Higher Ed Policy Roundup: Vol. 9 - Issue 26

This Week In Washington

Late last week, the Education Department (ED) announced that it would be commencing negotiated rulemaking to begin the work of implementing the higher education provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). ED will convene two separate committees, the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee which will focus on "federal student loan-related changes" and the Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) Committee which will focus on "Workforce Pell, institutional and programmatic accountability, and other issues." Both committees will hold two five-day sessions. There will also be a virtual hearing on August 7 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm ET, and the public will have an opportunity to provide comments on the implementation of OBBBA through August 25, 2025. More information about the negotiated rulemaking sessions can be found in the Federal Register.

News You Can Use

Eight million borrowers in the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan could see an extra $3,500 in interest added to their student loans.

The National Association of College and University Business Officers shared concerns over OBBBA federal funding and policy changes.

Recent Legislation

The following bill(s) have been recently introduced for consideration by the 119th Congress (2025-26):

H.R.4806 – College Transparency Act [Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-8)] would establish a postsecondary student data system. A companion bill, S.2511, was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA).