• $2.7 trillion budget deal for FY2020 – Boosted the maximum Pell Grant award– Increased funding for the FSEOG by $25 million – Allocated $1.2 billion for FWS– Allows students to use up to $10,000 from their 529
education savings accounts to pay down student debt
Ø Level funding for the Pell GrantØ Eliminates FSEOGØ Cuts FWS to $500 millionØ Eliminates Direct Loan subsidy for undergradsØ Borrowing caps for PLUS programs
• What will the FY21 budget look like?– COVID-19 relief bills have already cost nearly
Do you anticipate an increase to the total number of PJ requests your office will receive between May 26, 2020 - October 1, 2020 as compared to the same date range last year?
• Looking outside of Congress for a fix– Use of Dear Colleague Letter (GEN 09-05)
Ø Increases flexibilities for professional judgment process during economic crises
Ø Allows FAs to use a letter from the state unemployment agency, or other evidence that a student is receiving unemployment benefits, to document that the income earned from work of that student is zero
– Using the FAFSAØ Added language to the FASFA (web version) letting
applicants know to reach out to their FA office if their financial circumstances have changed
Administrative Capability Report• NASFAA members raised concerns about a perceived lack of
institutional support for financial aid office staffing and training to ensure compliant administration of the Title IV student aid programs and provide quality service to their students
• Top findings associated with lack of administrative capability mentioned in the program reviews:– Failure to provide loan counseling or missing loan counseling
records– Campus safety and security violations– Failure to develop and monitor a satisfactory academic progress
policy (SAP)– Failure to prepare Return Title IV (R2T4) calculations and return
funds– Consumer disclosures– Overall lack of administrative capability
Administrative Capability RecommendationsThe Task Force charged with tackling this issue produced the following recommendations for NASFAA:
– Recommendation #1: Repackage existing products into an Administrative Capability Toolkit that will provide a one-stop shop for resources to assist an institution in assessing its administrative capability.
– Recommendation #2: Collaborate with the American Council on Education (ACE) to educate campus chief executive officers regarding the importance of their understanding of and commitment to ensuring campus compliance with the Higher Education Act and associated regulations.
– Recommendation #3: Further study specific administrative relief or regulatory incentives for institutions that demonstrate administrative capability.
Administrative Burden Survey• Survey completed every 5 years to assess the existing
capabilities of NASFAA members’ financial aid offices• Nearly half of respondents faced a moderate shortage of
resources that impact their level of services during peak processing periods
• Biggest pain points:– Long-term resource shortages– Limited or inadequate institutional budgets– Insufficient number of counseling and support staff members– Compliance workload
• How will COVID-19 exacerbate office shortcomings?– Increase PJs– Financial aid appeals– More one-on-one staff counseling needed
Examining Software Providers' Compliance With the NASFAA Code of Conduct Report• Convened in September 2019 to research and analyze the role
that student financial aid management software plays in institutions' ability to provide accurate and clear aid offers
• Produced 16 recommendations and best practices divided into four different sections; recommendations for Congress; recommendations for NASFAA; best practices for software providers; best practices for institutions– Congress should adopt NASFAA’s Code of Conduct regarding aid
offers– Software providers should ensure that their "base package" of
financial aid offer software includes all the tools needed to comply with NASFAA's Code of Conduct
– NASFAA should hold a convening of representatives from major software providers used by member institutions, NASFAA staff, and members of the financial aid
Higher Education Act Reauthorization• The 115th and 116th sessions of Congress have seen two full proposals
for reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, and one smaller bill aimed at specific areas of higher education improvement.
• Promoting Real Opportunity, Success, and Prosperity through Education Reform (PROSPER) Act: House Republicans Full HEA Bill– Pell grant bonus; elimination of origination fees; authority to limit loans;
eliminates FSEOG, subsidized loans, PSLF, and GRAD PLUS loans
• Student Aid Improvement Act (SAIA): Narrow HEA bill from House Republicans– Auto-qualifying applicants for maximum Pell Grants; requires significant
standardization of financial aid offers; would not require specific applicants to list assets on the FAFSA
• College Affordability Act (CAA): House Democrats Full HEA Bill– Opens federal aid to new populations of students; tweaks grant and loan
forgiveness programs; establishes a new institutional accountability metric
Higher Education Act Reauthorization• A way forward for a full HEA in 2020 looks grim
– Congress currently focused on mitigating the economic damage of COVID-19Ø The pandemic has driven both chambers away for weeks which
shortened the congressional calendar for legislative action• Lamar Alexander (R-TN) the current Chairman of the
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) is retiring
• Some interest in adding HEA priorities with bipartisan support top COVID-19 relief legislation, but Chairman Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Ranking Member Patty Murray (D-WA) are only in favor of comprehensive reauthorization
• May see standalone items during the appropriations process as another venue for extraneous policy riders
