A state group designed to review student loan debt collection has issued a new report.

The advisory group created by Ohio Attorney General Mike Dewine in September 2016 issued a report of its findings including the recommendation of late fees and penalties added by colleges and universities should not be assessed interest during debt collection proceedings.

Several issues were reviewed recently including:

-The uniformity of university policies, fees and penalties regarding unpaid accounts

-Whether students are being adequately educated regarding all responsibilities when taking student loans.

-The university certification process for student debt accounts

-Student debt collection and litigation processes within the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

The advisory group was chaired by Dan Sadlier, Chairman of the Board of Directors (retired) at Fifth Third Bank and a member of the Sinclair Community College Board of Trustees.

The group met five times over six months.

The report issued several additional recommendations regarding collections practices of student loan debt including:

-Institutions should not adopt uniform certification practices.

-Institutions should not notify students that past-due debts would be transferred to the Attorney General’s Office for collection.

-Institutions should notify the Attorney General’s Office of any atypical debts.

-Institutional late fees and penalties should not be included in the calculation of interest and collection costs.

-Debtors should receive appropriate notice of collections costs.

The report also added a recommendation regarding student education both before and during the process of acquiring student loans, including that all Ohio high school students should receive one semester of financial literacy education.

For more information or to view the full report visit the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.