Overview
Title
To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the restoration of entitlement of individuals entitled to educational assistance under the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs who use such entitlement to pursue a course or program of education at an educational institution found to have violated certain prohibitions on advertising, sales, and enrollment practices, and for other purposes.
ELI5 AI
The RESTORE Act is like a magic fix-it button for veterans who went to schools that didn't play fair with their advertising or enrollment. If the school broke the rules, veterans can get back their school money to use again, and the schools have to give back the money they took to the government.
Summary AI
The RESTORE Act aims to amend title 38 of the United States Code to help veterans who used their educational benefits at schools violating certain advertising and enrollment rules. If a school is found guilty of these violations, this bill allows veterans to restore their lost educational benefits without these being counted against their overall entitlement limit. It also requires schools to repay the government for the funds they received under these conditions. The government can disapprove a program at a school that fails to repay the amount owed.
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AnalysisAI
General Summary of the Bill
The proposed bill, titled the "Recoupment of Expenditures for Student Tuition Outlays and Restoration of Entitlement Act" or the "RESTORE Act," seeks to amend specific sections of the United States Code related to veterans' educational assistance. It targets educational institutions that have violated prohibitions on advertising, sales, and enrollment practices. If an institution is found guilty of such violations, it must repay the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for any educational assistance funds received during the period of non-compliance. Furthermore, the bill empowers the VA to restore educational entitlement to the affected veterans, meaning the educational benefits used in non-compliant institutions will not be deducted from their overall entitlement.
Significant Issues
The bill manifests several issues that could impact its implementation and effectiveness:
Complex Language: The legal language employed, particularly in Section 2, might be too dense and complex for the general public, affecting clarity and accessibility.
Insufficient Consequences for Non-Compliance: The bill lacks comprehensive penalties for institutions that contest or delay repayment. Merely disapproving courses without additional penalties might be inadequate to deter misconduct effectively.
Undefined Timelines: There is no specified timeframe for the Under Secretary to determine institution violations and repayment amounts, risking potential delays in enforcement.
Scope of Violations: The bill only applies to violations occurring at least 180 days post-enactment. It does not address ongoing or past violations, which may limit its effectiveness in correcting previous non-compliances.
Potential Public Impact
For the wider public, particularly veterans pursuing higher education, this bill could be a safeguard for their educational investment, ensuring that their entitlements are not wrongly exhausted by non-compliant educational institutions. By restoring their benefits, the bill offers a mechanism to protect veterans financially impacted by deceptive school practices.
However, the broader lack of clear, harsh penalties for institutions may fail to uphold rigorous standards, potentially leaving loopholes for abuse or prolonged non-compliant behavior. Delays in enforcement might also mean that veterans affected by non-compliant institutions could wait extended periods to see any restitution of their educational entitlements.
Impact on Specific Stakeholders
Veterans and Beneficiaries: Veterans stand to benefit significantly if the bill is effectively implemented. The impetus towards holding institutions accountable and restoring veterans' entitlements potentially safeguards their educational paths and financial resources. However, delays and limitations on addressing past misbehavior could mean uneven protection depending on individual circumstances and timing.
Educational Institutions: For educational institutions, the provisions of the bill place substantial compliance burdens, necessitating meticulous adherence to ethical advertising, sales, and enrollment practices. Institutions would need to institute robust policies to avoid the punitive measures outlined, like course disapproval and mandated repayment. On the other hand, without expansive enforcement measures, institutions could potentially exploit system vulnerabilities to postpone compliance activities.
Department of Veterans Affairs: The VA is tasked with the administrative load of oversight and enforcement, requiring resources, clear processes, and strict adherence to statutory obligations for effective functioning. Challenges, such as the outlined lack of defined timelines and complexity in determining repayment amounts, could potentially strain VA resources and efficiency.
In conclusion, while the RESTORE Act embodies a critical protective measure for veterans using educational benefits, its success hinges on clarifying punitive measures, addressing timing issues, and extending protections to cover more than future violations.
Issues
The bill uses complex and dense legal language throughout Section 2, making it difficult for the average person to understand and potentially impacting transparency.
Section 2 lacks detail about the consequences for educational institutions that incorrectly contest the repayment amount or delay payment, which could enable manipulation of the system without clear repercussions.
The language in Section 2 does not specify a clear timeframe for when the Under Secretary must make determinations regarding violations and repayment amounts, which could lead to delays and prolonged non-compliance by institutions.
There is a lack of penalties or additional consequences for educational institutions that fail to repay amounts other than disapproval of courses, as outlined in Section 2, potentially allowing for continued non-compliant behavior without severe repercussions.
While the amendments in Section 2 apply to violations occurring 180 days after enactment, they do not address ongoing or past violations, limiting the scope of enforcement and potentially missing out on rectifying previous misconduct.
Sections
Sections are presented as they are annotated in the original legislative text. Any missing headers, numbers, or non-consecutive order is due to the original text.
1. Short title Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The first section of this bill gives it a short title. The bill can be officially called the “Recoupment of Expenditures for Student Tuition Outlays and Restoration of Entitlement Act” or simply the “RESTORE Act”.
2. Treatment by Department of Veterans Affairs of educational institutions that violate certain prohibitions on advertising, sales, and enrollment practices Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The bill amends certain sections of the United States Code to ensure that if an educational institution violates specific rules about advertising, sales, and enrollment, it must repay the Department of Veterans Affairs for educational assistance money received. If the institution fails to repay, its courses or programs can be disapproved until the debt is cleared. These changes aim to protect students using educational benefits when institutions do not comply with the law.