AID Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3101 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to increase the maximum Federal Pell Grant amount, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 5, 2019 Mr. DEFAZIO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committee on Ag- riculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic- tion of the committee concerned A BILL To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to increase the maximum Federal Pell Grant amount, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Achieving Independ- 4 ence through Degrees Act’’ or the ‘‘AID Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 6 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title. Sec. 2. Table of contents. VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3101 IH TITLE I—ADJUSTMENTS TO FEDERAL PELL GRANTS Sec. 101. Increase in maximum Federal Pell Grant amount. Sec. 102. Increase in total semesters of Federal Pell Grant eligibility. Sec. 103. Extending Federal Pell Grant eligibility of certain short-term pro- grams. TITLE II—FINANCIAL AID COUNSELING FOR BORROWERS Sec. 201. Annual financial aid counseling. Sec. 202. Exit counseling. Sec. 203. Online counseling tools. Sec. 204. Longitudinal study on the effectiveness of student loan counseling. TITLE III—ADJUSTMENTS TO THE FAFSA FORM Sec. 301. Provisional independence for certain students. Sec. 302. Revision of FAFSA form. Sec. 303. Repeal of suspension of eligibility under the Higher Education Act of 1965 for grants, loans, and work assistance for drug-related offenses. TITLE IV—FINANCIAL AID SHOPPING SHEET Sec. 401. Secretarial requirements. Sec. 402. Requirements for institutions of higher education. TITLE V—SNAP AND HIGHER EDUCATION Sec. 501. SNAP treatment of living expenses included in educational loans. Sec. 502. Eligibility of students to participate in the supplemental nutrition as- sistance program. TITLE VI—ADJUSTMENTS TO CAMPUS-BASED STUDENT FINANCIAL AID PROGRAMS PART A—FEDERAL SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY GRANTS Sec. 601. Purpose; appropriations authorized. Sec. 602. Allocation of funds. PART B—FEDERAL WORK-STUDY PROGRAMS Sec. 610. Purpose; authorization of appropriations. Sec. 611. Allocation formula. Sec. 612. Grants for Federal work-study programs. Sec. 613. Flexible use of funds. Sec. 614. Job location and development programs. Sec. 615. Community service. Sec. 616. Pilot grant program. Sec. 617. Department activities. Sec. 618. Study and report. VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3101 IH TITLE I—ADJUSTMENTS TO 1 FEDERAL PELL GRANTS 2 SEC. 101. INCREASE IN MAXIMUM FEDERAL PELL GRANT 3 AMOUNT. 4 Section 401(b)(7)(C) of the Higher Education Act of 5 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a(b)(7)(C)) is amended by striking 6 clauses (ii) and (iii) and inserting the following: 7 ‘‘(ii) AWARD YEAR 2020–2021.—For 8 award year 2020–2021, the amount deter- 9 mined under this subparagraph for pur- 10 poses of subparagraph (B)(iii) shall be in- 11 creased to $10,230. 12 ‘‘(iii) SUBSEQUENT AWARD YEARS.— 13 For award year 2021–2022 and each sub- 14 sequent award year, the amount deter- 15 mined under this subparagraph for pur- 16 poses of subparagraph (B)(iii) shall be 17 equal to— 18 ‘‘(I) the amount determined 19 under this subparagraph for the pre- 20 ceding award year; increased by 21 ‘‘(II) a percentage equal to the 22 annual adjustment percentage for the 23 award year for which the amount 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3101 IH under this subparagraph is being de- 1 termined; and 2 ‘‘(III) rounded to the nearest 3 $5.’’. 4 SEC. 102. INCREASE IN TOTAL SEMESTERS OF FEDERAL 5 PELL GRANT ELIGIBILITY. 6 Section 401(c)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 7 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a(c)(5)) is amended by striking 8 ‘‘12’’ both places it appears and inserting ‘‘15’’. 9 SEC. 103. EXTENDING FEDERAL PELL GRANT ELIGIBILITY 10 OF CERTAIN SHORT-TERM PROGRAMS. 11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 401 of the Higher Edu- 12 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a), is amended by in- 13 serting after subsection (j) the following: 14 ‘‘(k) JOB TRAINING FEDERAL PELL GRANT PRO- 15 GRAM.— 16 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 17 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE CAREER PATHWAY PRO- 18 GRAM.—The term ‘eligible career pathway pro- 19 gram’ means a program that— 20 ‘‘(i) meets the requirements of section 21 484(d)(2); 22 ‘‘(ii) is a program of training services 23 listed under included on the list established 24 under section 122(d) of the Workforce In- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 3101 IH novation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 1 3152(d)); and 2 ‘‘(iii) is part of a career pathway, as 3 defined in section 3 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 4 3102). 5 ‘‘(B) JOB TRAINING PROGRAM.—The term 6 ‘job training program’ means a career and tech- 7 nical education program at an institution of 8 higher education that— 9 ‘‘(i) provides not less than 150, and 10 not more than 600, clock hours of instruc- 11 tional time over a period of not less than 12 8, and not more than 15, weeks; 13 ‘‘(ii) provides training aligned with 14 the requirements of employers in the State 15 or local area, which may include in-demand 16 industry sectors or occupations, as defined 17 in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation 18 and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102), in 19 the State or local area (as defined in such 20 section); 21 ‘‘(iii) is a program of training services 22 that is provided through an eligible pro- 23 vider of training services listed under sec- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 3101 IH tion 122(d) of such Act (29 U.S.C. 1 3152(d)); 2 ‘‘(iv) provides a student, upon comple- 3 tion of the program, with a recognized 4 postsecondary credential, as defined in sec- 5 tion 3 of such Act, that is recognized by 6 employers in the relevant industry, includ- 7 ing credentials recognized by industry or 8 sector partnerships in the State or local 9 area where the industry is located; 10 ‘‘(v) has been determined, by the in- 11 stitution of higher education, to provide 12 academic content, an amount of instruc- 13 tional time, and a recognized postsec- 14 ondary credential that are sufficient to— 15 ‘‘(I) meet the hiring requirements 16 of potential employers; and 17 ‘‘(II) satisfy any applicable edu- 18 cational prerequisite requirement for 19 professional licensure or certification, 20 so that the student who completes the 21 program and seeks employment quali- 22 fies to take any licensure or certifi- 23 cation examination needed to practice 24 or find employment in an occupation 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 3101 IH that the program prepares students to 1 enter; 2 ‘‘(vi) may include integrated or basic 3 skills courses; and 4 ‘‘(vii) may be offered as part of an eli- 5 gible career pathway program. 6 ‘‘(2) GRANT PROGRAM.—For the award year 7 beginning on July 1, 2020, and each subsequent 8 award year, the Secretary shall carry out a program 9 through which the Secretary shall award job training 10 Federal Pell Grants to students in job training pro- 11 grams. Each job training Federal Pell Grant award- 12 ed under this subsection shall have the same terms 13 and conditions, and be awarded in the same manner, 14 as a Federal Pell Grant awarded under subsection 15 (a), except as follows: 16 ‘‘(A) A student who is eligible to receive a 17 job training Federal Pell Grant under this sub- 18 section is a student who— 19 ‘‘(i) has not yet attained a bacca- 20 laureate degree or postbaccalaureate de- 21 gree; 22 ‘‘(ii) attends an institution of higher 23 education; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 3101 IH ‘‘(iii) is enrolled, or accepted for en- 1 rollment, in a job training program at such 2 institution of higher education; and 3 ‘‘(iv) meets all other eligibility re- 4 quirements for a Federal Pell Grant (ex- 5 cept with respect to the type of program of 6 study, as provided in clause (iii)). 7 ‘‘(B) The amount of a job training Federal 8 Pell Grant for an eligible student shall be deter- 9 mined under subsection (b)(1), except that— 10 ‘‘(i) the maximum Federal Pell Grant 11 awarded under this subsection for an 12 award year shall be 50 percent of the max- 13 imum Federal Pell Grant awarded under 14 subsection (b)(5) applicable to that award 15 year; and 16 ‘‘(ii) subsection (b)(4) shall not apply. 17 ‘‘(3) INCLUSION IN TOTAL ELIGIBILITY PE- 18 RIOD.—Any period during which a student receives 19 a job training Federal Pell Grant under this sub- 20 section shall be included in calculating the student’s 21 period of eligibility for Federal Pell Grants under 22 subsection (c), and any regulations under such sub- 23 section regarding students who are enrolled in an 24 undergraduate program on less than a full-time 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 3101 IH basis shall similarly apply to students who are en- 1 rolled in a job training program at an eligible insti- 2 tution on less than a full-time basis.’’. 3 (b) ADDITIONAL SAFEGUARDS.—Section 496(a)(4) 4 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 5 1099b(a)(4)) is amended— 6 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ 7 after the semicolon; 8 (2) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by inserting ‘‘and’’ 9 after the semicolon; and 10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 11 ‘‘(C) if such agency or association has or 12 seeks to include within its scope of recognition 13 the evaluation of the quality of institutions of 14 higher education participating in the job train- 15 ing Federal Pell Grant program under section 16 401(k), such agency or association shall, in ad- 17 dition to meeting the other requirements of this 18 subpart, demonstrate to the Secretary that, 19 with respect to such job training programs— 20 ‘‘(i) the agency or association’s stand- 21 ards include a process for determining 22 whether the program provides training 23 aligned with the requirements of employers 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 3101 IH in the State or local area served by the 1 program; and 2 ‘‘(ii) the agency or association re- 3 quires a demonstration that the program— 4 ‘‘(I) has identified each recog- 5 nized postsecondary credential offered 6 and the corresponding industry or sec- 7 tor partnership that actively recog- 8 nizes each credential in the relevant 9 industry in the State or local area 10 where the industry is located; and 11 ‘‘(II) provides the academic con- 12 tent and amount of instructional time 13 that is sufficient to— 14 ‘‘(aa) meet the hiring re- 15 quirements of potential employ- 16 ers; and 17 ‘‘(bb) satisfy any applicable 18 educational prerequisites for pro- 19 fessional licensure or certification 20 requirements so that the student 21 who completes the program and 22 seeks employment qualifies to 23 take any licensure or certification 24 examination that is needed to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 3101 IH practice or find employment in 1 an occupation that the program 2 prepares students to enter;’’. 3 TITLE II—FINANCIAL AID 4 COUNSELING FOR BORROWERS 5 SEC. 201. ANNUAL FINANCIAL AID COUNSELING. 6 Section 485(l) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 7 (20 U.S.C. 1092(l)) is amended to read as follows: 8 ‘‘(l) ANNUAL FINANCIAL AID COUNSELING.— 9 ‘‘(1) ANNUAL DISCLOSURE REQUIRED.— 10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each eligible institu- 11 tion shall ensure that each individual who re- 12 ceives a loan made under part D (other than a 13 Federal Direct Consolidation Loan) receives 14 comprehensive information on the terms and 15 conditions of such loan and the responsibilities 16 the individual has with respect to such loan. 17 Such information shall be provided, for each 18 award year for which the individual receives 19 such loan, in a simple and understandable man- 20 ner— 21 ‘‘(i) during a counseling session con- 22 ducted in person; 23 ‘‘(ii) online, with the individual ac- 24 knowledging receipt of the information; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 3101 IH ‘‘(iii) through the use of the online 1 counseling tool described in subsection 2 (k)(1)(B). 3 ‘‘(B) USE OF INTERACTIVE PROGRAMS.— 4 In the case of institutions not using the online 5 counseling tool described in subsection 6 (k)(1)(B), the Secretary shall require such in- 7 stitutions to carry out the requirements of sub- 8 paragraph (A) through the use of interactive 9 programs, during an annual counseling session 10 that is in-person or online, that test the individ- 11 ual’s understanding of the terms and conditions 12 of the loan awarded to the individual, using 13 simple and understandable language and clear 14 formatting. 15 ‘‘(2) ALL INDIVIDUALS.—The information to be 16 provided under paragraph (1)(A) to each individual 17 receiving counseling under this subsection shall in- 18 clude the following: 19 ‘‘(A) An explanation of how the individual 20 may budget for typical educational expenses 21 and a sample budget based on the cost of at- 22 tendance for the institution. 23 ‘‘(B) An explanation that an individual has 24 a right to annually request a disclosure of infor- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 16:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3101.IH H3101 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 3101 IH mation collecte [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]