HF 3528

1st Engrossment - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 03/22/2010 10:18am

A bill for an act
relating to higher education; regulating certain higher education data; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2009 Supplement, section 136A.01, subdivision 2.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2009 Supplement, section 136A.01, subdivision 2,
is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Responsibilities.

new text begin (a) new text end The Minnesota Office of Higher Education is
responsible for:

(1) necessary state level administration of financial aid programs, including
accounting, auditing, and disbursing state and federal financial aid funds, and reporting on
financial aid programs to the governor and the legislature;

(2) approval, registration, licensing, and financial aid eligibility of private collegiate
and career schools, under sections 136A.61 to 136A.71 and chapter 141;

(3) negotiating and administering reciprocity agreements;

(4) publishing and distributing financial aid information and materials, and other
information and materials under section 136A.87, to students and parents;

(5) collecting and maintaining student enrollment and financial aid data and
reporting data on students and postsecondary institutions to develop and implement a
process to measure and report on the effectiveness of postsecondary institutions;

(6) administering the federal programs that affect students and institutions on a
statewide basis; and

(7) prescribing policies, procedures, and rules under chapter 14 necessary to
administer the programs under its supervision.

new text begin (b) The office is authorized to match individual student data from the student record
enrollment database with individual student financial aid data collected and maintained
by the office in order to audit or evaluate federal or state supported education programs
as permitted by United States Code, title 20, section 1232g(b)(3), and Code of Federal
Regulations, title 34, section 99.35. The office may match data from the following
financial aid program databases with data from the student record enrollment database:
tuition reciprocity; the state grant; the SELF loan; state work study; the postsecondary
child care grant; the American Indian Scholarship; and the Achieve Scholarship. The
office shall conduct the study in a manner that does not permit personal identification of
parents or students by individuals other than representatives of the office.
new text end