WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) released the following statement after the U.S. Department of Education announced several new sanctions on the for-profit college chain, ITT Technical Institutes, which has recently been the subject of various state and federal investigations. As a member of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, Murphy applauded the sanctions, which will prohibit ITT from enrolling new students with federal aid, limit compensation for the for-profit chain’s executives, and require the college system to notify current students that they are not in compliance with accreditor standards.

“I am happy to see the Department of Education using its authority to increase oversight of the troubled ITT Tech for-profit college chain and cut off the enrollment of new students who use federal student aid dollars. I especially applaud the Department’s ban on bonuses and golden parachutes, ensuring that the ITT executives won’t be able to raid the college’s coffers for student aid dollars on their way out. I urge the Department to explore how to hold executives liable for any financial losses associated with federal dollars the college incurs moving forward. After years of pocketing bonuses from federal dollars, taxpayers shouldn’t be left holding the bag for ITT’s executives.”

In order to protect students from deceptive practices and bad actors in the for-profit college sector, Murphy introduced the Students Before Profits Act. In addition to improving oversight and authorizing enhanced civil penalties institutions and their executive officers when they break the law, the bill requires for-profit college owners and executives to assume personal liability for financial losses associated with Title IV funds.