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Is it in the Regs?Is it in the Regs?Well Maybe - Really?Well Maybe - Really?

Presenters:

David Gelinas

Steve Brooks Bill Zahn

NCASFAA Fall 2008

Winston Salem, NC

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It is in the regs - isn’t it?

It is in the regs - isn’t it?

Where can find it?

Where can find it?

andand

Where else can I look?

Where else can I look?

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I have a question. How do I find out the answer to my question?What does it mean? What is the real Question? Where can I find out what the Department means?We all have questions that come up from time to time about what we are doing or should be doing or … have done with Title IV.This is a general discussion and sharing of ideas, sources and maybe a few answers to those nagging issues.How did we get these rules, where to look, and what the #@*% do they mean? How we can influence what happens? Oh! And by the way how about those NC Regs – Well - Yaaah they are there too!

How can we find out?

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Laws and RegulationsLaws and Regulations

• Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended– The Law, created by Congress

• Regulations– Created by Department of Education (ED) and

others to implement the Law

• Dear Partner/Colleague Letters– Issued by ED to provide additional policy/guidance

• Electronic Announcements– Less formal information from ED to assist schools

FYI – where it startedFYI – where it started• The Higher Education Act of 1965 (Pub. L. No. 89-329) (the "HEA")

was legislation signed into United States law on November *, 1965 as part of President Lyndon Johnson's Great Society domestic agenda. The law was intended “to strengthen the educational resources of our colleges and universities and to provide financial assistance for students in postsecondary and higher education.” It increased federal money given to universities, created scholarships, gave low-interest loans for students, and established a National Teachers Corps. The "financial assistance for students" is covered in Title IV of the HEA.

• The Higher Education Act of 1965 was reauthorized in 1968, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1986, 1992, 1998, and 2008. Current authorization for the programs in the Higher Education Act expires at the end of 2013. Before each reauthorization, Congress amends additional programs, changes the language and policies of existing programs, or makes other changes.

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The LawThe Law

• Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended (HEA)– Referred to as HEA, statute, law– Authorizes federal student aid programs

• Available online on http://ifap.ed.govunder “Law and Regulations” section

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Law – the ProcessLaw – the Process

• Authorizing Legislation– Established HEA of 1965 as amended– Reauthorization changes/renews

authorizing legislation approximately every 5 years

• Appropriating Legislation– Funds the programs annually

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How the Law is NumberedHow the Law is Numbered

P.L. 105-244 (10/7/98) reauthorized the HEA

• Title IV, Part G - General Provisions• Subpart (Arabic numerals when used)• Section 484 - Student Eligibility• Subsection (c) - Satisfactory Progress

– Paragraph (1)– Subparagraph (A)– Division - lowercase Roman - (i), (ii), (iii)– Clause - uppercase Roman - (I), (II), (III)

– Example: Sec. 484(c)(1)(A)

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RegulationsRegulations

• Implement the Law

• Created by ED and financial aid community

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Formats for RegulationsFormats for Regulations

• Federal Registers – Includes regulatory language and additional

information

• Code of Federal Regulations– Compiles only the regulatory language

• Both formats available on http://ifap.ed.gov under “Laws and Regulations”

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Regulations – the ProcessRegulations – the Process

• Negotiated Rule Making – a review process that HEA requires for certain regulations – ED and community hold public meetings

• Comments used to develop proposed regulations

– Selected members of financial aid community meet to develop proposed regulations

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Regulations – the ProcessRegulations – the Process

• Regulations initially published in the Federal Register– Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)

• Comment periods 30, 45, 60, or 120 days

– Final Rules• Effective date 45-days following publication or• Later date published in Federal Register

– Notices

• Regulations compiled once a year– Links to new regulations on Web site

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Master CalendarMaster Calendar

Final regulation published by Nov. 1, 2008, becomes effective July 1, 2009 or in some cases sooner, if allowed

Nov 1, 2004

July 1, 2005

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How Regulations Are NumberedHow Regulations Are Numbered

• Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)– Title – Part– Subpart– Section – Explanatory Subsections

• (a)(1)(i)(A)

• Example - Standards of Administrative Capability - 34 CFR 668.16

34 CFR

668.16

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FSA Program RegulationsFSA Program RegulationsPart

8699

600668673674675676682685690691692

SubjectDrug Free Schools and CampusesFamily Educational Rights and PrivacyInstitutional EligibilityStudent Assistance General ProvisionsGeneral Provisions for Perkins, FWS, FSEOGFederal Perkins Loan ProgramFederal Work-Study ProgramSupplemental Educational Opportunity Grant ProgramFederal Family Education Loan ProgramWilliam D. Ford Federal Direct Student Loan ProgramFederal Pell Grant ProgramACG and National SMART Grant ProgramsLeveraging Educational Assistance Partnership Program

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Dear Colleague/Partner LettersDear Colleague/Partner Letters

• Provide clarifying guidance– Q&A’s – Technical information– Introduce new rules– Explain rules in existence

GENPELL

ANN

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Dear Partner/Colleague LettersDear Partner/Colleague Letters

– ANN Training Announcements– CB Campus-based Programs Letters– FP Financial Partners Letters (FFEL

Loans)– GEN General Distribution Letters– LEAPLeveraging Educational Assistance

Partnership Letters– P Pell Grant Program– DLB Direct Loan Bulletins

http://ifap.ed.gov

ResourcesResources

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Note that this is Title 34 of the regulations

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http://www.gpoaccess.gov/CFR/Additional Resources

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Additional ResourcesAdditional Resourceshttp://www.nchelp.org/

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http://ifap.ed.gov/IFAPWebApp/index.jsp

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Go here for theDepartment of Education connections

You can get to the FSA Handbooks from here too

ResourcesResources

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http://www.tgslc.org/policy/intreg.cfm

ResourceResource

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This site can provide you with an additionalresource venue

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Additional ResourcesAdditional Resources

• http://ifap.ed.gov– Electronic announcements– Handbooks

• http://fsa4schools.ed.gov– Contacts

• Call centers by topic

State ProgramsState Programs

• Significant source of funding

• Relatively simple rules and regulations

• Attempt is made to build on federal rules where feasible

State Law is FoundationState Law is Foundation

• General Statutes

• Session Law

• Sometimes a program is begun via session law/appropriations bill and then just continued as a budget line item without further legislative action

SEAA InvolvementSEAA Involvement

• 7 member Board of Directors, appointed by Governor for four year terms

• Board adopts regulations for most programs

• Regulations include “interpretive guidance” that has force of regulations

• Regulations govern the programs unless in conflict with statute

RegulationsRegulations

• Available from SEAA:http://www.ncseaa.edu/Program_Rules_Regulations.htm

• Also administrative procedures are available on CFNC.org:

http://www.cfnc.org/home/info_faa.jsp

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The objective of a dedicated Financial Aid employee should be to thoroughly analyze all situations; anticipate all problems prior to their occurrence; have answers for these problems and move swiftly to solve these problems when called upon-

However when up to you’re backside in alligators it is difficult to remind yourself that your initial objective was to drain the swamp.