| collegezone.com | Print page | Close window | |
| |||
| ||||||||||
|
April - June 2010
Welcome to the April - June 2010 ISAC Update for lenders and servicers, which is a compilation of e-Messages sent through College Zone’s e-Messaging service throughout April, May and June. This e-Messaging service has replaced ISAC's use of printed newsletters and special e-mail lists as our primary means of communicating information to you. The articles in this Update have been organized according to the Lender Zone subscription groups to which the messages were distributed via College Zone’s e-Messaging service. Questions? Questions regarding information in this ISAC Update can be directed to Lender Services by sending an e-mail message to lenderservices@isac.org or calling 800.477.4411 and speaking with one of the following staff members:
On occasion, you may be directed to a specific contact person or area; when this occurs, we will provide the appropriate information in the individual article or message.
MULTIPLE SUBSCRIPTION GROUPS Commission Meeting Summary Fiscal Year 2011 (FY11) Budget Spending Priorities (Agenda Item 7) Prior to adjourning in late May, both chambers of the General Assembly approved a set of budget measures for the coming fiscal year (which has not yet been sent to the governor for action) authorizing a lump sum appropriation of $425,031,100 from the General Revenue Fund (GRF) for ISAC-administered scholarship and grant programs (this amount is at the same level as the final appropriation for FY10). In addition, an Emergency Budget Act was approved to give broad authority to the governor to manage the budget for FY11, including by establishing reserves. The Commission approved allocating the lump sum appropriation as outlined in Table 1 of the agenda item, which reflects a March proposal by the governor to maintain level funding overall for ISAC-administered scholarship and grant programs. Although the total spent on such programs would be the same as that spent in FY10, this allocation increases the dollars dedicated to MAP [including dollars shifted from the Silas Purnell Illinois Incentive for Access (IIA) Program] and to the grant programs for dependents of police, fire, and correctional officers killed or disabled in the line of duty. The Commission also delegated authority to the Executive Director to make adjustments to this allocation during the fiscal year in order to optimize use of the appropriation. Federal Rehabilitation Loans Lender Participation Agreement (Agenda Item 16) The Commission approved the execution and delivery of a Federal Rehabilitation Loans Lender Participation Agreement with LoanAmerica. Other Commission Meeting Agenda Items Also addressed as part of the agenda were the following items. Additional information is provided in the June 18 Agenda Book, which can be accessed from the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission page at collegezone.com. Specific agenda items may also be accessed by clicking on the appropriate link(s) below.
New Student Loan Interest Rates Effective July 1, 2010 Loans with first disbursements on or after July 1, 2010 (all loans disbursed on or after July 1 will be Federal Direct loans) have the following fixed rates:
Loans with first disbursements between July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010 have the following fixed rates:
e-Library. Feel free to print and copy the charts and use them for your own reference and/or for distribution to your students.
Commission Meeting to be Held Friday, June 18 June 18. The meeting will be conducted via video conference, and may be accessed at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago and the Central Management Services Capital City Center in Springfield. Some of the items on the tentative agenda for the meeting are:
There are no plans for a conference call briefing following this meeting.
Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming Important Dates June 18: Next Commission Meeting The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission will take place on Friday, June 18, 2010, at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago. A listing of tentative agenda items will be available prior to the meeting via the ISAC's Governing Board: The Commission section of the e-Library. Dates and locations for all meetings scheduled in 2010 are available at the e-Library's Commission Meeting Schedule page. Agenda and meeting schedule information can also be accessed by selecting the link that appears beneath the "About ISAC" heading at the College Zone home page. June 25: Last Day to Submit FFELP Initial Guarantee Requests In order to allow Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) Stafford, PLUS or consolidation loans with disbursements scheduled on or before the June 30, 2010 deadline [as stipulated in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (HCERA)] to be processed, the final date on which ISAC will accept initial guarantee requests is June 25, 2010. Operational details regarding the submission of initial guarantee requests, a listing of FFELP activities that will continue uninterrupted beyond the HCERA implementation, and a request to lenders for required documentation related to the electronic signature process are provided in a May 19 e-Message. Holiday Schedules May 31: Memorial Day Holiday July 5: Independence Day Holiday In observance of the Memorial Day and Independence Day holidays, ISAC offices will be closed on Monday, May 31, 2010, and on Monday, July 5, 2010, respectively. Our offices will reopen on the first business day following each holiday. Loan records received at ISAC on the holidays, as well as disbursement records received at the National Disbursement Network (NDN), will be processed the following business day. This means that, for holidays that fall on a Monday, CommonLine or Common Account Maintenance (CAM) files will be processed on the following Tuesday, with results available on Wednesday (or the next available day for any schools opting to receive NDN files on specific days of the week). Note that ELM Resources will continue to process and transmit files on the holidays. Reminder: Please refer to the above "June 25: Last Day to Submit FFELP Initial Guarantee Requests" entry for details regarding how HCERA implementation will impact the processing of FFELP loan disbursements. For Assistance Remember that you can access collegezone.com anytime, or send an e-mail message to ISAC's Lender Services Department. With the exception of days when the ISAC offices are closed, ISAC staff will review and respond to messages during regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. CT).
Signing of Reconciliation Bill Eliminates FFELP June 30, 2010. Impact on Summer Term Loans With regard to disbursement of loans for the upcoming summer term, ED also provided guidance that stipulates that second and subsequent disbursements for loans first disbursed prior to July 1, 2010, can be made; and in fact, lenders are obligated by regulations to make these subsequent disbursements. However, guarantees for any loan on which the first disbursement is not made before July 1st will be void, regardless of the date of guarantee. One remaining issue still to be resolved is loans that could have been disbursed prior to July 1, 2010, but were not because the borrower is subject to the 30-day delay for first-time, first-year borrowers. Information will be provided on this issue once it becomes available. ISAC Guarantee Cessation Date and Continuing Functions ISAC analyzed 2010-11 guarantee data, including loan term and first disbursement dates, to make a determination of a final guarantee date for FFELP loans. Due to the prohibition of first disbursements after June 30, 2010, ample time will be needed to allow for any disbursements that are scheduled to be made ahead of that date. The final guarantee date has been established as June 25, 2010. Further operational details will be forthcoming, as needed. While guarantee and loan origination functions at ISAC are drawing to a close, the administration and oversight of our $7.4 billion FFELP portfolio will continue uninterrupted, including:
Even though guarantee and loan origination activities at ISAC will cease in the near future, we intend to keep moving forward to fulfill our mission of making college accessible and affordable for all Illinois students. To that end, we will carry on with customer service in all aspects of college planning and attendance - for students, parents, counselors, financial aid administrators, lenders and other advocates of higher education. Our college access and outreach efforts will continue unabated, as will the delivery of scholarship, grant and prepaid tuition program benefits. Training assistance and the activities carried out by our compliance and research areas will continue as always. Additionally, our Lender and School Services Communication Centers are available to assist you, either via telephone or e-mail, as noted below. In short, our position is solid, and our goals for the future are clear as we transition to a "post-FFELP environment." We would like to express sincere gratitude for the partnership and collaboration of our student loan partners throughout the last four-plus decades, and we look forward to many more years of working together in the service of the students and families of Illinois.
OPERATIONAL UPDATES, ANNOUNCEMENTS Reminder: ISAC Providing Monthly Data Regarding Borrowers Whose Loans Have Been Rehabilitated April 2010, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) is providing lenders/servicers with data regarding borrowers whose previously-defaulted loans have been rehabilitated through ISAC. This data is intended to assist lenders and servicers in meeting the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) requirement that - beginning no later than July 1, 2010 - lenders remove the negative trade line of default from the credit history of borrowers whose loans have been rehabilitated.
If you have not already done so: In order to ensure that data is received in a timely manner, please provide ISAC with the name and e-mail address of the individual at your institution to whom the monthly files should be sent. Send contact information to LaCora Jones (ljones@isac.org) and Paul Oliver (poliver@isac.org).
ISAC's FFELP Origination Close-out Plan: Initial Guarantee Requests Due on or before June 25, 2010 The following provides operational details regarding the submission of initial guarantee requests, a listing of FFELP activities that will continue uninterrupted beyond the HCERA implementation, and a request to lenders for required documentation related to the electronic signature process. We are sharing this information with both financial aid directors and lender operational staff so that colleges and lenders can work together to ensure that all initial guarantee requests are submitted no later than the June 25 deadline. Submitting Initial Guarantee Requests for FFELP Stafford, PLUS and Consolidation Loans
FFELP Activities to Continue Uninterrupted after HCERA Implementation
As part of our FFELP origination close-out activities, ISAC is requesting that lenders using an electronic signature (e-signature) process provide documentation that would be required in the event that the U.S. Department of Education (ED) received a borrower's challenge regarding the enforceability of a Master Promissory Note (MPN). Specific details (including what documentation is required, and how it should be submitted to ISAC) are provided in a sample letter that may be accessed via the Electronic Signatures page, located in the Loan Origination section of the Lender Zone's Processes area at collegezone.com. Questions? If you have any questions regarding ISAC's plans for implementing the HCERA requirements, please do not hesitate to contact us as indicated below.
Unreported Loan Reports to be Distributed in May While the majority of lenders and servicers will receive the Unreported Loan Reports electronically via the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) process, those who have not taken the steps necessary to exchange NSLDS-Lender Manifest data via FTP will receive the reports via fax. The Unreported Loan Report will list the following:
ISAC to Provide Monthly Data Regarding Borrowers Whose Loans Have Been Rehabilitated July 1, 2010 - lenders remove the negative trade line of default from the credit history of borrowers whose loans have been rehabilitated. ISAC Will Provide Monthly Spreadsheets This message is to notify you that, in order to assist you in fulfilling the HEOA requirement, we will be providing lenders/servicers with data regarding borrowers whose previously-defaulted loans have been rehabilitated through ISAC.
In order to ensure that data is received in a timely manner, please provide ISAC with the name and e-mail address of the individual at your institution to whom the monthly files should be sent. Send contact information to LaCora Jones (ljones@isac.org) and Paul Oliver (poliver@isac.org).
ISAC UPDATE Electronic ISAC Update Moving to Quarterly Schedule - March 2010 Newsletter Now Available Effective immediately, the ISAC Update for lenders and servicers is moving to a quarterly (rather than monthly) schedule. This means that future electronic newsletters will be available at the beginning of each quarter (January, April, July, and October), and will be the compilation of information announced via an e-Message to any of the Lender Zone subscription groups during the previous quarter. If you have not already done so, you are encouraged to sign up for the "Marketing News, Announcements" and/or "Operational News, Announcements" subscription groups (in addition to the "ISAC Updates" subscription group, from which you received today's message), in order to ensure that you receive communications from ISAC as soon they are made available. To subscribe to additional groups and/or confirm to which groups you are currently subscribed, enter your e-mail address at the Manage Subscription/Unsubscribe page at collegezone.com. March 2010 ISAC Update Available The March 2010 edition of the ISAC Update is now available for your review within the ISAC Publications section of College Zone's e-Library. This version of the electronic ISAC Update is a compilation of e-Messages sent to lenders and servicers in March via College Zone's e-Messaging service. Topics covered in the March 2010 ISAC Update include:
The next edition of the ISAC Update for lenders and servicers will be available in July 2010. |
|||||||||
|
||||||||||
© 2003-2012 Illinois Student Assistance Commission
