Government Affairs

UPCEA helps provide colleges and universities in the online and professional continuing education field with advocacy and information on regulation and legislation. UPCEA builds greater awareness of the vital link between contemporary learners and public policy issues.

Department Publishes Borrower Defense to Repayment Regulations

October 31, 2016

On November 1, 2016, the U.S. Department of Education announced final regulations to protect student borrowers against misleading and predatory practices by postsecondary institutions and clarify a process for loan forgiveness in cases of institutional misconduct. According to the Department: The final regulations include key provisions from the proposed regulations that will protect the rights of…

UPCEA Joins Multiple Distance Ed Orgs to Offer State Authorization Comments

August 24, 2016

UPCEA co-signed, with a coalition of other organizations with a direct interest in distance education, a letter commenting on the Department of Education’s proposed regulations on state authorization. UPCEA joined along with five other non-profit organizations garnering a collective total of more than 1,000 institutions innovating in offering distance education, the leading organization in higher…

Department of Education Releases Proposed Rules on State Authorization

July 22, 2016

The Department of Education released Friday July 22 their proposed regulations on State Authorization, following an earlier failure to reach consensus as part of negotiated rule making. State authorization for distance education — the proposed regulation for institutions administering a program in which a distance or online education student is present in another state. The administration has proposed…

ED Issues Proposed Rules on Borrower Defense to Repayment

June 16, 2016

The Department of Education has released proposed regulations on Borrower Defense to Repayment, a mechanism which would allow any student who believe they were defrauded at their school or the school violated state law, to file a claim with the Department of Education for discharging their loans. These proposed rules have come from the Department…