Protect Higher Education & Student Aid in Reconciliation Sample Letter
NASFAA has developed a sample letter that you may use to encourage your representative to oppose the concerning provisions included in the reconciliation proposal and vote against the bill.
Subject: Protect Higher Education & Student Aid in Reconciliation
Dear Representative/Senator [insert name],
My name is [insert your name] and I am a/the [insert title] at [insert institution]. I am writing to you as a constituent to request that you express opposition to the reconciliation proposal recently introduced by the House Committee on Education and Workforce. The bill contains several concerning provisions that would impact higher education and restrict eligibility for federal student financial aid.
Rather than making college more affordable, this bill would eliminate entire federal student aid programs, significantly reduce eligibility for others, strip protections and flexibilities for struggling borrowers, and remove provisions intended to protect taxpayer dollars.
The proposal would cause current Pell Grant recipients to lose eligibility by changing the definition of full-time enrollment for Pell Grant eligibility from 12 credit hours to 15 credit hours and eliminating Pell Grant eligibility for any student enrolled less than half-time. It also eliminates the subsidized Direct Loan for undergraduate students, making borrowing more expensive for the neediest students.
Notably, the reconciliation bill would also eliminate the Grad PLUS loan for new borrowers. The Grad PLUS loan is a critical tool for access to graduate education, especially for borrowers from low-income backgrounds who have limited federal aid options and may be unable to access private loans.
Finally, the proposal eliminates long-standing, straightforward institutional accountability efforts while introducing new, complex measures like capping student aid at median rather than actual costs and establishing a student loan risk-sharing arrangement for institutions.
These proposed changes will bring significant disruption to both students and schools across the country. I urge you to oppose the harmful provisions in the reconciliation proposal.
I am happy to discuss this further and answer any questions you might have. Thank you again for your support of higher education and [insert state] students and institutions.
Sincerely,
[Insert your name and contact information]
