Je veux savoir à propos de…

jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with RULES

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 160 / Monday, August 23, 2021 / Rules and Regulations data. Borrowers who qualify for TPD
through Social Security Administration SSA data are those who are eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance SSDI and/or Supplemental Security Income SSI benefits and whose next scheduled disability review is no earlier than five nor later than seven years;
Clarify that borrowers determined to be eligible for a TPD discharge based on data that the Secretary obtains from the Department of Veterans Affairs VA
or the SSA are not required to submit a TPD application to have their Federal student loans discharged;
Describe the process by which the Secretary will automatically discharge the Federal student loans of a borrower who is determined to be eligible for a TPD discharge based on data obtained from either VA or the SSA, unless the borrower notifies the Secretary by a specified date that the borrower does not wish to receive the discharge;
Specify the contents of the notice the Secretary sends to borrowers who are determined to be eligible for a TPD
discharge based on data that the Secretary obtains from VA or from the SSA; and Provide for the return of payments to the person who made payments on the loan on or after the effective date of the determination by VA or SSA for borrowers who receive the automatic TPD discharge.
Authority for this Regulatory Action:
Section 410 of the General Education Provisions Act provides the Secretary with authority to make, promulgate, issue, rescind, and amend rules and regulations governing the manner of operations of, and governing the applicable programs administered by, the Department. 20 U.S.C. 1221e3.
Furthermore, under section 414 of the Department of Education Organization Act, the Secretary is authorized to prescribe such rules and regulations as the Secretary determines necessary or appropriate to administer and manage the functions of the Secretary or the Department. 20 U.S.C. 3474. Under 20
U.S.C. 1087a1FFEL, 20 U.S.C.
1087ab2Direct Loans, and 20 U.S.C.
1087ddc1FiiPerkins, the Department has authority to cancel or discharge certain loans due to a total and permanent disability.
Costs and Benefits: Veterans and recipients of SSDI and/or SSI benefits who qualify for a TPD discharge will benefit from these final regulations.
Qualifying veterans and recipients of SSDI and/or SSI benefits will be relieved of a financial burden related to Federal student loans, including the stress associated with repayment or potential defaults and collections. This
VerDate Sep<11>2014

16:11 Aug 20, 2021

Jkt 253001

final rule should result in a quicker, more efficient process and many more qualified borrowers receiving the discharge to which they are legally entitled. In addition, the paperwork burden will be reduced as no application will be needed for borrowers who qualify for an automatic TPD discharge.
Implementation Date of These Regulations: Section 482c of the HEA
requires that regulations affecting programs under title IV of the HEA be published in final form by November 1, prior to the start of the award year July 1 to which they apply. However, that section also permits the Secretary to designate any regulation as one that an entity subject to the regulations may choose to implement earlier, as well as the conditions of early implementation.
The Secretary is exercising his authority under section 482c of the HEA to designate the regulatory changes to parts 674, 682, and 685 of the Code of Federal Regulations included in this document for early implementation effective September 30, 2021. The Secretary takes this action for the reasons set forth in the Summary, Background, and Need for Regulatory Actions sections included in this document.
Public Comments: When the IFR was published in the Federal Register on November 26, 2019 84 FR 65000, the Department requested public comment on whether we should make any changes to the interim final regulations.
We received 18 comments. The final regulations include changes from the IFR.
We group major issues according to subject, with appropriate sections of the regulations referenced in parentheses.
We discuss other substantive issues under the sections of the regulations to which they pertain. Generally, we do not address minor, non-substantive changes, or recommended changes that the law does not authorize the Secretary to make.
Analysis of Comments and Changes:
An analysis of the comments and of the changes in the regulations since publication of the IFR follows.
General Comments Comments: Commenters were generally supportive of the provision added by the IFR stating that veterans who are identified as eligible for TPD
discharge based on data that the Secretary obtains from VA are not required to provide any additional documentation to have their loans automatically discharged, noting it reduces burden on disabled veterans.
Several commenters explained that
PO 00000

Frm 00021

Fmt 4700

Sfmt 4700

46973

many disabled veterans lack a supportive caregiver who can assist them in the application process and ensure that they understand the implications of not having their Federal student loans discharged. The commenters further noted that many veterans who received letters notifying them that they were eligible for discharge, and that to receive the discharge they needed only to sign and submit a TPD discharge application, failed to subsequently submit an application. These commenters stated that these veterans are clearly eligible for the discharge, and they are pleased that the Department is making it easier for them to have their loans discharged.
Discussion: We thank the commenters for their support. We note that the IFR, which provided that veterans identified as TPD based on data obtained from VA
are not required to submit additional documentation to have their loans discharged, may not have made it sufficiently clear that additional documentation meant a TPD discharge application. Therefore, we are clarifying this point in the final regulations.
Changes: In final 674.61d, 682.402c10, and 685.213d, we have clarified that a borrower who qualifies for a TPD discharge based on data obtained from VA or from the SSA is not required to submit a TPD
application, or any other documentation of eligibility for discharge.
Comments: One commenter expressed concern that the automatic discharge process was paused because the regulations that were previously in effect required borrowers to submit a discharge application. Another commenter asked that the Department provide a copy of the Office of Management and Budget memo that determined rulemaking was required before the Department could discharge veterans loans without an application.
Discussion: As we explained in the IFR, former Secretary Betsy DeVos exercised her authority under section 482c of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended HEA, to designate the regulatory changes to parts 674, 682, and 685 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as reflected in the IFR, for early implementation effective immediately. Accordingly, the automatic TPD discharge process for veterans identified as eligible for discharge based on data obtained from VA was implemented immediately upon publication of the IFR.
We have forwarded the request for the Office of Management and Budget memo to the Departments Freedom of Information Act FOIA Service Center.
All FOIA requests made to the
E:FRFM23AUR1.SGM

23AUR1