Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HR0678

HR0678 LRB104 20896 ECR 34585 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The federal administration has reclassified architecture graduate degrees from "professional" to "non-professional" degrees under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA); and

WHEREAS, This reclassification is a challenge to the integrity of the architect profession and to public safety; by stripping architecture of its professional status within the United States Department of Education's classification system, the federal government is disregarding decades of established standards and creating insurmountable financial barriers for the next generation of architects; and

WHEREAS, The primary justification for the opposition to this reclassification lies in the very definition of a professional degree; as established in the Higher Education Act of 1965, a professional degree signifies the completion of academic requirements for practice and a level of skill beyond a standard bachelor's degree, typically requiring licensure; and

WHEREAS, Architecture meets every one of these criteria; to earn the title of architect, individuals must undergo five to seven years of rigorous, specialized education, complete thousands of hours of supervised experience, and pass a series of demanding national examinations; classifying this path as "non-professional" is a factual error that dismisses the expertise required to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public; and

WHEREAS, The practical implications of this reclassification are devastating; starting in July 2026, new architect graduate students will be restricted to $20,500 annually in federal loans, less than half of the amount available for professional graduate degree students, which is a level that is wholly inadequate to cover the cost of architectural education and will effectively place these graduate degrees out of reach for all but the wealthiest students; and

WHEREAS, This new policy ensures that the future of our built environment will be shaped only by those with independent wealth, effectively purging the architect profession of diversity and talent from middle and low-income backgrounds; and

WHEREAS, This reclassification will result in pushing students into riskier, higher-interest debt to fund their education and entirely price out certain students who simply have no access to private debt; and

WHEREAS, The consequences of this change will result in a depressive effect on the broader construction market such as fewer architects being available to provide needed services to projects; with a reduced competition among architects, the cost of design and construction services will be further driven up, increasing expenses for schools, municipalities, developers, and homeowners across Illinois; and

WHEREAS, The resulting reduction in the number of licensed architects will not be limited to major metropolitan areas but will disproportionately affect suburban and rural communities across Illinois, where access to architectural services is already more limited and where local schools, municipalities, and other institutions rely on licensed architects to maintain safe, resilient, and high-quality buildings and infrastructure; and

WHEREAS, The consequences of this reclassification will extend beyond the classroom as a shortage of qualified architects will lead to a decline in the quality of our homes, buildings, infrastructure, and cities; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois must stand firm in its opposition to the reclassification of architecture degrees as architects are licensed professionals whose status must be properly recognized to ensure a safe and equitable future for the American public; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the United States Department of Education to reverse the reclassification of architecture graduate degrees from "professional" to" non-professional" degrees under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA).