AACS Thanks Industry, Veterans, and Small Business Owners for Making Their Voices Heard on Do No Harm Rule

As Public Comment Period Closes, AACS Urges Department of Education to Listen to the Workers, Educators, and Communities Its Rule Would Harm

WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, May 20, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- American Association of Career Schools Thanks Industry, Veterans, and Small Business Owners for Making Their Voices Heard on Do No Harm Rule

As the public comment period on the Department of Education's proposed “Do No Harm” rule closes today, the American Association of Career Schools (AACS) is thanking the more than seven thousand cosmetologists, barbers, estheticians, nail technicians, massage therapists, school owners, educators, veterans, military spouses, and consumers who submitted comments and lent their voices to this fight. AACS is calling on the Department to do what those voices have asked: Listen and follow the law Congress passed and President Trump signed into law, and remove undergraduate certificate programs from the final rule.

By the Department's own analysis, the rule would shutter 92.5% of cosmetology and barbering programs and 89% of massage therapy programs nationwide—the very schools training the licensed tradespeople President Trump and Congress just protected through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and No Tax on Tips.

“For the last 30 days, the people who actually do this work—who teach in these classrooms, who run these small businesses, who serve every community in America—have spoken up in numbers the Department cannot ignore,” said Garrett Shuler, AACS Board Chair. “Cosmetologists, barbers, estheticians, nail technicians, and massage therapists told their stories. Veterans and military spouses told theirs. School owners and educators shared their experiences. The message is consistent: This rule, as written, will close the schools that train the licensed tradespeople our communities depend on. The Department now has a choice. Follow the law Congress passed, or decimate fields Congress explicitly omitted from the law in the first place.”

“Congress was deliberate when it passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and when President Trump signed it into law. It limited the new earnings framework to degree and graduate programs. It protected the tip income of barbers, hairstylists, cosmetologists, estheticians, nail technicians, and massage therapists under No Tax on Tips. And on April 10, the IRS finalized those tip protections by name,” said John D. Russell, JD, AACS Executive Director. “The “Do No Harm” rule, as proposed, does the opposite of what the law directs. The thousands of comments filed during this window make the record clear. We urge Secretary McMahon and the Department to align the regulation with the statute and preserve the career pathways Congress and the President have repeatedly chosen to preserve.”

Over the past month, small business owners, veterans, educators, elected officials, and industry leaders have made the case in their own words across national and regional news outlets. A selection of the coverage to date:

• Fox News — John Paul DeJoria, co-founder of Paul Mitchell and Patrón Tequila, on the federal rule that would dismantle the industry he helped build.

• Detroit Free Press — Stacy Wells, AACS Board Vice Chair, co-founder of L'esprit Academy, and licensed Michigan cosmetology instructor, on the threat to Michigan's pathway to opportunity.

• Charleston Post and Courier — Garrett Shuler, AACS Board Chair and Vice President of Kenneth Shuler School of Cosmetology, on protecting beauty and wellness education in South Carolina.

• PennLive — Frank Schoeneman on the federal rule's threat to Pennsylvania's cosmetology school pipeline.

• Stars and Stripes — NeCole Cumberlander, U.S. Air Force National Guard veteran, licensed cosmetologist, co-owner of Paul Mitchell the School Cleveland and Paul Mitchell the School Columbus, and member of the Ohio State Cosmetology and Barber Board, on what the rule would mean for veterans and military families.

• RealClearEducation — Elizabeth Faye, hairstylist, salon owner, educator, and TEDx speaker, with Stacy Wells, AACS Board Vice Chair, on preserving the American Dream for students.

• American Salon — Industry-wide coverage of the campaign to halt the rule.

Members of Congress also raised concerns directly with Secretary McMahon during the comment window, joining the workers, veterans, and small business owners now on the record.

“The public has done its part,” Russell added. “Now it's the Department's turn to listen.”

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About the American Association of Career Schools (AACS)

Founded in 1924, the American Association of Career Schools (AACS) is a national nonprofit association representing privately owned schools of cosmetology arts and sciences. For over 100 years, AACS has been advancing beauty, barber, and wellness education through education, networking, and advocacy. The association's membership includes cosmetology, skin, nail, barbering, and massage schools that have educated and advanced millions of students into the beauty and wellness industry. AACS is headquartered in Washington, D.C.

Matt Simeon
American Association of Career Schools
simeon@rodriguezstrategies.com
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