In addition to the changes necessary to implement provisions of the CCRAA, the final regulations also incorporate certain changes made to the Higher Education Act by the recent Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) (Pub. L. 110–315). All Department regulations for programs authorized under title IV of the HEA are subject to the negotiated rulemaking requirements and the Department is generally required to publish an NPRM and provide the public with an opportunity to comment on proposed regulations prior to issuing final regulations. However, under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), the agency is not required to conduct “notice-and-comment rulemaking” when it is unnecessary or contrary to the public interest.

These final regulations stated that although the regulations implementing the HEOA are subject to the APA's notice-and-comment and the HEA's negotiated rulemaking requirements, the Secretary has determined that it is unnecessary to conduct negotiated rulemaking or notice-and-comment rulemaking on the limited regulatory changes.

These changes to the HEA include excluding defaulted loans from the category of eligible loans for IBR repayment.

The definition of Public Service Organization in Sec. 682.219 is amended for the purpose of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. The term ‘‘public child care’’ is replaced with the phrase ‘‘early childhood education (including licensed or regulated child care, Head Start, and State-funded pre-kindergarten)’’; and a parenthetical statement after ‘‘public health’’ is added that reads ‘‘(including nurses, nurse practitioners, nurses in a clinical setting and full-time professionals engaged in health care practitioner occupations and health care support occupations as such terms are defined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics).’’

The definition of Government employee in Sec. 682.219 is also amended for the purpose of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to exclude members of the U.S. Congress.

To view the final regulations visit: http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2008/pdf/E8-24922.pdf

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