PRINTER'S NO. 1994
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1686
Session of
2023
INTRODUCED BY O'MARA, HANBIDGE, SANCHEZ, MADDEN, HOHENSTEIN,
ISAACSON, SCHLOSSBERG, HARKINS, FLEMING, CIRESI, KIM,
D. WILLIAMS, SHUSTERMAN, KINSEY, DELLOSO, ROZZI, HOWARD,
T. DAVIS, WARREN, MERSKI AND KEEFER, SEPTEMBER 19, 2023
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, SEPTEMBER 19, 2023
AN ACT
Requiring disclosure of mandatory fees by institutions of higher
education.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Know What You
Pay For - The Student Fee Transparency Act.
Section 2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Department." The Department of Education of the
Commonwealth.
"Institution of higher education." Any of the following:
(1) A community college operating under Article XIX-A of
the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known as the
Public School Code of 1949.
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(2) A university within the State System of Higher
Education.
(3) The Pennsylvania State University.
(4) The University of Pittsburgh.
(5) Temple University.
(6) Lincoln University.
(7) The Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology.
(8) Any other institution that is designated as "State-
related" by the Commonwealth.
(9) An accredited private or independent college or
university.
(10) A private licensed school as defined in the act of
December 15, 1986 (P.L.1585, No.174), known as the Private
Licensed Schools Act.
"Mandatory fee." Any of the following:
(1) Mandatory enrollment fee.
(2) Mandatory incidental fee.
(3) Mandatory student-initiated fee.
(4) Any other fee a student must pay as a condition of
attending an institution of higher education that is not
directly applied to a student's tuition, room or board fees.
"Online student portal." A secured internal Internet service
administered by an institution of higher education on which a
student of the institution of higher education can access
personal academic, financial and other information related to
attending the institution of higher education.
Section 3. Requirements.
An institution of higher education shall prominently display
a description of every mandatory fee charged by the institution
of higher education and shall publish the fee description on
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each institution of higher education's publicly accessible
Internet website and online student portal prior to the term for
which the mandatory fee will be charged and included in any
tuition bill. The amount of the mandatory fee must be
accompanied by a description of:
(1) The general purpose of the mandatory fee.
(2) How the mandatory fee will be allocated and used.
(3) How the mandatory fee will be collected, the
duration of time for which the fee will be assessed and the
beginning and end dates for collecting the mandatory fee.
Section 4. Reporting fees.
Beginning November 15, 2023, and by November 15 of each year
thereafter, each institution of higher education shall report to
the department on the institution of higher education's
collection of mandatory fees during the prior academic year. The
report shall include:
(1) The total amount of mandatory fees collected.
(2) The amount of mandatory fees allocated to each use
or recipient.
Section 5. Reporting to the department.
Beginning on June 30, 2023, and by June 30 of each year
thereafter, each institution of higher education shall report to
the department the measures taken to display the information
required under this act.
Section 6. Effective date.
This act shall take effect immediately.
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