(2017-1076-F) 1998 Higher Education Act Reauthorization

The materials in FOIA 2017-1076-F are a selective body of documents responsive to the topic of the FOIA. Researchers should consult the archivist about related material. During the Clinton Administration the 1998 Higher Education Act Reauthorization became law with the President’s signature on October 7th. It stipulated that the student loan interest rate would be dramatically slashed, disadvantaged children would receive special treatment to help prepare them for college, teacher preparation and recruitment would be overhauled and improved in all areas, high quality distance education would be the recipient of extensive promotion, and the governing and control of this entire system would be modernized. The low interest rate on new college loans was extended an additional five years. This rate stayed at 7.46%, down from 8.25%. Borrowers with these loans had a window of four months to refinance and save money; in most cases the savings could be as high as $700 over a ten-year repayment period. Pell Grants, utilized by many low-income undergraduate students, received a lot of scrutiny in the new bill. Imposition of time limits on eligibility for this type of financial aid created an environment where quick completion of a college education became a priority. Generally, Pell Grants must be combined with scholarships and other types of assistance in order for a student to get the funds needed to graduate from college. Within the Department of Education, provision was made to speed up and modernize the system for the delivery of student aid. An outgrowth of Vice President’s Gore Reinventing Government initiative, this Performance-Based Organization (PBO) would be headed up by an executive well versed in financial services and information technology. Reporting directly to the Secretary of Education, the individual would wield increased administrative flexibility and accountability. Simplification of the loan application process for students was a major benefit of the PBO. The new procedures would allow utilization of the Free Application for Student Financial Aid (FAFSA) as a method of applying for a loan in the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program, which could be acquired in Direct Lending. Another aspect of the trimmed down system was the ability to use a master promissory note for FFEL and Direct Loans. A major change in the 1998 Re-authorization bill was an amendment called the Aid Elimination Provision that prevents students with prior drug charges from receiving any kind of federal aid to colleges and universities. Conviction of a drug crime while the recipient of federal financial aid probably disqualifies the applicant from getting any further assistance of this kind. Responsive documents come from the WHORM (White House Office of Records Management)-Subject File-General and the White House Staff and Office files. The primary record from the Subject File is a speech President Clinton gave on October 7, 1998 in the East Room of the White House for the signing of the Higher Education Act Reauthorization. At least 7 pages of his remarks contain handwritten changes. Also included in this material extra copies of the speech (with no mark-ups), a memo to the President from Jacob Lew, Director of the Office of Management and Budget detailing the major provisions of the law, and an attachment outlining significant add-ons to the legislation. The files of Bob Shireman of the National Economic Council contain the majority of the relevant records in the White House Staff and Office files. Documents to be opened include memoranda, newspaper articles, handwritten notes, charts, reports, papers, correspondence, press releases, copies of parts of the Reauthorization bill, drafts, faxes, emails, suggested revisions, testimony, magazine articles, and agendas. Shireman often makes substantive comments about various portions of the proposed law. For instance, in an email dated August 28, 1997, he has this to say pertaining to Title V: That and the many other very detailed provisions in this bill lead me to advise strongly that the legislative language be cut by about 80%. This is a bad habit we have, and it’s time to stop. Just because Congress has always wanted to micro- manage ED programs doesn’t mean we have to invite them to do so. Shireman addresses the budget issue in HEA in a July 23, 1998 memo to Gene Sperling. He declares: “I do not expect that Congress will be able to fully fund the HEA bill under OMB scoring—it could be about $1 billion short over 5 years.” Throughout the collection reports can be found dealing with the 1998 Higher Education Act Reauthorization. “Recommendations for Reauthorization of Title IV Loan Programs” has been prepared by the Loans Authorization Policy Group (February 1997). There is “Preliminary Recommendations of NASFAA (National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators) Reauthorization Task Force” Part Two (February 1997). In addition, there are reports and papers from inside the government. Issue papers composed by staffers of the Department of Education get entitled as follows: “Type of Issue: Composition of 1999 Budget package, and tactical strategies for presenting these to Congress;” “Issue Paper 9: Student Loan Programs.” Another report from the same source is entitled “Incarcerated Students and the Federal Pell Grant Program.” Correspondence contains reauthorization recommendations and can originate both from within and outside the government. The Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, an independent source that came into existence in 1986, sent a letter to to the Congressional Committee on Education and the Workforce in 1997 in which it asked for improvements in access, the upgrading of application and eligibility determination, changes in loan programs, and a complete overhaul of management, systems, and contracts. Secretary of Education Richard Riley wrote to Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (Rep.-Miss.) requesting that careful attention be paid to the “Higher Education Amendments of 1998.” He elaborated on the Department’s position relating to the central issues of teacher education, Pell Grants, the FFEL Program, and the Federal Direct Loan Program. All of the newspaper articles come from The Chronicle of Higher Education. They run from 1997-1998 and deal with a wide spectrum of problems including the need for Congress to raise limits on student borrowing, the current state of teacher education, and the lukewarm reception college lobbyists have given the 1998 Higher Education Act Reauthorization. Most of the handwritten notes come from meetings of key officials concerning points to be taken into consideration when arriving at a final version of the Reauthorization bill. Loan forgiveness, manageability, accountability, repayment, performance based ideas, loan forgiveness and welfare recipients, and consolidation rate are some of the things discussed. Like handwritten notes, email was often exchanged between Bob Shireman, and staff from the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Domestic Policy, and Department of Education. Also, like many of the hand written notes, topics associated with the Higher Education Act (HEA) reauthorization discussed in email are loan forgiveness for community service and loan consolidation. Other topics concerning the HEA discussed concern Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. Emails contain Legislative Reports, Administrative Policy Initiatives, and Congressional Testimony. One of the most substantive emails in the collection contains a set of HEA documents prepared by the Department of Education for transmittal to Congress. The set of HEA documents include testimony, impact of student loans, HEA student loan proposals, a distance learning report, and the transmission letter to Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.