Higher Ed Policy Roundup: Vol. 7 - Issue 37

On Tuesday, House Democrats sent a letter to President Biden requesting additional funding for the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) in a supplemental package that the Biden-Harris Administration planned to send to Congress. The lawmakers believe that the money is necessary to assist borrowers as they transition back into repayment. In the supplemental package released on Thursday, the President asked Congress for $56 billion in supplemental domestic funding for childcare, disaster relief funding, and broadband support but did not include the requested additional funding for FSA.

The Debt Collective announced it collaborated with Morehouse College, an HBCU, to cancel ten million dollars in loans for students who attended the college during the fall 2022 term and prior.

A growing number of U.S. colleges and universities are joining the "no-loan” movement, meeting students' financial needs in aid packages instead of requiring them to take out loans.

A research report by the Urban Institute examines how the new SAVE plan will affect borrowers in different fields of study and credential levels, finding smaller benefits for graduate and professional borrowers.

The following bill(s) have been recently introduced for consideration by the 118th Congress (2023-2024):

S. 3086 – America’s College Promise Act [Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)] would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to establish grants for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Minority-Serving Institutions.