The state Assembly will investigate with a public hearing the relationships between UW System schools and the lenders who compete to supply students with millions of dollars in financial aid.
State Rep. Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh, and state Rep. Jeff Smith, D-Eau Claire, had requested a hearing to be held in the Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities on lending practices.
It is important that we make sure our financial aid policies protect the financial interests of our students,"" Hintz said.
Hintz and Smith said in a statement that the request was in response to several high profile cases of school financial aid officials receiving favors or gifts from companies, and then giving preferred lender status to those businesses.
Smith said he wanted to make sure students were receiving ""transparent"" information regarding lenders and financial offers.
""As the cost of higher education continues to rise, it is important that students have access to financial aid without being taken advantage of,"" Smith said.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation last year that ends certain unethical financial aid lending practices, but the U.S. Senate has not passed similar legislation.
Smith and Hintz did not mention a specific date for when the hearing would be held.
