Data / Federal rules / 2026-03074
Clarification of the Appropriate Use of Terms “National” and “Regional” by Recognized Accrediting Agencies
The Education Department published this proposed rule in the Federal Register on February 17, 2026. Comments closed on March 19, 2026.
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What the agency says
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) proposes to issue this interpretive rule to revise and clarify its prior interpretation of its position on the use of descriptive terms by Department-recognized accrediting agencies, specifically, the use of "regional" and "national." The Department proposes this interpretive rule to interpret Section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA), and the general duty of accrediting agencies to not make false statements and misrepresentations. Institutions of higher education also are required to ensure that they do not misrepresent their accreditation status to students and the public.
Key facts
- Document number
- 2026-03074
- Type
- Proposed rule
- Action
- Proposed interpretive rule
- Agency
- Education Department
- Published
- February 17, 2026
- Comments due
- March 19, 2026
- Dates
- We must receive your comments by March 19, 2026.
- Docket
- Docket ID: ED-2026-OPE-0067
- Code of Federal Regulations
- 34 CFR 602
- Pages
- 6
Other documents from the Education Department
Everything from the Education Department · Published in February 2026
Read from the Federal Register API, last updated 2026-10-23. The document on federalregister.gov is the official record; dates and dockets can change through later corrections. Free to reuse with credit to SpecStream under CC BY 4.0.