October 2009

By Robert Powell, MDHE Policy Analyst

A brief summary of financial aid related national news items is listed here, along with links for further information.

SAFRA passes in House, now in the hands of the Senate

On Sept. 17, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3221, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2009 (SAFRA)  by a vote of 253 Ayes to 171 Nays. The bill is currently awaiting action with the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. The House version of this bill would enact major changes to the Pell, Perkins, FFEL and Direct Loan programs.

Volumes 3 & 6 of the 2009-2010 FSA Handbook released

In September and October, The USDE released the final two volumes of the 2009-2010 Federal Student Aid (FSA) Handbook. These volumes incorporate the recent statutory changes from the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA).

Volume 3 - Calculating Awards & Packaging
Volume 6 - Managing Campus-Based Programs

The USDE also released in October, the 2009-2010 Counselors and Mentors Handbook on Federal Student Aid.

FY 2007 Official Cohort Default Rates released

The FY 2007 official cohort default rates were released on Sept. 14, 2009.  In conjunction with this, the USDE also released a briefing on the national default rates and announced the availability of the Electronic Cohort Default Rate Appeals Process Release 2.2.

USDE announces establishment of negotiated rulemaking committees

On Sept. 9, 2009, the USDE published a notice regarding the establishment of two negotiated rulemaking committees.  The first team will deal program integrity issues while the second team will address foreign school issues.

Department issues guidance regarding minor prior year charges

On Sept. 8, 2009, the USDE issued Dear Colleague Letter GEN-09-11 regarding minor prior year charges. The letter is in response to questions regarding compliance with regulatory changes made to the minor prior year provision effective July 1, 2008. The change increased from $100 to $200 the maximum amount of prior year charges that may be paid with current year funds, but removed the provision that allowed an institution to pay for prior year charges above that amount under certain circumstances.

Revised Perkins MPN released

The revised version of the Perkins Master Promissory Note and Addendum is now available, and the implementation deadline for the revised MPN is Dec. 31, 2009. More information is available in the following Dear Colleague Letters:  CB-09-05, CB-09-06  and  CB-09-07

Draft FAFSA and SAR available for public comment

The USDE has released draft versions of the 2010-2011 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and Student Aid Report (SAR) for public comment.