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TODAY'S NEWS

today’s news for Monday, September 14, 2015

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NEWS FROM NASFAA

In a victory for students and college-access advocates, President Barack Obama yesterday announced that beginning with the 2017-18 school year, prior-prior year (PPY) tax information will be used on the FAFSA. NASFAA – along with higher education institutions, policy groups, and lawmakers – have long advocated for PPY. NASFAA has created two explanatory videos to help others understand this important policy change. Stay tuned to Today's News for PPY developments and updates.

After months of anticipation, the White House early Saturday morning released a new database of information on college student outcomes and loan repayment, as well as an updated College Scorecard designed to help students and families make better-informed decisions about choosing a college.

As Congress continues the process to reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA), the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance convened a meeting of experts to discuss potential suggestions for reform to include in a reauthorization bill. The committee held four panels, each focusing on a different aspect of higher education policy, such as access and completion, financial aid simplification, accountability, and consumer information.

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NASFAA is here to help you stay up to date on the top policy events occurring throughout the week in Washington, D.C. and, when applicable, across the country. Make sure to check back in to Today's News each morning for coverage of some of the events, and email us at [email protected] if you're aware of upcoming policy events that could be of interest to the financial aid community.

Congress:
The House is in session Monday through Wednesday. The Senate is in session Monday through Friday.

Tuesday:

Wednesday:

Thursday:

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

The COD Processing Update provides information related to COD System processing and includes the following sections: COD News and Updates, Current Issues (with a subsection for All Programs, Direct Loans, and Grants), and Reminders.

x - FEDERAL REGISTER

This notice sets forth the agenda for the December 16, 17, and 18, 2015, meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI), and provides information to members of the public on submitting written comments and on requesting to make oral comments at the meeting.

x - HEADLINES

National News

"The federal government, starting late next year, will allow students to apply for federal student aid based on their family’s income from two years earlier instead of the immediately previous year, the White House announced Sunday," Inside Higher Ed reports. NASFAA President Justin Draeger is quoted.

"Aspiring college students will be able to apply for federal financial aid three months earlier than now and submit a previous year's tax return, changes aimed at helping more people pay for school, the White House said Sunday," The Associated Press reports.

"Student loan borrowers can expect the interest rates of their current private loans to rise slightly once the Federal Reserve increases rates," The Street reports. "Although it is uncertain how much the Fed plans to hike interest rates, many experts have said they believe it will be 0.25%. While some experts still predict the rate hike will not take place until 2016, others say a hike could still occur this fall. The good news is that the majority of borrowers will only see a minimal increase in their monthly payments unless a particular graduate borrowed larger amounts."

"Ever since the U.S. Department of Education announced it would forgive the loans of thousands of students who attended Corinthian Colleges, there have been a lot of questions about when students do and don’t qualify for debt relief," MarketPlace reports. "The Education Department made first steps toward regulating student loan forgiveness on Wednesday, Politico reports. Hearings in Washington, D.C., and San Francisco will open up the discussion on regulating who should benefit."

"Stop the presses! Parents love their children! And a new study by mutual fund giant T. Rowe Price shows that Mom and Dad love their kids so much that many are willing to dip into their own retirement savings to help Junior pay for college," Investor's Business Daily reports.

State News

"The Texas State University System has an idea for future students busy with families and jobs: Don't even show up on campus freshman year," The Texas Tribune reports. "Starting next fall, the system plans to encourage nontraditional students to take free massive open online courses, known as MOOCs, before arriving on campus."

"Nebraska lawmakers on Thursday began looking at ways to make college more affordable in response to the rising cost of tuition, fees, textbooks, and room and board," The Associated Press reports. "College officials told the Legislature's Education Committee that Nebraska schools have fared well compared to most other states, but still face intense competition from outside colleges and universities."

"Utahns in large numbers support substantial increases in spending on public and higher education, a new poll shows," The Salt Lake Tribune reports.

Blogs & Think Tanks

"As the Perkins loan program comes back for reauthorization, 95 members of Congress, along with groups representing universities and colleges, are ready to defend it from Republican lawmakers who would like to eliminate it. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, advocates for streamlining student loans by eliminating Perkins and combining the student loan programs into one student loan program," Casey Quinlan writes for ThinkProgress.

"Nobody enjoys paying student loan debt. Now a new survey shows the lengths to which student debt holders would go to discharge their burdens," Jon Levine writes for Mic. "A poll of 200 users of the personal finance information website MyBankTracker found that 30% of respondents would be willing to sell an organ if it meant getting out of debt."

"Federal student loans made in recent years resemble the toxic subprime mortgage loans that helped cause the Great Recession, new data show," according to The Huffington Post.

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