On this page, you'll find previous proposals that modify the existing campus-based aid programs, which include the Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Work Study (FWS), and the Federal Perkins Loan program. Use these links to jump to a specific session of Congress. 

• • • 118th Session of Congress (2023-current)
    • 117th Session of Congress (2021-2023)
    • 116th Session of Congress (2019-2021)
    • 115th Session of Congress (2017-2019)
    • 114th Session of Congress (2015-2017)

117th Session of Congress

H.R.8343 — Opportunities for Success Act of 2022

Sponsor: Rep. Bonamici [D-OR]
Cosponsors: 3 (3D; 0R)
Introduced: 07/13/2022
NASFAA Summary  & Analysis: This bill would reform the FWS formula by revising the distribution formula to allocate FWS funds based on the total Pell Grant funding an institution receives relative to other participating institutions as well as their share of total undergraduate and graduate student need across all institutions.

H.R.8363 — Earning Experience Act of 2022

Sponsor: Rep. Kilmer [D-WA]
Cosponsors: 3 (3D; 0R)
Introduced: 07/13/2022
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill establishes a new pilot grant program alongside and with similar goals to the Federal Work-Study Program. Institutions who receive these funds would have to use them to support students with exceptional need to perform jobs in in-demand industry sectors.

H.R. 8112 — Federal Work-Study Improvement Act 

Sponsor: Rep. Keller [R-PA]
Cosponsors: 1 (0D; 1R)
Introduced: 06/16/2022
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would amend the Higher Education Act to equally consider the federal share of Federal Work-Study funding at all institutions of higher education. Currently, funding is allocated by fiscal information submitted by institutions as well as historical institutional funding and number of eligible students.

S.2800 — Community College to Career Fund in Higher Education Act

Sponsor: Sen. Duckworth [D-IL]
Cosponsors: 6 (6D; 0R)
Introduced: 09/22/2021
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would support partnerships between technical colleges, community colleges and businesses that train students for careers in high-demand fields by creating a competitive grant program to support partnerships between two-year colleges and businesses. These partnerships will focus on job training-related efforts, such as registered apprenticeships, on-the-job training opportunities and paid internships for low-income students that allow them simultaneously to earn credit for work-based learning in a high-skill field.

S.2625 — CCAMPIS Reauthorization Act

Sponsor: Sen. Duckworth [D-IL]
Cosponsors: 13 (13D; 0R)
Introduced: 08/05/2021
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would reauthorize the Child Care Access Means Parents in Schools (CCAMPIS) program and increase its funding to $500 million. The CCAMPIS program offers federal support for student parents in higher education and helps to put child care within reach for low and middle-income student parents.

H.R.4338 — Expanding Pathways to Employment Act

Sponsor: Rep. Sherrill [D-NJ]
Cosponsors: 4 (3D; 1R)
Introduced: 07/01/2021
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would provide grant funding to expand evidence-based workforce development and postsecondary education programs as well as to aid in the evaluation of these programs. If enacted, this bill would create a fund of about $700 million over the course of nine years to be administered by the Department of the Treasury. The grant values would be based on a number of factors associated with the program’s impact, with a key focus on people who have been historically underserved by these workforce programs. 

S.1847 — ACCESS to Careers Act of 2021

Sponsor: Tim Kaine [D-VA]
Cosponsors: 1 
Introduced: 05/26/2021
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would create a competitive grant program for community colleges and states to focus on boosting work-based learning opportunities. In an effort to provide students with more opportunities to further their education and the support they need to be successful; this proposal would provide community colleges with grants of up to $1.5 million while community college systems would be eligible for up to $5 million. Individual states would also be eligible to receive grants to develop statewide policies that relate to work-based learning. 

H.R.1108 — Head Start for Our Future Act

Sponsor: Rep. Castro [D-TX]
Cosponsors: 3
Introduced: 02/18/2021
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would add child development and early learning (including Head Start programs and Early Head Start programs) as eligible community service positions for Federal work-study programs.

116th Session of Congress

H.R.7511 - Supporting Apprenticeship Colleges Act 

Sponsor: Rep. Craig [D-MN] 
Cosponsors: 3 (2D; 1R)
Introduced: 7/09/2020
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill authorizes funding to expand and support enrollment at institutions that sponsor construction and manufacturing oriented registered apprenticeship programs. Grant amounts cannot exceed 500,000 and will be appropriate 5 million for each fiscal year 2021 through 2025. 

H.R.7497 - Success for Rural Students and Communities Act 

Sponsor: Rep. Stefanik [R-NY] 
Cosponsors: 6 (4D; 2R)
Introduced: 7/06/2020
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill ensures the increased enrollment and graduation rates of secondary school graduates and nontraditional students from rural areas at 2-year and 4-year institutions. This bill establishes a grant program to promote economic growth and development in rural areas through partnerships grants to consortia of rural serving institutions.

H.R.748 - Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, "CARES" Act

Sponsor: Rep. Courtney [D-CT]
Cosponsors: 369 (200D; 169R)
Introduced: 1/24/2020  - Became Law: 3/27/2020
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, represents a compromise between Senate Republicans and Democrats for COVID-19 relief. The bill allocates nearly $14 billion to higher education in the Emergency Stabilization Fund. 90% of that will be allocated to institutions based 75% on the enrollment of full-time equivalent (FTE) Pell Grant recipients and 25% on enrollment of FTE non-Pell Grant recipients. Students who were enrolled exclusively in online, distance education courses prior to the COVID-19 emergency will be excluded from this calculation. Under the CARES Act, the non-federal share requirements of the Federal Work-Study (FWS) and Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) programs would be waived for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 award years in cases where the non-federal share is paid by the institution. The bill would also allow institutions to transfer up to 100% of FWS funds into FSEOG during a period of a qualifying emergency. The bill grants ED the authority to exclude from subsidized loan usage calculations any portions of the Direct Loan period that the student is unable to complete due to the COVID-19 outbreak as well as allows ED to exclude from a student's Pell Grant Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) any Pell Grant amounts received during a period that the student is unable to complete due to this qualifying emergency. The bill allows ED to waive the return of Title IV funds (R2T4) requirements for schools or students to return unearned grant or loan assistance for students who withdrew because of COVID-19 and allows for the cancelation for the portion of a Direct Loan associated with a payment period which the student did not complete due to COVID-19. The bipartisan proposal suspends payments and interest accrual on federal Direct Loans and Federal Family Education Loans (FFEL) held by ED until Sept. 30, 2020. The bill also counts each month of suspended loan payments as if the borrower had made a payment for the purpose of income-driven repayment plan loan forgiveness or Public Service Loan Forgiveness, as well as for loan rehabilitation purposes.

• 3/25/2020 - Congress Strikes Deal for $2 Trillion COVID-19 Relief Package

H.R.5961 - Student Apprenticeship Act of 2020

Sponsor: Rep. Khanna [D-CA]
Cosponsors: 1 (0D; 1R)
Introduced: 2/25/2020
NASFAA Summary: This bill would create a new grant program that would help to establish apprenticeships between institutions of higher education and employers. Students participating in the apprenticeships would be eligible to earn college credits as well as get paid for their work. Employers involved in the partnership should pay at least 25 percent of the student's tuition and fees. The bill would also revise the FWS program to include apprenticeship programs.

H.R.4706/S.2608 - Advancing Competency-Based Education Act of 2019

Sponsor: Rep. Neguse [D-CO]
Cosponsors: 0
Sponsor: Sen. Hassan [D-NH] 
Cosponsors: 0
Introduced: 10/16/2019
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This will would create a competency-based education (CBE) demonstration project that would allow institutions, selected by the Department of Education (ED), to request a waiver of, or flexibility on, certain statutory and regulatory requirements in order for them to award Title IV aid under a CBE model. ED would be required to conduct outreach to institutions eligible to take part in the program. The bill would also create a CBE council which would be charged with conducting a study on ongoing innovation and development of CBE programs, as well as make recommendations to Congress that would update standard definitions and/or address the metrics of a CBE program.

H.R.4308 - CAMPUS Act

Sponsor: Rep. Morelle [D-NY]
Cosponsors: 6 (5D; 1R)
Introduced: 9/12/2019
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: The Campus Act would create a matching Emergency Financial Aid Grant program, with the Federal share being a maximum of 50% of the program. The grant would be available to students facing financial challenges during their course of study due to situations such as, loss of employment, child care, or housing, food insecurity, death of a parent or guardian, or a medical condition.

H.R.4196 - To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to include child development and early learning as community services under the Federal work-study program.

Sponsor: Rep. Castro [D-TX]
Cosponsors: 2 (1D; 1R)
Introduced: 8/20/2019
NASFAA Summary & Analysis: This bill would amend the federal work study program to include child development and early learning as community service eligible opportunities.

H.R.3800 - Educational Opportunity and Success Act of 2019

Sponsor: Rep. Davidson [R-OH]
Cosponsors: 6 (4D; 2R)
Introduced: 7/17/2019
NASFAA Analysis & Coverage: The bipartisan Educational Opportunity and Success Act of 2019 would adjust TRIO eligibility criteria to align with FAFSA requirements so that students' FAFSA information can be used to determine TRIO eligibility. For example, Pell eligibility would be used as a marker for to determine TRIO income eligibility.

S.839 - Classroom to Careers Act of 2019

Sponsor: Sen. Gillibrand (D-NY)
Co-Sponsors: 3 (3 R; 0 D)
Introduced: 3/14/2019
NASFAA Analysis & Coverage: This bill would allow students to work full-time hours in a work-study position and would impose restrictions on the nature of all work performed under the Federal Work-Study (FWS) program. The bill would add a new requirement, applicable to all FWS employment, that all work performed under FWS must comply with the requirements of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which took effect in 2016.

• 3/20/2019 - "Classrooms to Careers Act" Proposes Full-Time FWS-Funded Positions, New Job Eligibility Requirements

115th Session of Congress

114th Session of Congress

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