Consumer Disclosure Proposals
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Transcript of Consumer Disclosure Proposals
Consumer Disclosure Proposals
Presented by the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators
Current Consumer Disclosure Climate
• Major focus in Washington on consumer disclosure for students & families
• Numerous proposals regarding award letters and consumer disclosures
• Proposals contain overlaps in goals, mandates, and public outreach
Recent Proposals
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College Scorecard
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Shopping Sheet
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Shopping Sheet Details
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• NASFAA has been in constant communication with ED, White House & CFPB on the issue
• NASFAA appreciates that the Shopping Sheet is voluntary, but remains concerned about the inflexible nature:– One size fits all for every sector and type of student
– Does not allow for information to tailor information to the unique needs of their students
– Comparative information has potential to be inaccurate and misleading
Shopping Sheet- Next Steps
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• As of end of September, 316 institutions had officially “signed on”—though many had done so de facto through their commitment to the VA Principles of Excellence
• NASFAA remains in discussions with key stakeholders related to how the sheet can be improved
• NASFAA Consumer Testing of Award Letters
Comparison Worksheet
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Senator Franken’s Award Letter Standardization Bill
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Senator Blumenthal’s Consumer Disclosure Bill
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Federal Model Award Offer Forum
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Principles of Excellence (Shopping Sheet Provision)
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Recommendations from NASFAA Award Letter Task Force
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NASFA Award Letter Task Force Recommendations
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1. Include 10 core elements:– Cost of Attendance
– Scholarship & Grant Awards
– Net Costs After Gift Aid
– Self-Help Options
– Assumptions (enrollment status; housing, etc.)
– Link to Total Debt Aggregator
– Link to Consumer Information Disclosures
– Link to Glossary of Terms and Definitions
– Contact Information for the Financial Aid Office
– Deadlines and Next Steps
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2. Components of COA should be broken down into:
– Direct Costs
– Indirect Costs
3. Students should be informed of the potential debt they may incur at a college before paying the enrollment deposit
4. Award notifications should provide enrolled students with their cumulative loan history
NASFA Award Letter Task Force Recommendations
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NASFA Award Letter Task Force Recommendations
5. The U.S. Department of Education should mandate that there be a central loan database (aggregator) where students can see all—federal and private—loans.
6. Each award letter should link to school-created web resource that contains links to additional information
Where to go from here?
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• With so many proposals addressing the same issues and large amounts of redundancy:– Create a dialogue to combine/analyze the
numerous options– Conduct actual consumer testing so that
measures of usability and comprehension are a part of discussions
– Focus attention on the need to eliminate and/or streamline existing efforts before introducing new