College Transparency Act
Latest action (18 Mar 2021): Introduced
What this bill does
The College Transparency Act would direct the Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics to build a secure, privacy-protected national data system tracking students through postsecondary education. Within four years of enactment, the system would collect student-level data—covering enrollment, progression, completion, costs, financial aid, and post-graduation outcomes such as earnings and employment—drawn from colleges and matched periodically with other federal agencies (including the IRS, Social Security Administration, Department of Defense, and Department of Veterans Affairs). The bill sets required and prohibited data categories (excluding items like health records, grades, citizenship status, and religion), requires an advisory committee to help shape the system, and mandates a public website presenting aggregate, non-identifying data for consumer use.
The bill primarily affects colleges and universities, which would report data to the system; students, whose information would be collected and protected under specified privacy and security rules; and federal agencies, which would share data through formal agreements. It is also meant to benefit prospective students, families, researchers, and policymakers by providing more detailed information on enrollment patterns, costs, and outcomes across institutions.
The bill was introduced in the Senate on March 18, 2021, by Senator Bill Cassidy with bipartisan cosponsors, and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. According to the official record, it did not receive a vote in the 117th Congress and would need to be reintroduced in a future Congress to be considered further.
Plain-English summary generated by Bill100 AI from the official record. Always verify against the source below.
Official summary
College Transparency Act
This bill requires the National Center for Education Statistics to establish a secure and privacy-protected data system that contains information about postsecondary students.
Specifically, the data system must
• evaluate student enrollment patterns, progression, completion, and postcollegiate outcomes, and higher education costs and financial aid;
• provide complete and customizable information for students and families making decisions about postsecondary education;
• reduce the requirements for reporting by institutions of higher education; and
• periodically match with other federal systems of data.
The bill also establishes a postsecondary student data system advisory committee.
Common questions
- What does S. 839 do?
- The College Transparency Act would direct the Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics to build a secure, privacy-protected national data system tracking students through postsecondary education. Within four years of enactment, the system would collect student-level data—covering enrollment, progression, completion, costs, financial aid, and post-graduation outcomes such as earnings and employment—drawn from colleges and matched periodically with other federal agencies (including the IRS, Social Security Administration, Department of Defense, and Department of Veterans Affairs). The bill sets required and prohibited data categories (excluding items like health records, grades, citizenship status, and religion), requires an advisory committee to help shape the system, and mandates a public website presenting aggregate, non-identifying data for consumer use. The bill primarily affects colleges and universities, which would report data to the system; students, whose information would be collected and protected under specified privacy and security rules; and federal agencies, which would share data through formal agreements. It is also meant to benefit prospective students, families, researchers, and policymakers by providing more detailed information on enrollment patterns, costs, and outcomes across institutions. The bill was introduced in the Senate on March 18, 2021, by Senator Bill Cassidy with bipartisan cosponsors, and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. According to the official record, it did not receive a vote in the 117th Congress and would need to be reintroduced in a future Congress to be considered further.
- Has S. 839 become law?
- Not yet. As of 18 Mar 2021, S. 839 is introduced.
- Who sponsored S. 839?
- S. 839 was sponsored by Sen. Bill Cassidy [R-LA] (Republican-LA), with 35 cosponsors.
- What's the latest action on S. 839?
- Introduced (18 Mar 2021).
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