Policy Summary

Under the Big Beautiful Bill, programs that are deemed to not lead to gainful employment (GE Programs) are at risk of losing access to Financial Aid monies and Direct Loan monies. The changes come in the form of eligibility requirements and an earnings accountability framework that requires graduates to meet certain earning benchmarks immediately after graduation. Low-earning outcome programs will not receive funding.

ACTION:

Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to Title IV/HEA Programs

Must read: Submit public comment before May 20th, 2026

SUMMARY:

The Secretary of Education (Secretary) proposes to amend the regulations governing institutional eligibility, general provisions regulations, and the William D. Ford Direct Loan (Direct Loan) Program under title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended (the title IV, HEA programs). The proposed regulations would implement statutory changes to the title IV, HEA programs included in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB), signed by President Trump on July 4, 2025. The OBBB made numerous changes to the HEA, including changes to program eligibility requirements for the Direct Loan program and the introduction of an earnings accountability framework that is intended to limit Direct Loan eligibility to programs whose graduates meet certain earnings benchmarks. This document proposes regulations, based on consensus reached during negotiated rulemaking, to implement the provisions of the OBBB related to low-earning outcome programs and the Direct Loan program, and to harmonize those regulations with requirements for programs that are required to lead to gainful employment (GE programs).

Your Voice: Commenting on Policy Decisions

From commenters checklist on regulations.gov: “An important way for Americans to influence the policies impacting their lives is by interacting directly with federal agencies on the regulations those agencies create. Federal law generally provides organizations and individuals with opportunities to comment on agencies’ proposed regulations. Agencies, in turn, consider comments the public submitted on their proposed rules and, in publishing any final rule, must respond to relevant and significant comments.

Issue:

Pell Grant offered by Federal Financial Assistance (FAFSA) is at risk of being cut. This impact would cut the amount of federal dollars needed to attend career readiness trades and programs. Moreso, it will disaproproportianly impact communities of color and working poor who rely on access to federal funding to complete workforce trainings. Cutting federal spending on such programs will impact

Submit Public Comment:

Regulations.gov

What you can write:

• Who you are: I am a {Name] of [School Name] in [City, State],
• I am a licensed Cosmetologist/Barber.
• I am a student.
• I am an educator.
• I am a school employing [#] people and serving [#] students annually.

Core issue/Argument you can use:

• This metric does not reflect how our graduates actually work: many are part-time or self-employed.
• Many graduates are small business owners and entrepreneurs.
• Many don’t end up as employees working for wages (W-2).
• Many take time to build clientele and thus earnings are impacted.
• Many are also pursuing higher education as they also realize their cosmetology/barbering certification.
• Earnings are compared to individuals with four-plus year undergraduate and graduate degrees who work in 40-hour per week fields.
• The use of Census data is unreliable as income may be an underreported analysis of the earnings for that year.
• ED did not adhere to congressional intent when drafting these rules: The original intent of the provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OB3) that instigated the creation of this accountability framework was for these earning measures to be applied to undergraduate degree programs and above, not undergraduate certificate programs. ED’s overreach will decimate our professions if corrective action is not immediately taken.
• The economic impact would be devastating: Analysis shows over 92 percent of beauty schools and over 89 percent of massage schools would lose funding within two years and inevitably shut down if these rules were implemented today. That would be catastrophic on its own, but it gets worse. The ripple effects would spread to salons, spas, and clinics being unable to find employees and having to close, and vendors of tools and products taking huge sales losses.
• Many communities are left vulnerable to poor local economic development in their communities as the pool of licensed graduates will most likely decrease and reduce local workforce labor and local businesses.
• Demand for personal care and wellness is on the rise. The global beauty and personal care products market size was estimated at USD 557.24 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 937.13 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 7.7% from 2024 to 2030 (Beauty and Personal Care Products Market Report, 2030)

Give your testimony.

How has a certificate in Cosmetology/Barbering impacted your life?

Urge at least 3 people to submit a comment emphasizing they give their testimony highlighting the impact that receiving the Pell Grant and Financial Aid has made.

Why it matters:

Losing financial aid would eliminate access to career pathways for our students, especially working adults and women.