H.R. 9609, Bureaucratic Restructuring with Debt Collection Acceleration. Quorum's AI analysis reads it as a net cost — and names who bears it.
H.R. 9609 · Net cost
What it does
This bill transfers all federal student loan servicing, debt collection, and student aid eligibility functions from the Department of Education to the Department of the Treasury. It moves approximately 1.5 million borrowers' accounts, all loan servicing operations, default collection, and eligibility determinations for Pell Grants, Direct Loans, and other federal aid programs to Treasury control, effective on dates jointly determined by both departments.
The analysis names Department of the Treasury (expanded enforcement authority and revenue collection) — and 2 more groups — among the beneficiaries.
The cost
Section 9 terminates the exemption that currently shields student loans from the Debt Collection Improvement Act's aggressive collection procedures (wage garnishment, tax offset, administrative offset without court order). Borrowers will face Treasury's standard collection enforcement, which is more punitive than Education Department practices.
The analysis put a high warning level on this bill. Transparency scores 65%, and the analysis found no provisions unrelated to the bill's subject.
Who is behind it
Filed by Tim Walberg. Cosponsored by Michael Rulli.