The U.S. Department of Education’s proposed rule for “gainful employment” and federal student-loan eligibility would let some programs lose access if graduates fail to meet new earnings tests, critics say. Under the draft, undergraduate programs would be evaluated against workers ages 25–34 with only high school diplomas in a state; graduate programs would be compared to bachelor’s-degree earners. Republican-drafted accountability concepts included in a major spending package are now colliding with Biden-era consumer-protection rules, including debt-to-earnings requirements that are meant to prevent career programs from saddling students with unmanageable debt. Lawmakers including Rep. Bobby Scott and higher-education experts argue the changes could weaken oversight while increasing compliance risk for students. The public comment period closed Wednesday with more than 10,000 submissions. The dispute centers on how the earnings test would operate and whether revisions to gainful employment enforcement meaningfully reduce protections that were tightened during the Biden administration.