[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 111 (Wednesday, June 10, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32944-32945]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-14184]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[Docket No.: ED-2015-ICCD-0072]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request;
Borrower Defenses against Loan Repayment
AGENCY: Federal Student Aid (FSA), Department of Education (ED).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 3507(j)), ED is requesting the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) to conduct an emergency review of a new information collection.
DATES: An emergency review has been requested in accordance with the
Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 3507 (j)), due to an unanticipated event.
Approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has been
requested by June 4, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Comments submitted in response to this notice should be
submitted electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
http://www.regulations.gov by selecting Docket ID number ED-2015-ICCD-
0072 or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. If the
regulations.gov site is not available to the public for any reason, ED
will temporarily accept comments at [email protected]. Please note
that comments submitted by fax or email and those submitted after the
comment period will not be accepted; ED will ONLY accept comments
during the comment period
[[Page 32945]]
in this mailbox when the regulations.gov site is not available. Written
requests for information or comments submitted by postal mail or
delivery should be addressed to the Director of the Information
Collection Clearance Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400
Maryland Avenue SW, LBJ, Mailstop L-OM-2-2E319, Room 2E103, Washington,
DC 20202.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to
collection activities, please contact Colleen McGinnis, (202) 377-4330.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in
the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed
information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The
Department of Education is especially interested in public comment
addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to
the proper functions of the Department; (2) will this information be
processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden
accurate; (4) how might the Department enhance the quality, utility,
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the
Department minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents,
including through the use of information technology. Please note that
written comments received in response to this notice will be considered
public records.
Title of Collection: Borrower Defenses Against Loan Repayment.
OMB Control Number: 1845-NEW.
Type of Review: A new information collection.
Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 150,000.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 150,000.
Abstract: This is a request for an emergency collection to
facilitate the collection of information for borrowers who believe they
have cause to invoke the borrower defenses against repayment of a loan
as noted in regulation. This collection includes Web site language that
will provide minimum information that requests need to include for
consideration as well as a separate specific attestation form. These
processes are being offered to aid in preserving borrowers' rights and
to meet the fiduciary responsibilities of the federal student loan
programs. These collections will allow the Department of Education to
inform borrowers and loan servicers of the information needed to review
and adjudicate requests for relief under borrower defenses regulations.
Additional Information: Section 455(h) of the Higher Education Act
of 1965, as amended (20 U.S.C. 1087e(h) provides that the U.S.
Department of Education (Department) defines by regulation which claims
against a school constitute defenses to repayment of a loan under the
Federal Direct Loan (Direct Loan) program. Following a negotiated
rulemaking process, the Department published amendments to the Direct
Loan program regulations on December 1, 1994. These regulations
included borrower defenses specified in 34 CFR 685.206(c). The
regulation, in part, states ``(c)(1) [i]n any proceeding to collect on
a Direct Loan, the borrower may assert as a defense against repayment,
an act or omission of the school attended by the student that would
give rise to a cause of action against the school under applicable
State law.'' Prior to 2015, the borrower defense identified above was
rarely asserted by any borrowers and no specific methods of collecting
information was defined or found necessary. In the 20 years prior, the
Department received 5 claims for borrower defense. Over the last
several months, the Department has received over 1000 such claims due
to a building debt activism movement as well as the notoriety of
Corinthian's collapse, creating a need for a clearer process for
potential claimants. This exponential increase in demand was unexpected
and outside of the Department's control.
Dated: June 5, 2015.
Stephanie Valentine,
Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Office of
the Chief Privacy Officer, Office of Management.
[FR Doc. 2015-14184 Filed 6-9-15; 8:45 am]
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