Regulatory Compliance/Reporting

Colleges and universities are subject to a plethora of regulatory and reporting requirements that may exceed that of any other type of entity within our society. Some of the federal regulation of higher education is incorporated in the Higher Education Act (HEA), to be reauthorized by Congress in 2003-04. That mammoth act, however, is little more than the tip of the regulatory iceberg for colleges and universities, particularly private institutions.

Depending on its structure, academic programs, and ancillary activities, a college may be subject to regulation by dozens of federal agencies and offices falling outside of the HEA - for example, the Federal Communications Commission for the student radio station, the Environmental Protection Agency for chemicals used in its art studios, and of course the Immigration and Naturalization Service for the increasingly sensitive area of foreign student admission.

At the state level, colleges and universities - both public and private - are accountable to state bodies overseeing higher education, as well as state agencies that parallel many of those in the federal government. Regulation at this level becomes more difficult to summarize and analyze because of the wide range of relationships and oversight between institutions and government across 50 states. What the states do have in common, however, is the responsibility to approve or license the institutions to operate in the state, and consumer protection as it relates to the institution's delivery of its services.

At the local level, it is even more difficult to generalize about the regulation of colleges and universities by the county, parish, township, or municipality. Local governments have primary responsibility for health and safety. This up-close oversight and accountability also can be a major regulatory force in the form of zoning boards, city ordinances, and even ad-hoc citizen's groups formed to address issues of particular concern in the community.

In is worth noting that coordination across - and sometimes even within - these levels of governmental oversight is lacking, with the result that colleges and universities must reconcile conflicting regulations or deal with redundant reporting requirements from different entities.

A Summary of Federal Regulation

The Summary of Federal Laws Governing Independent Colleges and Universities, compiled by the Office of General Counsel, The Catholic University of America (CUA), may be the most comprehensive overview available of the federal regulation of private colleges and universities.  The site contents are organized into 13 topic areas.  We quote from the introduction to the Web site:

"This Summary of Federal Laws is an attempt to list and identify all federal laws that impose an 'affirmative ministerial duty' on a private institution of higher education.  Our intent was to design a quick reference guide for the CUA Office of General Counsel and, thus, the document is not necessarily written for the lay person.  It is a handy reference tool, rather than an exhaustive listing of the law.  Inclusion of case law is sporadic.  In general, we have included recent and landmark cases of interest to our office.  Links to actual documents or Web sites of interest are included as well."