Office of Postsecondary Education - U.S. Department of Education

66862 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 209 / Friday, October 29, 2010 / Rules and RegulationsMEETS STATE AUTHORIZATION REQUIREMENTS *Legal entity Entity description Approval or licensure processEducational institution .......................Business ...........................................Charitable organization .....................A public, private nonprofit, or for-profit institution establishedby name by a State through a charter,statute, or other action issued by an appropriateState agency or State entity as an educational institutionauthorized to operate educational programsbeyond secondary education, includingprograms leading to a degree or certificate.A for-profit entity established by the State on thebasis of an authorization or license to conductcommerce or provide services.A nonprofit entity established by the State on thebasis of an authorization or license for the publicinterest or common good.The institution must comply with any applicableState approval or licensure process and be approvedor licensed by name, and may be exemptedfrom such requirement based on its accreditation,or being in operation at least 20years, or use both criteria.The State must have a State approval or licensureprocess, and the institution must comply with theState approval or licensure process and be approvedor licensed by name.An institution in this category may not be exemptedfrom State approval or licensure based on accreditation,years in operation, or a comparableexemption*Notes:• Federal, tribal, and religious institutions are exempt from these requirements.• A State must have a process, applicable to all institutions except tribal and Federal institutions, to review and address complaints directly orthrough referrals.• The chart does not take into requirements related to State reciprocity.WReier-Aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with RULES2ExamplesInstitutions considered legallyauthorized under amended § 600.9:• A college has a royal charter fromthe colonial period recognized by theState as authorizing the institution byname to offer postsecondary programs.The State has no licensure or approvalprocess.• A community college meets therequirements based upon its status as apublic institution.• A nonprofit institution has Stateconstitutional authorization by name asa postsecondary institution; State doesnot apply a licensure or approvalprocess.• A nonprofit institution has a Statecharter as a postsecondary institution.State law, without naming theinstitution, considers the institution tobe authorized to operate in lieu of Statelicensure based on accreditation by aregional accrediting agency.• An individual institution is ownedby a publically traded corporation thatis incorporated in a different State fromwhere the institution is located. Theinstitution is licensed to provideeducational programs beyond thesecondary level in the State where it islocated.• An institution is owned by apublicly traded corporation establishedas a business without the articles ofincorporation specifying that theinstitution is authorized to offerpostsecondary education, but theinstitution is licensed by the State tooperate postsecondary educationprograms.• An individual institution is ownedby a publically traded corporation thatis incorporated in a different State fromwhere the institution is located. TheState licenses the institution by name asa postsecondary institution.• Rabbinical school awarding only acertificate of Talmudic studies hasexemption as a religious institutionoffering only religious programs.• Tribal institution is chartered by thetribal government.Institutions not considered legallyauthorized under amended § 600.9:• An institution is a publicly tradedcorporation established as a businesswithout the articles of incorporationspecifying that it is authorized to offerpostsecondary education, and the Statehas no process to license or approve theinstitution to offer postsecondaryeducation.• A nonprofit institution is charteredas a postsecondary institution. A Statelaw considers the institution to beauthorized based on accreditation inlieu of State licensure but the institutionis not named in the State law and doesnot have a certification by anappropriate State official, e.g., StateSecretary of Education or State AttorneyGeneral, that it is in compliance withthe exemption for State licensurerequirements.• An institution is established as anonprofit entity without specificauthorization to offer postsecondaryeducation, but State law considers theinstitution to be authorized based on itbeing in operation for over 30 years. TheState Secretary of Education issues acertificate of good standing to theinstitution naming it as authorized tooffer postsecondary education based onits years in operation.• A Bible college is chartered as areligious institution and offers liberalarts and business programs as well asBible studies. It is exempted by StateVerDate Mar2010 14:10 Oct 28, 2010 Jkt 223001 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 4701 Sfmt 4700 E:\FR\FM\29OCR2.SGM 29OCR2law from State licensure requirementsbut does not meet the definition of areligious institution exempt from Statelicensure for Federal purposes becauseit offers other programs in addition toreligious programs.• An institution is authorized basedsolely on a business license, and theState considers the institution to beauthorized to offer postsecondaryprograms based on regionalaccreditation.Comment: One commenter providedproposed wording to amend proposed§ 600.9(a)(1) to clarify that the Stateentity would include a State’s legalpredecessor. The commenter believedthat the change was necessary to ensurethat colonial charters would satisfy theState authorization requirement.Discussion: If a State considers aninstitution authorized to offerpostsecondary education programs inthe State based on a colonial charter thatestablished the entity as an educationalinstitution offering programs beyond thesecondary level, the institution wouldbe considered to meet the provisions of§ 600.09(a)(1)(i) of these finalregulations so long as the institutionalso meets any additional licensurerequirements or approvals required bythe State.Changes: None.Comment: Several commentersexpressed concern that all institutionswithin a State could lose title IV, HEAprogram eligibility at once and that theregulations put students at risk of harmthrough something neither they nor theinstitution can control.One commenter was concerned withhow the Department would specificallyassess State compliance with proposed§ 600.9. Another commenter believed