If you’re old enough, you may remember when “Schoolhouse Rock” taught us, with a catchy song, how a bill becomes a law. Unfortunately, there was no sequel about how a law is implemented. Maybe there aren’t enough words that rhyme with negotiated rulemaking. Although not in song, we’ll take a stab at explaining the process here, because we are about to experience it in real time as the statutes of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act are implemented.

When Congress enacts a law that changes or adds to the Higher Education Act, it includes language that authorizes the Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA) division to create regulations that determine how affected institutions will comply with the new law. FSA will determine the effective date of the new rule, provide guidance on how to comply, and share how oversight will be managed. However, there are several steps that must be completed before the rules are finalized.One Big Beautiful Bill Act

First, there is a period for public comments. A public hearing is held (these days it’s virtual) and members of the public are allowed to speak provided they register in advance and provide some logistical information (who they are and what times they will be available to speak the day of the hearing). They must also provide the topic or topics they plan to address. The public hearing for the changes enacted in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will be held on August 7, 2025. Those wanting to speak at the hearing must submit their request as indicated above no later than 12:00 p.m. Eastern time, July 28, 2025. Members of the public may also send commentary in writing via the Federal eRulemaking Portal. The deadline for written comments is August 25, 2025. Some suggestions for submitting comments include:

  • Include an explanation of why you are interested in the legislation and highlight your experience with the topic.
  • Clearly identify the part of the legislation about which you are commenting.
  • Provide evidence of the impact the regulation will have like additional costs or other unintended consequences.
  • Detail your suggestions for what you would change in the rule or another solution to the problem the rule is intended to solve.
  • Conclude with a recap of your main argument and restate your suggestions.

FSA will compile all the commentary from the public hearing and that provided in writing and present it to the teams conducting the negotiations. In this case there are two teams: one will negotiate the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) rules addressing changes to the Federal student loan programs including:

  • Phase-out of graduate and professional PLUS Loans.
  • Establishment of new annual loan limits for graduate and professional students and parent borrowers, and implementation of new lifetime borrowing caps.
  • Simplification of student loan repayment plans into a standard repayment plan and a single income-based Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) for new borrowers, elimination of the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) plan, and streamlining requirements for Income-Based Repayment plans for existing borrowers.
  • Institutional flexibility to apply lower annual limits for student and parent borrowers for selected programs of study.
  • Modifications to loan rehabilitation, including allowing defaulted borrowers to rehabilitate their loans a second time and setting minimum monthly payment amounts for such loans, phase-out of unemployment and economic hardship deferments, and limitations on a borrower’s ability to receive a general forbearance.
  • Other provisions included in Public Law 119-21 that are effective upon enactment, on July 1, 2026, on July 1, 2027, or on July 1, 2028.

The other team will negotiate the Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) rules addressing changes to institutional and programmatic accountability including:

  • Changes in institutional and programmatic accountability measures, including loss of Direct Loan eligibility for certain programs with low earnings outcomes for two out of three years, and Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
  • Establishment of program eligibility requirements for a new Workforce Pell Grant for students enrolled in programs that last a duration of 8-15 weeks, are transferable to a recognized postsecondary credential or degree, are approved by the state governor, and have strong outcomes.
  • Exclusion of Pell Grant assistance for students who receive grant or scholarship aid covering their entire cost of attendance or for students with a Student Aid Index in excess of twice the maximum Pell Grant award.
  • Other provisions included in Public Law 119-21 that are effective upon enactment, on July 1, 2026, on July 1, 2027, or on July 1, 2028.

FSA identifies, in general, which constituent groups will be represented on the two teams and participate in the negotiations, then accepts nominations from the public via email. The constituent groups for each are:

RISE AHEAD
Student loan borrowers in school; in repayment/deferment/forbearance; in delinquency; and in default Students currently enrolled and receiving assistance from the Title IV programs
Student loan borrowers who are veterans, active military or representative groups Students who are veterans, active military or representative groups
Legal assistance groups, consumer advocates, civil rights groups Employers or groups representing the business community
State officials Legal assistance, consumer advocates, civil rights groups
Public higher education institutions eligible to participate in Title III or Title V programs, Tribal and HBCU’s Public higher education institutions eligible to participate in Title III or Title V programs, Tribal and HBCU’s
Private non-profit higher education institutions eligible to participate in Title III or Title V programs, Tribal and HBCU Private non-profit higher education institutions eligible to participate in Title III or Title V programs, Tribal and HBCU’s
Proprietary institutions Proprietary institutions
Student loan servicers, collection agencies, lenders, guarantors State higher education executives, state grant agencies, state regulators, non-profit higher education finance agencies, accrediting agencies
Organizations representing taxpayers and the public interest Organizations representing taxpayers and the public interest

To nominate an individual for the RISE team, email nominationsfederalstudentloans @ed.gov and email negregnominations@ed.gov for the AHEAD team. Nominations are due by August 25, 2025 and must include which team and the constituency of which the nominee is a member. Nominations should also include the nominee’s place of employment or organizational representation, evidence of expertise (i.e., resume) and contact information. The negotiated rulemaking sessions are planned for the weeks of September 29, 2025, and November 3, 2025, for RISE and the weeks of December 8, 2025, and January 5, 2026, for AHEAD.

The committees will submit final reports at the end of negotiations which will have a summary of the issues addressed and indicate any areas of consensus reached. FSA will use these reports to draft Notices of Proposed Rulemaking that will be published in the Federal Register to open another period of public comment. As a result of the public commentary, FSA may choose to modify the proposed rule or publish it as proposed. The final rule will then be published outlining the regulatory changes and FSA will offer a response to the public comments. Once this happens, financial aid administrators will need to act to make the necessary changes in office policies and procedures to comply.

Change is hard. When the time comes, the Higher Education Assistance Group will be there for you and your staff. Our services include Interim Staffing, Business Process Review, Technology Assistance, Compliance Services, and more. Visit our website or email us at info@heag.us to learn more.

Sources:

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/07/25/2025-13998/public-hearing-negotiated-rulemaking-committees#dates

https://www.regulations.gov/assets/files/Public-Comment-on-Federal-Regulations_Final.pdf