DELAURO RESPONDS TO NEW EDUCATION REGULATIONS

Gainful Employment regulations will protect students and taxpayers

Washington, DC— Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-3), Ranking Member on the Labor, Education, Health, and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee, issued the following statement in response to the Department of Education’s new Gainful Employment regulations.

“I am pleased that the Department of Education has completed its rulemaking process on “gainful employment” and has issued a final rule to better protect students and taxpayers from for-profit schools that rely heavily on federal student aid programs but leave too many students deeply in debt with limited job prospects.

“There is no doubt that many for-profit institutions provide valuable educational services, including flexible programs tailored to the needs of students who are working and raising families. However, numerous studies and investigations have shown that some of these for-profit colleges and trade schools cause serious problems. According to the Education Department, for-profit institutions represent 12% of all higher education students but 46% of all student loan dollars in default. The rule published today makes significant concessions to objections raised by for-profit schools, but still represents a worthwhile step forward.

“The FY 2011 appropriations package passed by the House last February (H.R. 1) would have blocked the Department from issuing this rather modest rule. It is good that we were able to keep that prohibition out of the final version of the FY 2011 appropriations measure, so that the Department could go forward with this reasonable measure to hold schools accountable and reduce abuse of student aid programs.”