FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 31, 2006

HACU Commends the Legislature for Passing Assembly Bill (AB) 751

SACRAMENTO, CA - The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) today lauded the California State Assembly for its passage of Assembly Member Chu’s AB 751. 

AB 751 will require the private purveyors of college financial aid and scholarship advising services to register and post a bond with the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC).  By doing so, AB 751 will provide protections to many Latino, low-income, and immigrant families who fall prey to unscrupulous individuals and organizations that promise them assistance in obtaining financial aid but only end up taking their hard-earned money. 

In addition, under this bill CSAC would establish a Web site where individuals could report fraudulent activities and learn more about financial aid and scholarship fraud.  Lastly, by requiring contracts to be written in the primary language of the parent or student, there could be a reduction in fraud as families can more easily understand terms of the agreement.
 
“AB 751 is a great tool to help prevent unscrupulous individuals or companies from defrauding California’s hard-working families.  Many immigrants and first-generation families who are not familiar with the U.S. education process fall prey to people who offer to help them obtain scholarships funds but in fact con them out of their money.  This is a good step towards reducing fraud in this area and protecting reputable lenders,” said Antonio Flores, President and CEO of HACU.

Currently, HACU has over 97 members in the state of California and in 2005 opened a regional office located in Sacramento to handle Hispanic higher education legislative and policy issues in the western region of the U.S.

HACU represents more than 450 colleges and universities committed to Hispanic higher education success in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Latin America, Portugal and Spain.  Although its member institutions in the U.S. represent less than 10% of all higher education institutions nationwide, together they are home to more than two-thirds of all Hispanic college students.  HACU is the only national educational association that represents Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs).

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