What You Need To Know
Last week, AACS representatives met with Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (“OIRA”) to discuss the impact that the Department’s Proposed Rule on Program Integrity and Institutional Quality will have on the beauty, barber, and wellness industry. Other interested parties, such as the American Association of Community Colleges (“AACC”), also met with OIRA and similarly expressed concern over the Department’s potential inclusion of provisions which disallow asynchronous distance learning in clock hour programs. Yesterday, OIRA approved the Proposed Rule and it will now be sent back to the Department, where the Department has indicated that it will publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (”NPRM”) this week. As stated by Under Secretary James Kvaal in his blog post on the Department’s website,
This package of proposed rules will update and improve outdated processes, consolidate rules, and establish more consumer-friendly policies for students to access the aid to which they are entitled. The NPRM will also propose improvements to how institutions report enrollment in distance education programs to get better data on the outcomes of students who attend those types of programs and help the Department more accurately determine eligibility for closed school loan discharges. Additionally, the proposed rule will address eligibility for certain Federal TRIO programs.
The Proposed Rule includes regulations on the following topics: Distance Education, Return of Title IV, HEA Funds, and Federal TRIO Programs.
The draft language for the Proposed Rule was formed via the Negotiated Rulemaking Committee process, which held three sessions between January and March, 2024. The Department considered two proposals that particularly impact AACS members: (i) disallow asynchronous distance learning in clock hour programs that participate in Title IV federal student aid programs; and (ii) the exclusion of books and supplies (which includes kits for beauty, barber, and wellness institutions) from the definition of “tuition, fees and institutionally provided food and housing.” The negotiators did not reach consensus on either issue. In the Negotiated Rulemaking process, once negotiations have concluded, if consensus language is reached on a particular provision, the Department is required to use that regulatory language in its NPRM. As consensus was not reached, the Department may use regulatory language developed during the negotiations as the basis for its NPRM, or develop new regulatory language for all or a portion of its NPRM.
Why This is Important to You
Once the Department publishes the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, all parties will have the opportunity to submit a public comment on the draft language of the rule. The two provisions referenced above may significantly impact AACS member institutions. As to the regulation on asynchronous distance learning, those cosmetology schools that have incorporated asynchronous distance learning into their programs will lose that flexibility.
The proposed changes to the definitions of “books and supplies” prohibits institutions from automatically charging students for books and supplies without initially providing students with an option to purchase these items from a third-party. Students will still have the option to “opt-in” and purchase the items directly from the institution.
For more information: Update on Department of Education’s Postsecondary Education Regulatory Work | 
