State loan programs get exemption from college lending rules.

What it does

This bill lets colleges recommend state-based loans without following the same rules. State-based loans are run by state agencies or nonprofits. They do not use federal money. They offer rates as good as federal PLUS loans. They only go to students who have used up federal aid first. The bill asks the Government Accountability Office to track how students borrow. It covers federal, state, college, and private loan programs after recent changes.

Who it affects

Colleges can now recommend state-based loans more freely. Students may see state loans offered without the same clear information. State agencies and nonprofits that run education loan programs may get more borrowers.

One thing to notice

State loan programs do not have to follow the same transparency rules. Other private lenders must follow these rules when colleges recommend them. The bill requires colleges to tell students about federal loan benefits. It does not say how colleges will be checked on this.

From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.

Where it stands

6 cosponsors: 4 Republicans, 2 Democrats.

• Mar 16, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Mar 16, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions”
• Mar 19, 2026 — Hearing held · Congress.gov: “Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Hearings held”
• Jul 30, 2026 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

4 groups reported lobbying about this bill. They filed 5 reports from Mar 2026 to Jun 2026.

Those reports show $677,531 in lobbying spending. Each report lists about 6 bills. So that money was not all for this bill.

More groups named this bill than 72% of bills with any report.

Lisa Murkowski, who sponsored the bill, received $357,300 from PACs for the 2026 election.

• Slm Corporation — $630,000 in 2 reports
• American Council on Education — $37,531 in 1 report
• Ecmc Shared Services Co. Obo Ecmc — $10,000 in 1 report
• Accesslex Institute (fka Access Group, Inc.) — $0 in 1 report

Lobbying is legal. These reports show who lobbied about this bill, not what changed.

Words to know

• state-based loans — Loan programs run by state agencies or nonprofits that offer money for school.
• federal PLUS loans — Loans from the federal government that parents or graduate students can take out.
• federal aid — Money from the federal government to help students pay for school.
• Government Accountability Office — A federal agency that tracks and reports facts about government programs.
• transparency rules — Requirements that lenders give clear information to students about loans.
• lobbying — Trying to influence lawmakers about a bill. Companies and groups pay people to do this.