More
than two months after the funding expired, Congress gave final approval Dec. 10
to the FUTURE Act, a bill that will restore and make permanent a $255 million per
year funding stream for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other minority
serving institutions (MSIs).
The
House voted 319-96 to pass the bill Tuesday, and the Senate followed suit by
unanimous consent a few hours later. The compromise bill hammered out in the
Senate also streamlines the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) by
making it easier for the Department of Education to gather information directly
from the IRS, cutting at least 22 questions from the form. The FAFSA
simplifications are estimated to save $2.8 billion over a decade, which will go
toward paying for the bill.
In
addition, the measure simplifies the process borrowers use to repay
income-driven student loans and provides for a small increase in Pell Grant funding.
Both
the funding for MSIs and the simplified financial aid paperwork are significant
achievements that will have tremendous benefits for students, families, and
institutions, as ACE President Ted Mitchell said in a statement after
the House vote. He noted that the bill “represents a bipartisan consensus that
is always welcome but increasingly rare.”
The
bill has been sent to President Trump, who is expected to sign it.