Bills › 88th General Assembly
Establishing the office of student loan ombudsman within the college student aid commission
Topics:K–12 education
Same legislation: SF 539
Where it is now
- Done: IntroducedFebruary 19, 2019
- Done: SubcommitteeFebruary 21, 2019
- Done: Senate committeeMarch 7, 2019
- Skipped: Passes the SenateContinued as SF 539
- Next: House committee
- Next: Passes the House
- Next: To the Governor
- Next: Signed into law
Became SF 539 → Its progress continues under the new number. Go to SF 539 What’s a funnel?
What’s in it
This bill establishes an office of student loan ombudsman within the college student aid commission, which shall support, maintain, and designate a student loan ombudsman to administer the office. The duties of the student loan ombudsman include receiving and attempting to resolve student loan borrowers’ complaints; compiling and analyzing data on such complaints; assisting student loan borrowers to understand their rights and responsibilities; providing information to various entities regarding the problems and concerns of student loan borrowers; analyzing and monitoring the development and implementation of federal, state, and local requirements relating to student loan borrowers; disseminating information about the services offered by the office; establishing and maintaining a student loan borrower education course; and making recommendations as appropriate and taking other actions that fulfill the duties of the office.
Read the full explanation
16 relating to consumer fraud, the ombudsman shall submit information and findings to the commission and to the attorney general for further review and appropriate action. The ombudsman must also submit to the commission, by August annually, a report that describes the actions taken during the previous fiscal year, includes an assessment of office effectiveness, and provides recommendations for changes. The bill establishes definitions, including definitions for “postsecondary institution”, “servicing”, “student education loan”, and “student loan borrower”.
Senate subcommittee
Named February 21, 2019. It hasn’t reported yet.
Three legislators hear a bill first and recommend what the committee should do; it’s the best time to weigh in. How to take part
Fiscal note
AI summary Senate File 539 creates an Office of Student Loan Ombudsman within the College Student Aid Commission to help borrowers resolve complaints and understand their loan rights. This change is estimated to cost the State General Fund $105,000 in fiscal year 2020, with annual increases of 2.0% in following years.2
Read the fiscal note
Description
Senate File 539 establishes the Office of Student Loan Ombudsman within the College Student Aid Commission. The Bill sets out the duties of the Ombudsman, which include but are not limited to:
- Receiving complaints from student loan borrowers (borrowers) and reviewing and attempting to resolve those complaints.
- Compiling and analyzing data on borrower complaints.
- Assisting borrowers to understand their rights and responsibilities under the terms of their loans.
- Providing information to the public, agencies, the General Assembly, and others regarding problems and concerns of borrowers, and making recommendations to resolve such problems and concerns.
- Establishing and maintaining a borrower education course.
- Submitting an annual report to the College Student Aid Commission regarding actions taken by the Ombudsman during the previous fiscal year, the effectiveness of the Office, and recommendations for legislative or administrative action to improve the efficacy and responsiveness of the Office.
Assumptions
- The Office of the Student Loan Ombudsman will require the addition of 1.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) position to the staff of the College Student Aid Commission.
- The cost for salary, benefits, and overhead expenses for 1.0 FTE position is $105,000.
Fiscal Impact
The cost to the State General Fund to establish the Office of Student Loan Ombudsman within the College Student Aid Commission is estimated to be $105,000 in FY 2020, with annual increases of 2.0% in subsequent years.
Source
- College Student Aid Commission
- Student Loan Borrower's Bill of Rights · March 11, 2019
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88th General Assembly