Student Financial Clarity Act of 2025

The "Student Financial Clarity Act of 2025" seeks to enhance transparency in higher education costs and outcomes for consumers. It comprehensively amends the Higher Education Act of 1965, primarily focusing on expanding the information available through the College Scorecard website and establishing a new Universal Net Price Calculator. The bill redefines key financial aid terms such as required costs , amount of grant and scholarship aid , and net price required for completion to standardize reporting. The legislation mandates that the Secretary of Education make extensive, disaggregated data publicly available on the College Scorecard website. This includes detailed information for each institution and program of study, covering student enrollment, progression, completion rates, and time to credential. Crucially, it requires reporting on college costs and financial aid, including average, median, minimum, and maximum values for required costs, cost of attendance, and grant/scholarship aid, broken down by source and type. Furthermore, the College Scorecard will feature comprehensive data on student debt and repayment, including amounts borrowed under Title IV and various repayment rates. It will also provide insights into student earnings, such as annual and value-added earnings for completers, and annual earnings for students who did not complete their programs. All this information must be disaggregated by various student characteristics, including financial circumstances, sex, race, disability status, and type of federal financial assistance received, to offer a more nuanced view. A central provision is the establishment of a Universal Net Price Calculator on a dedicated Department website. This tool will allow individuals to obtain personalized estimates of annual and total net prices for completion and attendance at selected institutions and programs. These estimates will consider individual financial information and projected cost changes, with the calculator integrated into the FAFSA website for ease of access. Institutions receiving Title IV funds will be required to make a net price calculator available on their own websites, either using the Department's tool or their own equivalent. The bill also mandates regular consumer testing of both the College Scorecard and the Universal Net Price Calculator to ensure their usefulness and clarity for students and families. The act is set to take effect on July 1, 2027, applying to the 2027-2028 award year and beyond.