| Education Bi-Weekly Update
April 14, 2010 |
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Upcoming Events |
- The FAME Board of Directors is scheduled to meet on April 15, 2010.
- The FAME offices will be closed on April 19, 2010 in observance of Patriots Day.
- The Educators for Maine Advisory Committee is scheduled to meet on April 28, 2010.
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| FAME News |
Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010
The recent passage of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872) brings historic change to the federal student loan landscape. With these changes, it is important to remember that no new FFELP loans can be issued after June 30, 2010. As such, the last day that any FFELP loan can be processed with a FAME guarantee is June 18, 2010. This should not be confused with the last day that a FFELP loan can be processed with FAME as the lender.
Effective March 31, 2010 all FFELP applications must have been fully processed in order for FAME to be the lender. A fully processed application must have been guaranteed, school certified, credit approved (if applicable) and have had a valid Master Promissory Note (MPN) on file by 5:00pm EDT on March 31, 2010. Any incomplete application as of 5:00pm EDT on March 31, 2010 have been cancelled. Additionally, any loan fully processed by March 31, 2010 must also be fully disbursed by May 28, 2010. Fully disbursed loans will have their last scheduled disbursement on or before 5:00pm EDT May 28, 2010.
Please remember the budget reconciliation legislation does not completely eliminate FAME's responsibilities as Maine's primary student loan guarantor. We will continue to provide services to schools, students and parents in the administration of our billion dollar loan portfolio. In addition, we will continue to provide default prevention and aversion services to our Maine school partners and the borrowers in our existing portfolio. We have also begun to explore the development of a model default prevention program for schools participating in Direct Lending. It is our hope that all Maine borrowers will one day benefit from the success of our FFELP-based default prevention program. In addition, we have expanded our efforts in the areas of financial literacy, college access and retention. While our role has changed, FAME remains focused on its mission of promoting college access, financial literacy and to helping Maine students and families realize their education and career dreams. |
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| Ask FAME | |
Q: Do verification exclusions exist for students with unusual circumstances?
A: Yes, if a student is picked for verification and one of the following circumstances is applicable, the school does not have to perform a verification of the student's Federal Student Aid (FSA) application.
The exclusion applies:
- If the student is incarcerated at the time of verification;
- If the student is a recent immigrant to the United States during calendar years 2009 or 2010;
- If the student is verified by another school within the same academic year;
- If the student is a Pacific Island resident; and
- If the student is not an FSA aid recipient for reasons other than failure to complete the verification process, such as the student is ineligible for aid or the student withdrew without receiving aid.
In addition, a student's spousal or parental information may be exempt from verification for the following reasons:
- If the spouse or parent(s) is mentally or physically incapacitated;
- If the spouse or parent(s) is residing in another country and can't be contacted by normal means; and
- If the spouse or parent(s) can't be located because their address is unknown and the student is unable to obtain it.
The 2009-2010 FSA Handbook, Application and Verification Guide, Chapter 4, pages 83-85 provides further clarification. |
| Federal Loan Programs |
Common Manual Updates
On March 18, 2010, the Common Manual Governing Board approved policy changes to the Common Manual as proposed in the seven proposals advanced to the Board from Batch 166 and the seven proposals advanced to the Board from Batch 167. The changes made in these proposals will be incorporated into the Common Manual's annual update. These changes will also be incorporated into the Integrated Common Manual. The Integrated Common Manual is available on several guarantor websites and is also available on the Common Manual Website at: www.commonmanual.org |
| State Legislative Update | |
The Second Session of the 124th Maine Legislature adjourned April 12.
Two bills of interest to the higher education community have been signed into law by Governor Baldacci. L.D. 1296, An Act to Strengthen the Job Creation Through Educational Opportunity Program (the Opportunity Maine revision bill), was signed into law March 26. Since it is not an emergency bill, it will become effective ninety days following adjournment of the current legislative session. To view the final text of Public Law 2010, Chapter 553, please visit: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/bills_124th/chapters/PUBLIC553.aspAlso, a measure repealing last year's law prohibiting certain data collection and marketing to minors has been signed into law. LD 1677, An Act to Protect Minors from Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices, was signed into law March 29 and may be referred to now as Public Law 2010, Chapter 560. To view the new law, which took effect immediately March 29, please visit: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/bills_124th/chapters/PUBLIC560.asp
A $57.8 million compromise bond package designed to create jobs and save railroad lines in Maine was the subject of debate in the final hours of the session. Governor Baldacci had previously proposed a $79 million bond package, but majority Democrats were unable to muster the necessary two-thirds vote to pass it, so legislators spent the weekend crafting a less ambitious plan designed to garner Republican support. The bond package includes:
- $24.8 million in highway construction and repair;
- $7 million to protect rail service in Aroostook County;
- $5 million to expand rail service in Lewiston-Auburn;
- $4 million to help restore rail service in Western Maine along the Mountain Division Line;
- $6.5 million for a new deep-water port in Portland;
- $500,000 for the Small Harbor Improvement Program;
- $5 million for the advanced equipment for the University of Maine to build a component manufacturing sector for wind power; and
- $5 million for a community-based teaching clinic operated by a college of dental medicine and for upgrades to community-based health and dental care clinics around the state.
In addition, the agreement includes up to $7 million in cash that was originally slated for the State's Budget Stabilization Fund to provide the balance of the resources necessary for the purchase of the Aroostook Rail line.
The agreement also makes changes in the current questions scheduled for the June ballot, including:
- Part B is reduced by $1.25 million (The Small Enterprise Growth Fund is reduced from $5 million to $4 million; The Maine Historic Preservation Commission is reduced from $1.5 million to $1.25 million)
- Part D is reduced by $12 million, eliminating the proposal to bond for energy efficiency programs;
- Part E is reduced by $250,000 (Funding for working Maine waterfronts is reduced from $2 million to $1.75 million).
The June ballot already included bond questions approved by lawmakers last year, including money for economic development; water and wastewater improvements; and a fund to develop one or more ocean wind energy demonstration sites.
The investment package totals $57.8 million, with $13.5 million being eliminated from the current June ballot. Total new bonding in the proposal would be $44.3 million. |
| Washington D.C. Update |
Reconciliation Letter PublishedOn April 2, 2010, the U.S. Department of Education published Dear Colleague Letter GEN-10-05. The letter provides the higher education community with a high level description of two of the major Federal student aid provisions contained within the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. The two provisions involve changes to the Federal Pell Grant Program and the Title IV Federal Student Loan Program. Dear Colleague Letter GEN-10-05 is available at: http://ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN1005.html
Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) provisions:
Did you know...?
The HEOA has revised certain provisions concerning the GEAR UP program as follows:
- Establishes the duration of GEAR UP grants as six years, unless an applicant requests an additional year of funding in order to provide services to an eligible student during their first year of postsecondary education, in which case the duration of the grant can be extended to seven years;
- Simplifies the definition of a GEAR UP partnership (educational institutions and state educational agencies) by removing the reference to elementary and secondary schools served by local educational agencies;
- Amends the funding rules to require that at least 33 percent of grant funds go to states and at least 33 percent of grant funds go to partnerships, with the remaining amount being distributed at the discretion of the U.S. Department of Education; and
- Amends GEAR UP's early intervention program by establishing a minimum level of intervention activities and expanding the category of permissible activities.
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| GOAL$ | |
Don't forget that April is Financial Literacy Month! Each day we will post a "Financial Fitness Tip" on the FAME Facebook page.
Our recent events include:
Get A Life Workshops
- Van Buren Middle School: two sessions; 48 total students
- Van Buren High School: one session; 33 seniors
- Caribou Middle School: five sessions; 92 total students
- Maranacook Middle School (Manchester): three sessions; 22 total students
- Lincoln Middle School (Portland): six sessions; 115 total students
- Hermon Middle School: three sessions; 66 total students
- Glenburn School: three sessions; 120 total students
- Jay High School: one session; 10 total students
College/Career Fairs
- Dislocated Worker Career Fair (Lewiston): 100 attendees
- Maine Central Institute College Fair (Pittsfield): 250 attendees
- Madison High School Regional College Fair: 300 attendees
- Northern Oxford County College Fair: 400 attendees
Financial Aid Information Sessions
- Dirigo High School: Award Letter Comparison Presentation; 54 seniors
- Lewiston Adult Education/CTP: Budgeting for College Class; eight students
- Marshwood Adult Education: Preparing for College Presentation; eight students
- Winthrop Adult Education: Preparing for College Presentation; three students
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Finance Authority of Maine
Tel: (207) 623-3263
(800) 228-3734
Fax: (207) 623-0095
TTY: (207) 626-2717 |
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