Delaware News

Attorney General Biden urges the U.S. Senate to pass legislation to protect students

Consumer Protection | Department of Justice | Department of Justice Press Releases | Date Posted: Thursday, June 21, 2007



Wilmington, DE – Attorney General Joseph R. Biden, III, joined by Attorneys General from 30 states and the District of Columbia, has urged the U.S. Senate to enact The Student Loan Sunshine Act,
federal legislation designed to safeguard students from deceptive practices in the college loan
industry.
In a letter to Majority Leader, Senator Harry Reid, Minority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, Senator
Edward Kennedy, Chairman of the Senate Education Committee and Senator Michael Enzi, the
ranking member of the Committee, the Attorneys General requested that the Senate pass The
Student Loan Sunshine Act without delay. Starting this week the Senate Education Committee will
consider the Higher Education Amendments of 2007, during which The Student Loan Sunshine Act is
expected to be offered.
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed this legislation in a near unanimous vote of 414-
3.
“Two-thirds of students rely on loans to finance their college education,” Attorney General Biden
stated. “Students and their families need to have access to unbiased information from schools and
lenders in order to make informed borrowing decisions. This legislation imposes appropriate new
procedures to ensure fairness and transparency across the student loan industry.”
The Student Loan Sunshine Act requires every school that participates in the Title IV program or has
students obtaining private educational loans to adopt a Code of Conduct. The legislation will restore
trust in schools by banning gifts from lenders, participation in lenders’ advisory boards, revenue
sharing between schools and lenders, and staffing of school financial aid offices by lenders.
In addition, the legislation:
• Requires that schools’ “Preferred Lender Lists” be created with only students’ best interests in
mind.
• Ensures access to any lender, whether or not they appear on preferred lender lists.
• Provides oversight of lenders offering private loans.
• Requires schools to disclose federal loan options before students take out private loans.
• Compels lenders and institutions to fully disclose terms, conditions and incentives for all loans.
# # #

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Attorney General Biden urges the U.S. Senate to pass legislation to protect students

Consumer Protection | Department of Justice | Department of Justice Press Releases | Date Posted: Thursday, June 21, 2007



Wilmington, DE – Attorney General Joseph R. Biden, III, joined by Attorneys General from 30 states and the District of Columbia, has urged the U.S. Senate to enact The Student Loan Sunshine Act,
federal legislation designed to safeguard students from deceptive practices in the college loan
industry.
In a letter to Majority Leader, Senator Harry Reid, Minority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, Senator
Edward Kennedy, Chairman of the Senate Education Committee and Senator Michael Enzi, the
ranking member of the Committee, the Attorneys General requested that the Senate pass The
Student Loan Sunshine Act without delay. Starting this week the Senate Education Committee will
consider the Higher Education Amendments of 2007, during which The Student Loan Sunshine Act is
expected to be offered.
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed this legislation in a near unanimous vote of 414-
3.
“Two-thirds of students rely on loans to finance their college education,” Attorney General Biden
stated. “Students and their families need to have access to unbiased information from schools and
lenders in order to make informed borrowing decisions. This legislation imposes appropriate new
procedures to ensure fairness and transparency across the student loan industry.”
The Student Loan Sunshine Act requires every school that participates in the Title IV program or has
students obtaining private educational loans to adopt a Code of Conduct. The legislation will restore
trust in schools by banning gifts from lenders, participation in lenders’ advisory boards, revenue
sharing between schools and lenders, and staffing of school financial aid offices by lenders.
In addition, the legislation:
• Requires that schools’ “Preferred Lender Lists” be created with only students’ best interests in
mind.
• Ensures access to any lender, whether or not they appear on preferred lender lists.
• Provides oversight of lenders offering private loans.
• Requires schools to disclose federal loan options before students take out private loans.
• Compels lenders and institutions to fully disclose terms, conditions and incentives for all loans.
# # #

image_printPrint


Graphic that represents delaware news on a mobile phone

Keep up to date by receiving a daily digest email, around noon, of current news release posts from state agencies on news.delaware.gov.

Here you can subscribe to future news updates.