DECIDE Act
- Bill Number
- S. 2700
- Origin Chamber
- Senate
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-09-03: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- Last Updated
- 2025-09-06T07:38:22Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose
The DECIDE Act aims to enhance transparency and accountability for federal student loan borrowers by requiring the U.S. Department of Education to provide more detailed, publicly accessible data on student outcomes, debt levels, and loan repayment. This helps prospective students and families make informed decisions about educational programs and institutions.
Key Provisions
- Expansion of the College Scorecard: The Secretary of Education must annually update the College Scorecard (or any similar tool) with new program-level and institution-level data for programs eligible for federal student aid, including certificates, degrees, graduate, and professional programs.
- Program-Level Data Requirements:
- Median annual earnings of students who received federal aid (such as Pell Grants or loans) for the program, measured 10 years after enrollment, regardless of whether they completed the program.
- Median debt from Federal Direct Stafford Loans for students who completed the program, at the time they enter repayment.
- For graduate or professional programs: Median debt from Graduate Federal Direct PLUS Loans for completers at repayment entry.
- Median debt from Parent Federal Direct PLUS Loans for completed programs where parents borrowed on behalf of students.
- Default rate (percentage of borrowers who fail to repay) for students who completed the program.
- Repayment rate (percentage of borrowers in positive repayment statuses, like making progress or paid in full, 2 years after entering repayment).
- Institution-Level Data Requirements:
- Overall cohort default rate (percentage of federal loan borrowers at the institution who default within a specific period, as defined in existing law).
- Overall repayment rate for federal student loans.
- Default and repayment rates specifically for Graduate Federal Direct PLUS Loans.
- Default and repayment rates specifically for Parent Federal Direct PLUS Loans.
- Definitions:
- Cohort default rate: As defined in current federal law (Higher Education Act), it measures the percentage of borrowers who default on federal loans within three years of entering repayment.
- Repayment rate: Focuses on federal loans from the same institution; excludes private loans and loans from other schools. Status categories include making progress, not making progress, deferment (temporary pause), paid in full, forbearance (another temporary pause), default, delinquent (late payments), or discharged (forgiven, e.g., due to disability).
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Builds on the Higher Education Act of 1965 by mandating more granular data disclosure beyond current College Scorecard features, which primarily offer high-level institution comparisons.
- Introduces program-specific earnings and debt metrics (e.g., 10-year earnings regardless of completion and specific PLUS loan data), which were not previously required at this level of detail.
- Shifts from aggregate institution data to include detailed program outcomes and parent/graduate loan specifics, promoting finer-grained accountability.
Potential Impacts
- On Government Agencies: The Department of Education will face increased administrative burdens to collect, verify, and annually update data from federal aid recipients, potentially requiring enhanced data systems and coordination with loan servicers.
- On Citizens: Prospective and current students, especially borrowers, gain better tools to evaluate program value (e.g., earnings vs. debt), which could reduce overborrowing and improve financial decision-making. Parents using PLUS loans benefit from clearer repayment insights.
- On International Relations: Minimal direct impact, though international students eligible for certain federal aid may indirectly benefit from improved U.S. higher education transparency, potentially affecting global perceptions of American colleges.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Students and Borrowers: Primary beneficiaries, with access to earnings, debt, and repayment data to inform choices and avoid high-debt, low-return programs.
- Higher Education Institutions: Face greater scrutiny; underperforming programs may see enrollment drops, pressuring schools to improve outcomes or disclose risks.
- Parents: Directly impacted via PLUS loan data, aiding decisions on financing children's education.
- Department of Education and Loan Servicers: Responsible for data implementation and reporting, with potential costs for compliance.
- Policymakers and Advocates: Gain data to address broader issues like student debt affordability and program quality.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal: Strengthens existing consumer protection frameworks under the Higher Education Act without creating new enforcement penalties, but could support future regulations (e.g., tying aid to performance metrics). Relies on administrative rulemaking for data categories, which may invite legal challenges over accuracy or privacy.
- Constitutional: No direct conflicts; aligns with government's role in regulating interstate commerce and education funding, while promoting free speech through transparent public information.
- Political: Encourages accountability in higher education spending amid debates on rising tuition and debt (totaling over $1.7 trillion nationally), potentially appealing to bipartisan efforts for fiscal responsibility. May highlight disparities in program quality, influencing future funding or reform discussions without mandating institutional changes.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (1)
Recent Actions
- 2025-09-03: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- 2025-09-03: Introduced in Senate
Bill Versions
- Debt, Earnings, and Cost Information Disclosure for Education Act — issued 2025-09-03 — PDF (4 pages)