§1015a Transparency in college tuition for consumers

Summary

The Secretary of Education must put clear college price and consumer info on the College Navigator website and keep it updated. The law defines four short terms: College Navigator website (the Department’s public college site); cost of attendance (average yearly tuition, room, board, books, supplies, and travel for a first-time, full-time undergrad); net price (average yearly cost after subtracting grant aid); and tuition and fees (average annual tuition and fees for first-time, full-time undergrads). Beginning July 1, 2011, the Department must publish, by State and in nine institution categories (four-year public, four-year private nonprofit, four-year private for-profit, two-year public, two-year private nonprofit, two-year private for-profit, less-than-two-year public, less-than-two-year private nonprofit, less-than-two-year private for-profit), lists showing the top 5% highest tuition, top 5% highest net price, top 5% largest percentage increase in tuition over the most recent three academic years, top 5% largest percentage increase in net price over the most recent three years, the bottom 10% lowest tuition, and the bottom 10% lowest net price. Schools on the increase lists must send the Department a report explaining which budget areas rose the most, why, what steps they will take to cut costs, and progress if the school appears on the list again; if increases are set by others, the school must describe its role and name the responsible state agency. The Department updates lists every year. An institution is not put on an increase list if its dollar increase over three years is less than $600; that $600 is adjusted starting in 2014 and every three years using the Consumer Price Index. For public colleges, the cost, net price, and tuition calculations are for in-state students. By one year after August 14, 2008 (by August 14, 2009) the Department must build a net price calculator for individual students, and colleges that get federal funds must post a matching calculator on their websites within two years after the Department makes the tool available to institutions. Calculator estimates must say they are only estimates, are not final or binding, may change, and must tell students to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and provide a FAFSA link. The Department must also provide a multi-year tuition calculator within one year after August 14, 2008 that estimates yearly tuition across a program using recent tuition data and the school’s three-year trend, lets users change the growth rate, and handles multi-year tuition guarantee plans; it must be on College Navigator and include the same notices and FAFSA link. The Department must publish a wide range of annual facts for each college (mission, application and enrollment numbers, test-score ranges where required, enrollment by type, transfers, gender, residency and race breakdowns, disability registration (or “three percent or less”), graduation rates at normal time/150%/200%, degrees awarded and top majors, faculty counts and student–faculty ratio, cost of attendance on/off campus with in-state/out-of-state for public schools, average grant and loan amounts, total grant aid by source, percent of students getting aid, Pell Grant counts, cohort default rate, campus safety data, links to student services and policies, BLS starting salary link, pricing summary, and links to required reports and alternative tuition plans). The site must also list every participating institution with three most recent years of tuition and net price, net price by income groups ($0–30,000; $30,001–48,000; $48,001–75,000; $75,001–110,000; $110,001 and more) as required by the dates in the law, and average annual percentage and dollar changes for tuition and net price for the last three years. The Secretary must post State charts showing five-year changes in State spending per full-time equivalent student, tuition and fees, and State need- and merit-aid. The Commissioner for Education Statistics must run a State-by-State survey of federal aid recipients at least every four years and publish the results. The Secretary may issue rules needed to carry out these duties.