at least 90 days before a proposed change in ownership, as well as enrolled and prospective students. This electronic announcement provides guidance on the temporary process institutions must follow to provide the 90-day notification.

Electronic Announcement, 8/24/23 (GENERAL-23-70) - FSA Enforcement Bulletin, August 2023 – Following an Enforcement Investigation, Federal Student Aid Reminds Schools to Ensure Programs are Properly Accredited Before Disbursing Funds

• This electronic announcement serves as a reminder to schools that under 34 CFR 600, institutions must be accredited or pre accredited (public or non-profit institutions) by a nationally recognized accrediting agency to participate in the Title IV aid programs. 

Electronic Announcement, 7/21/23 (CB-23-13) - Operational Information – Reporting Federal Work-Study Earnings to the COD System Using the Campus-Based XML Schema Version 1.0a

• Under the FAFSA Simplification Act, ED will use school-reported student level data for the FWS Program to aid in the calculation of the Student Aid Index (SAI) for aid recipients. This electronic announcement, in conjunction with the Volume 4 of the COD Technical Reference, provides information on what, who, and how this data is reported. 

Electronic Announcement, 6/14/23 (GENERAL-23-46) - Sunset of COVID-19 Waivers and Flexibilities

• There were waivers and flexibilities granted under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act. In short, anything under CARES has generally ended. Unless there were specific dates, some of the waivers or flexibilities allowed under HEROES may still be in place. The COVID-19 national emergency ended on April 10, 2023 and the COVID-19 public health emergency ended on May 11, 2023, which are also the trigger dates for the end of the different waivers and flexibilities. While not exhaustive, many items from the electronic announcement are summarized below: 

  • The waiver for students who withdrew as a result of the COVID-19 national emergency, ended with the payment period or period of enrollment which included May 11, 2023. 

  • The ability for an institution to exclude from the quantitative component of the satisfactory academic progress (SAP) calculation any attempted credits that were not completed by students due to COVID-19  ended at the end of the payment period that included May 11, 2023.

  • The ability to pay wages to Federal Work-Study employees whose employment was interrupted by the national emergency ended the earlier of June 30, 2023 or the payment period that included May 11, 2023. 

  • The various verification waivers were set to end after the first payment period that begins after April 10, 2023. 

  • Waivers for state authorization of distance education and for evaluation and accreditation of an institution’s effective delivery of distance education by a Department-recognized agency with accreditation of distance education in the scope of its recognition conclude at the end of an institution’s first payment period that begins after April 10, 2023.

Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) additional regulations in effect June 9, 2023

• 16 CFR 314.5 made sections 314.4(a), (b)(1), (c)(1) through (8), (d)(2), (e), (f)(3), (h), and (i) are effective as of June 9, 2023. This includes additional safeguards schools must have in place to protect the data of students, as well as additional requirements for risk assessments and testing of those safeguards. Other resources on the additional requirements under GLBA include:

  • FTC Safeguards Rule

  • Electronic Announcement, 2/9/23 (GENERAL-23-09)

  • Electronic Announcement, 2/28/20

GEN-23-09 - Accreditation and Eligibility Requirements for Distance Education

•  During the COVID-19 pandemic, ED allowed the broad approval to utilize distance education and waived the requirement for schools to be accredited for distance education by an agency recognized by ED as having distance education in its scope under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act. These requirements were waived until October 7, 2023, which is 180 days after the national emergency related to COVID-19 ended on April 10, 2023, in accordance with previously published requirements published in the Federal Register on December 11, 2020.

• Once a school has been granted approval to offer distance education by its institutional accrediting agency, it does not need additional accreditor approval, unless it meets what is referred to as the 50 percent threshold during an award year in which it:

  • offers at least 50 percent of a program through distance education, 

  • enrolls at least 50 percent of its students through distance education, or

  •  offers at least 50 percent of its courses through distance education.

• If a school meets the 50 percent threshold, it must be reviewed by its recognized institutional accrediting agency as a substantive change to program offerings, with exceptions noted in GEN-23-09. 

Please be sure to address these changes in your institutional P&P. The P&P Builder template for the 2023-24 award year will be updated and pushed out to all users with these references, as well as the complete 2023-24 FSA Handbook, in January 2024. 

November 2021

Policies & Procedures Builder Template Updated for 2021-22 Award Year

The Policies & Procedures (P&P) Builder, a module of NASFAA’s Compliance Engine, guides you step-by-step through the creation of a centralized, accessible policies and procedures manual. Due to the timing of the release of the P&P Builder template each year, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) may provide new guidance which affects the existing template. In response, updates will be made to the P&P Builder template. 

The P&P Builder template for the 2021-22 award year was released in July and it provides references to guidance related to the COVID-19 national emergency, as well as any regulatory changes effective July 1, 2021. However, since the publication of the P&P Builder template, an additional Federal Register with early implementation was released, though the regulations will not be effective for all until July 1, 2022. Please see it summarized below:

Federal Register, 8/23/2021 - Total and Permanent Disability Discharge of Loans Under Title IV of the Higher Education Act

• ED has exercised its authority under HEA 482(c) to implement the regulatory changes to 34 CFR 674, 682, and 685 early on September 30, 2021. 

  • Loan borrowers who qualify for total and permanent disability (TPD) through Social Security Administration (SSA) data may receive an automatic discharge. Eligible borrowers include those who are eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits whose next disability review is within five to seven years.

  • Changes in regulations clarify that borrowers with a TPD determination from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) or the SSA do not have to complete a TPD application to have Federal Student Loans discharged.

  • The Federal Register details the contents of the notice ED sends to eligible borrowers.

  • Borrowers may also receive loan payments back if those payments were made on or after the effective date of the automatic TPD discharge.

• Though early implemented, the regulations are not effective until July 1, 2022, so they are not reflected in the Electronic Code of  Federal Regulations. NASFAA’s Compiled Regulations will reflect the changes soon. 

December 2020

The Policies & Procedures (P&P) Builder, a module of NASFAA’s Compliance Engine, guides you step-by-step through the creation of a centralized, accessible policies and procedures manual. Due to the timing of the release of the P&P Builder template each year, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) may provide new guidance which affects the existing template. In response, updates will be made to the P&P Builder template. 

The P&P Builder template for the 2020-21 award year was released in August and it provides references to guidance related to the COVID-19 national emergency, as well as any regulatory changes effective July 1, 2020. However, since the publication of the P&P Builder template, two Federal Registers with options for early implementation were released, though the regulations will not be effective for all until July 1, 2021. Please see those summarized below:

Federal Register, 8/14/20 – Federal Perkins Loan Program, Federal Work-Study Programs, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant Program, Federal Family Education Loan Program, William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program, National Direct Student Loan Program, Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant Program, Federal Pell Grant Program, Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership Program, and Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs

• Schools may choose to early implement regulatory changes to 34 CFR 600, 674, 675, 676, 682, 685, 686, 690, 696, and 694 beginning August 14, 2020. 

• These regulations make it possible for members of religious orders who are also pursuing their postsecondary education at receive Title IV aid. Provisions which specified that members of religious orders are considered to be without financial need will be removed from 34 CFR 674.9, 675.9, 676.9, 682.310(a)(2), 685.200, and 690.75. 

  • Some borrowers who volunteer with tax-exempt organizations and/or work for employers who engage in religious instruction, worship services, and proselytizing may also now qualify for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).

• These regulations also revise the TEACH Grant Program. This includes clarifying how recipients may satisfy their service obligation, which now includes the ability to do so through educational service agencies which serves low-income students. TEACH Grant recipients may also request a reversal of a voluntary conversion from the grant to a Direct Unsubsidized Loan if the recipient can fulfill their service obligation. Additional information must also be required during initial, subsequent, and exit counseling for TEACH Grant recipients whose grants are converted to loans. The requirement to certify within 120 days of program completion that the grant recipient has begun qualifying service, has also been removed. For more information and analysis from NASFAA on the changes, please see NASFAA’s Today’s News article, “ED Publishes Final Regulations for TEACH Grant Program.” 

• Federal Register, 9/2/20 – Distance Education and Innovation

  • Schools have the option to early implement as of the date of publication of the Federal Register, September 2, 2020. 

  • Major changes to note include to return of Title IV funds regulations regarding modules, the expansion of subscription-based models to all types of programs, and satisfactory academic progress. 

    • Some changes of note under 668.22 include the fact that a student who has completed all requirements for graduation before completing the days or hours in the period which were scheduled, is no longer considered to have withdrawn. A student enrolled in a program offered in modules also may not be considered withdrawn if the student successfully completes one module that includes 49 percent or more of the number of days in the payment period or a combination of modules which combined, contain 49 percent or more of the number of days in the payment period, excluding scheduled breaks of five or more consecutive days and all days between modules. 

  • For a detailed summary of changes, please see the NASFAA’s Today’s News article, “ED Releases Final Regulations Aimed at Restructuring Regulations Related to Distance Education, R2T4 Module Provisions.”  NASFAA’s Compiled Regulations will be updated soon to reflect the changes to regulations. 

Check out the  P&P Builder Template Updates and Guidance Changes page to stay informed.

Publication Date: 11/29/2023