18 states and DC sue Betsy DeVos over delayed rules designed to protect student borrowers
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. a katz / Shutterstock.com
Attorneys general for 18 states and Washington, D.C., have filed a federal lawsuit against Education Secretary Betsy DeVos for delaying new rules designed to help protect student borrowers who are defrauded by colleges.
The suit (PDF) claims the Education Department delay effectively rescinded a final agency regulation that made it easier for students to erase federal student debt when their schools misled them in recruitment and marketing efforts. Among the publications covering the suit are the Washington Post, the New York Times, Politico, TPM and the Hill.
One of the delayed provisions required schools at risk of closing provide to provide financial collateral. Other provisions banned schools from shifting students’ legal complaints into mandatory arbitration, and from requiring individual resolution of claims rather than class action complaints.
The suit says the department failed to provide notice and opportunity for comment before delaying the rule, and failed to provide an adequate legal justification.
The Education Department had said the rule needed to be delayed because of a pending court challenge. The suit alleges the explanation is a “mere pretext” for an effort to repeal the rule and replace it with a rule that dilutes student protections.
According to the Washington Post, the states’ case could be bolstered by a federal appeals court ruling on Monday that struck down the Environmental Protection Agency’s suspension of new emissions standards for oil and gas wells. The appeals court said the EPA could reconsider the rule, but it couldn’t delay it while going through the process.