Time for Completion Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 9957
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 2
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2026-07-27: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- Last Updated
- 2026-08-01T07:23:20Z
AI-Generated Summary
Purpose The legislation, titled the "Time for Completion Act," amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to expand the information colleges must report on student graduation and completion rates. Its goal is to give prospective students and families more detailed data on how long it takes different types of students to finish their programs.
Key Provisions
- Updates consumer information requirements under Section 132(i)(1)(J) to require colleges to report graduation rates broken down by four student categories: first-time full-time, first-time part-time, non-first-time full-time, and non-first-time part-time.
- For programs lasting four or more academic years, rates must be shown at 100 percent, 150 percent, and 200 percent of normal completion time.
- For shorter programs, rates must additionally be shown at 300 percent of normal time.
- Requires the Secretary of Education to display these percentages consistently and with equal visibility.
- Updates Section 485(a) so that institutional financial aid information provided to students includes these expanded completion rates, replacing the previous single 150 percent metric with the full set of timeframes.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Replaces the prior limited reporting (mainly focused on 150 percent of normal time) with a broader set of timeframes and student-type breakdowns.
- Adds a 300 percent timeframe specifically for shorter programs.
- Shifts from aggregated data to separate reporting for first-time versus transfer students and full-time versus part-time enrollment.
Potential Impacts
- Colleges and universities will need to collect and report more detailed graduation data, which may increase administrative workload.
- Students and families may gain clearer comparisons across institutions when choosing programs.
- The Department of Education will be responsible for collecting, standardizing, and publicly displaying the expanded information.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Higher education institutions (colleges and universities).
- Prospective and current undergraduate students.
- The Department of Education.
- Parents and families making college decisions.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- The bill expands federal disclosure requirements on institutions that participate in federal student aid programs without altering funding formulas or creating new mandates beyond data reporting.
- No direct changes to constitutional authority or international relations are introduced; the focus remains on domestic consumer transparency in higher education.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (1)
Recent Actions
- 2026-07-27: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- 2026-07-27: Introduced in House
- 2026-07-27: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Time for Completion Act — issued 2026-07-27 — PDF (6 pages)