H.R. 6498 — Student Financial Clarity Act of 2025

This section revises the Higher Education Act's college affordability and transparency requirements (20 U.S.C. 1015a) by striking subsections (a) through (j) and inserting new subsections (a) and (b). New subsection (a) provides definitions, including (1) "College Scorecard website" (replacing "College Navigator website"); (2) "cost of attendance" as defined in section 472(a); (3) "required costs," comprising tuition, fees, and institutionally required housing or food services; (4) "amount of grant and scholarship aid" from title IV, other federal, institutional, state, or other sources; (5) "net price required for completion," subtracting such aid from required costs for a program's time to credential (total) or award year (annual); (6) "net price of attendance," adding non-required section 472(a) costs to net price required for completion; (7) "program length"; and (8) "time to credential." New subsection (b) directs the Secretary, not later than 18 months after the effective date, to publish on the College Scorecard website specified information for title IV institutions and programs of study, based on the most recent award year data for students receiving specified federal aid, including (1) for institutions, links to institutional website and net price calculators, institutional type and credentials offered, research intensity, college entrance exam scores (if required), acceptance rate, cohort default rate, and campus safety information link; and (2) for institutions and programs, geographic location, enrollment by full-time/less-than-full-time/distance education status, and number/percentage of undergraduate transfer students. (As background, the prior provisions required lists of the 5% of institutions with highest net prices or tuition/fees by category, net price calculators, multi-year tuition calculators, and other consumer tools; the revision shifts to program-specific net price data distinguishing required costs and actual completion times on a centralized scorecard.)

This section (1) defines the term "program of study" in section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA) to mean an eligible program at an institution of higher education classified by one or more CIP (Classification of Instructional Programs) codes and one credential level (undergraduate or graduate, i.e., certificates, associate, bachelor's, post-baccalaureate, master's, doctoral, professional, or postgraduate certificates), excluding study abroad programs; (2) revises HEA cost-of-attendance determinations and disclosures under section 472 to apply specifically to students enrolled in the same program of study carrying the same academic workload (previously, same academic workload without specifying program); (3) repeals the early estimator tool under HEA section 485E(b)(4), which allowed prospective students to preview net price calculator results; and (4) replaces all references to "College Navigator" with "College Scorecard" in the HEA and deems any external references to College Navigator (the Department of Education's former college information website) to mean College Scorecard (its successor).

This section establishes an effective date for the Act and its amendments of July 1, 2027, applicable to award year 2027–2028 and subsequent award years under the Higher Education Act of 1965.