Concerned about the adverse effects of federal overreach into historically state and academic issues, U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-9) today voted in favor of legislation that would overturn two federal regulations pertaining to higher education that, if left in place, could lead to increased tuition costs for students.

The Protecting Academic Freedom in Higher Education Act would repeal the federal definition of a credit hour and prohibit the Department of Education from defining credit hour in the future. The legislation is in response to regulations approved by the Department of Education that are based solely on the number of hours a student is in class or may be studying outside of class but fails to measure how much the student is learning. The legislation voted on today has received significant support from academic institutions and educational groups from across the country.

“It is unacceptable that the federal government is interfering in the academic decision-making process, which ultimately results in fewer choices for students by restricting colleges and universities in their academic programming,” Luetkemeyer said. “The new regulation creates a federal definition of a credit hour, undermining the traditional role of institutions of higher education, in order to impose a set of new requirements that could prove to be very harmful.”

Under the 2010 rule, the Department of Education -- not colleges and universities -- is able to define what it deems a “credit hour.” Many academic institutions fear that once the federal government defines a credit hour, such an action opens the door to further intrusion into decisions about academic courses. Additionally, academic institutions are concerned that this attempt will restrict innovation, limit flexibility and obstruct innovative teaching methods, such as institutions to offer online classes, which could help students save money by graduating early. Each year, the average higher education institution spends a significant amount of time and money complying with federal regulations and reporting requirements, costs that can trickle down to students’ tuitions and fees.

The second regulation would forces states to follow federal requirements when deciding whether to grant a college or university permission to operate within the state. This one-size-fits-all requirement adds unnecessary costs on states, colleges and students, and could result in more heavy-handed intrusion from the federal government on college campuses.