Borrower Defense

This fact sheet provides concrete steps for Congress to enshrine minimum requirements for program quality in statute, ensure justice for defrauded borrowers, and provide additional guardrails to protect students from emerging areas of misconduct.

TICAS’ 2026 Federal Policy Agenda advises members of the 119th Congress how to make it possible for any student—regardless of their financial circumstances—to earn a high-quality postsecondary degree or credential without taking on burdensome debt. 

TICAS’ 2026 Federal Policy Agenda advises members of the 119th Congress how to make it possible for any student—regardless of their financial circumstances—to earn a high-quality postsecondary degree or credential without taking on burdensome debt. 

The new law delays critical protections for students defrauded by their institutions or who experience a sudden school closure by a full decade, leaving them saddled with older regulations that faced bipartisan opposition and resulted in 95% claim denial.

On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed into law a budget reconciliation bill that makes radical changes to numerous federal safety net programs, tax policy, and higher education policy. Our latest resource provides a point-by-point summary of higher education, SNAP, and Medicaid provisions in the law.

A coalition of advocates for students, borrowers, consumers, civil rights, labor union members, researchers, veterans, and other critical stakeholders wrote to U.S. Senate leaders in opposition to the damaging provisions in the House-passed reconciliation bill.