Democratic lawmakers and higher education experts urged the U.S. Department of Education to revisit a proposed rule that would strengthen earnings-based “gainful employment” tests tied to federal student loan eligibility. The proposal would require undergraduate and graduate programs to show graduates earn more than benchmark workers in-state, and it would allow loss of federal loan eligibility if graduates do not meet the new earnings thresholds. Critics say the approach could undermine consumer protections built under the Biden-era gainful employment regulations, which included safeguards to prevent career education programs from saddling students with unmanageable debt. In a letter, Virginia Rep. Bobby Scott and 15 other lawmakers supported parts of the proposal but argued that oversight capacity and student protection measures need to be improved before finalization. The public comment period closed with more than 10,000 responses, reflecting high stakes for career-focused institutions and students weighing debt versus early-career outcomes. Colleges also face complexity in how earnings tests interact with the debt-to-earnings protections that were part of earlier guardrails. The regulatory shift would determine whether many programs remain eligible for federal student aid—turning “earnings bump” accountability into a central compliance requirement for higher education providers.