Meehan Bill Seeks Transparency in College Spending

Press Release

Congressman Patrick Meehan (PA-07) this week unveiled the Tuition Use Information Transparently Identified Online (TUITION) Act, which requires colleges and universities to show how tuition dollars are spent in an easy-to-find and understandable manner.

The bill will incentivize schools to keep costs down and direct resources to academic and instructional services by improving transparency and accountability in college spending and costs.

"Students and parents have a right to know how their tuition dollars are being spent," said Congressman Meehan. "The cost of college is skyrocketing while household incomes are stagnating. Too many students are faced with two choices: take on a massive amount of debt, or forgo a degree altogether."

"Students and parents have a right to know how their tuition dollars are spent," Meehan continued. "How is it spent, and how are colleges making use of your tuition dollars? Which schools are putting more money into student instruction and academic resources instead of overhead and administrative bloat? The answers are challenging to find. They're often buried in annual reports or IRS-mandated regulatory filings that could run a hundred pages or more. They're not accessible to the average student or parent."

The legislation requires schools to make data regarding the use of tuition dollars available in the admissions section of the college's public website. It further requires schools make it available "in a manner that clearly presents the information to parents and prospective students."

"More transparency means more competition and more accountability," Meehan said. "Arming consumers with more information about how schools deliver value incentivizes them to use tuition dollars more effectively. Ultimately, this legislation will help students and their parents determine which school is the best fit for them."

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