Susan Davis

Loopholes in Federal law and weak enforcement have allowed unscrupulous for-profit institutions to aggressively recruit student veterans and then defraud them all on the taxpayer's dime.

We know that students at for-profit institutions are likely to take on more debt, default on that debt, and not complete their degrees.

Thank you very much, Chairman Takano.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to find solutions that ensure veterans both adequate protection against predatory schools and access to quality college degrees that lead to a rewarding career.

But we know, for too many student veterans, that is just not the case.

Nearly two years ago, I voted to pass the Forever GI Bill to ensure that our nation's veterans can access the benefits of the social mobility that come with a high-quality post-secondary education.

What is ideal? What creates the incentive and yet is not perhaps burdensome?

So prohibiting that kind of pre-dispute arbitration with regard to Federal aid I think is one of the most important elements of the Borrower Defense rule, and that is threatened by this current administration that does not agree with that.

We are just delighted that you have joined us today as well.

I think that is one of the driving problems, that we have incentivized bad behavior at the Federal level.

Simply put, we have a responsibility to protect those who protect us.

We cannot allow for-profit institutions to skirt accountability rules just by changing a tax designation on paper.

Thank you, Madam Secretary, for being here. Madam Secretary, you mentioned that students are saddled with debt.

Could I ask you, Madam Secretary, can you commit to 2 weeks that we might have that report?

The Department--your Department asserted that it has made significant ongoing improvements to its oversight and monitoring policies and procedures since the review period of the OIG's report.

So, I mean, our bottom line is that there are millions of students and more who have completed higher ed degrees and are suffering from this crushing debt.

So I think just to have a ballpark in terms of, for these kinds of requests, that we make through the Department, what is a reasonable timeline?

The recent wave of for-profit college closures raises serious questions about its effectiveness, and unfortunately, students and taxpayers are paying the price.

Our higher education system maintains its integrity through three unique entities: the Federal Government, States, and accreditors.

For-profit colleges have, by definition, a fiduciary duty to its stakeholders to maximize profits, often at the expense of students.

The accountability triad is intended to provide robust oversight of colleges and universities.

These companies spend a lot of money aggressively marketing to and targeting students, particularly students of color, low-income students, and veterans.

Students in for-profit colleges borrow more often, take out larger loans, and default at higher rates than students in similar programs at public and non-profit colleges.

I look forward to working with my colleagues to find solutions that ensure all students have access to a quality postsecondary education that leads to a rewarding career.

The Pentagon is complicated enough, we are trying to simplify. This will make it more complex, add more boxes to the organizational chart, and cost more money.