Schools that identify as public institutions for purposes of the federal student aid programs must maintain documentation stating as much and must be ready to provide it to the Department of Education when requested.
In an August 17 Electronic Announcement, the Department of Education clarified the regulatory requirements for all institutions of higher education (IHEs) that identify as public institutions for purposes of the Title IV federal student aid programs.
Institutions must keep a document on file that is a dated letter on official government entity letterhead and:
- states that the school is a public institution;
- states that the school is backed by the full faith and credit of the government entity, without qualification; and
- is signed by an authorized representative of the government entity.
The regulations addressing this documentation include 34 CFR 668.171(b) and 34 CFR 668.171(g)(1). Schools are also encouraged to review the previously published Financial Responsibility Regulations – Questions and Answers (FR-Q7, FR-Q8, and FR-Q9).
The Department expects all public institutions to meet the regulatory standard for documentation of public status as outlined. The required documentation must be maintained on file at the IHE as it may be requested by the Department as part of program reviews, recertification of applications, or other processes.
Institutions are no longer required to submit public status documentation in eZ-Audit unless specifically requested by the Department. For institutions that have already submitted public status documentation in eZ-Audit, the Department will review the submission and send a formal response. Any submissions that don’t meet the four requirements as noted will be notified by the Department of the specific missing information.
Questions about documentation of public status for IHEs need to be directed to CaseTeams@ed.gov.
