Comment on FR Doc # 2011-10909

REGULATION FROM WHICH RELIEF IS REQUESTED: 34 CFR, 668.164, (c) (3): the requirement to “Obtain in writing affirmative consent from the student or parent to open [a bank] account [on behalf of a student or parent]”; or 34 CFR, 668.164, (e): the requirement to “disburse a FSA credit balance to a student within 14 days of the date it was created or within 14 days of the first day of class”, to allow schools to leave the credit balance on the student’s account until the student has signed up for ACH delivery. PROBLEM • ACH is faster, safer, more efficient and less expensive than printing and mailing checks. • When students fail to enroll in ACH within the 14 day timeline, schools must disburse FSA credit balances by check. • Students are often careless about maintaining their address on school records so their FSA credit balance checks are mailed to the wrong address, returned or lost. • Hundreds of students each year fail to cash credit balance checks so they either never receive funds that are rightfully theirs or believe their loans have been cancelled because they didn’t cash the checks. • Printing and mailing checks is slow, inefficient, contrary to federal and state environmental initiatives, and prohibitively expensive. SOLUTION UI proposes that ED allow schools to implement mandatory ACH delivery of FSA credit balances by either eliminating the requirement to obtain written affirmative consent to open bank accounts for students who do not provide their own; or by modifying the requirement to disburse FSA credit balances within 14 days, to allow schools to leave the credit balance on the student’s account until the student has signed up for ACH delivery.