In the DeVos Era, New Higher-Ed Policy Could Come From the Senate

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Recent moves by the Education Department have raised the alarms of students, advocates, and reformers alike. But the executive branch is not the only place where policy is set. In recent years, the U.S. Senate has taken the lead on policies that have left a sharp imprint on higher education. So what will legislators be able to accomplish on higher ed this Congress?

The U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions has, over the last several years, successfully advanced a fair amount of bipartisan legislation. But several early disputes may strain that bipartisanship, weakening the chances of reauthorizing the Higher Education Act. The most recent act, which is the major piece of legislation governing federal policy on postsecondary education, was set to expire in 2013, but was extended through last year to allow legislators more time to work on an updated version.

While legislators on both sides of the aisle share some broadly defined goals for higher education this year, including streamlining the process for students to go to college, and for repaying loans after they graduate, the nuts and bolts of those proposals are less certain.

Democrats have sensed a shift in the Education Department under the new secretary, Betsy DeVos. Some of her early actions that have drawn Democrats’ ire include the withdrawal of Obama-era memoranda on student-loan servicing, and a delay in enforcing the gainful-employment rule. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Democrat of Massachusetts, has said Ms. DeVos has made it clear that she “stands with companies that cheat and squeeze borrowers,”as opposed to students.

Angry Democrats have sent a slew of letters to Ms. DeVos regarding those moves, but there has been relative radio silence from the Education Department in response. The department has, however, granted a bipartisan request for a briefing on the outage of the Internal Revenue Service’s data-retrieval tool, which, when it works, makes it easier to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.

A spokesman for the Education Department, who talked to The Chronicle on the condition of anonymity because he was not yet authorized to speak on the record, suggested the complaints about the department’s lack of response to letters could be politically motivated. “The department is responding to letters,” the spokesman said. The reason for the perceived delay, he added, was to allow the department to ensure that its responses were “accurate and fair.”

Some lawmakers, however, remain hopeful that, even in a tense Washington landscape, the committee can be a driving force to push major legislation through. Others fear that is a long shot.

Roadblocks to Reform?

Aides to Democratic lawmakers, speaking to The Chronicle on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, noted the perceived fracturing of what has long been one of the more productive bipartisan relationships in Washington, between Sen. Lamar Alexander, Republican of Tennessee, and Sen. Patty Murray, Democrat of Washington. Mr. Alexander is the chairman of the Senate health and education committee while Ms. Murray is its ranking member.

The pair worked together to pass one of the most successful bipartisan pieces of legislation in 2015, an overhaul of No Child Left Behind — and last year, what Senator Alexander called “a Christmas miracle,” the 21st Century Cures Act, for biomedical research. Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, called the 2016 effort, which succeeded in December, “the most important legislation Congress will pass this year.”

But the contentious confirmation process for Ms. DeVos, and congressional overturning of a pair of regulations, the Every Student Succeeds Act, and rules that gave federal oversight to state teacher-preparation programs, have complicated that relationship, making bipartisan higher-education reform seem less likely. Democratic congressional aides said those clashes have raised the bar for what Mr. Alexander and Ms. Murray, and the committee as a whole, will be able to work together on — noting that there was already a high bar for major higher-education initiatives. The senators have found a middle ground recently in pushing the Education Department to help those affected by the outage of the IRS-data-retrieval tool.

Senator Alexander said in an emailed statement that he plans to continue to work with Ms. Murray and Democrats on the health and education committee to pass legislation focused on helping students and borrowers. “I have great respect for Patty Murray and look forward to working with her on higher education this year in the same manner that led to big, bipartisan results for students and families,” he said.

Early in this session, a lot of time has been dedicated to confirmation hearings, but Mr. Alexander hopes the committee can quickly turn its attention to higher education. His top priority for the committee this Congress, he said, is reauthorizing the Higher Education Act “to make it simpler and easier for students to go to college and reduce the jungle of red tape that’s making it harder for college administrators to educate.”

Ms. Murray said she is also hopeful that they can come to the table, as they have in the past, to pass more significant reforms.

But, she said, early signs have not been good. “So far this year I have not seen congressional Republicans willing to work on difficult issues to help working families and break away from the partisanship and political games.”

Working Together

The bipartisan ball is rolling on some smaller higher-education efforts, Mr. Alexander said. He noted that there are proposals to simplify the Fafsa, reducing regulations on colleges, and improving student-success policies currently on the table.

Recently, Sen. Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, and Sen. Al Franken, Democrat of Minnesota, who also sits on the Senate health and education committee, reintroduced two bills aimed at helping students better understand the costs of colleges and compare them.

“On any education measure, the Senator pushes hard to gain bipartisan support,” said Michael Dale-Stein, a spokesman for Mr. Franken, adding that the senator hopes to soon reintroduce a bill to improve access to free college textbooks. “He will continue to take that approach going forward.” The two senators hope their bills are included as a part of the Higher Education Act reauthorization.

Helping students and borrowers is a winning strategy for lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, and leaders of both parties hope to capitalize on the opportunity. “In today’s supercompetitive and globally connected economy, a college education is a necessity, but it is being priced as a luxury — and it is breaking the bank for too many students and families across the country,” said Sen. Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, and the Senate’s minority leader. “Student-loan debt is holding back millions of students’ ability to achieve the American Dream,” he continued. “It’s long past time that the Congress pass meaningful legislation to address the student-debt crisis and help level the playing field for all Americans.”

Adam Harris is a breaking-news reporter. Follow him on Twitter @AdamHSays or email him at adam.harris@chronicle.com.