Rep. Vargas, Colleagues Support Department of Education’s Efforts to Increase FAFSA Access and Urge Further Action to Address Delays
WASHINGTON - U.S. Representative Juan Vargas (CA-52) joined 65 of his colleagues in a letter expressing support for the U.S. Department of Education’s efforts to improve the rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. The lawmakers also urged the Department of Education to expeditiously resolve remaining barriers to completing the FAFSA form and encouraged the Department of Education to implement reforms to prevent similar challenges from occurring in future years.
“We commend the Department’s [Student Support] Strategy and the April 30 and May 20 technical fixes addressing barriers for students whose parents or spouses do not have a Social Security Number, but we continue to be concerned that this guidance may prove difficult for students to understand and utilize,” the lawmakers wrote.
“As you know, many of these students are especially vulnerable to disruptions in their education and may never again be in the financial and personal position to attend college, especially considering that many states distribute financial assistance on a first-come, first-served basis,” the lawmakers continued.
“We wholeheartedly support your mission, and we look forward to working with you to connect as many students as possible with the resources they need to attend college,” the lawmakers concluded.
The lawmakers also urge the Department of Education to make every effort to identify individuals who have been unable to obtain their Federal Student Aid ID, to issue Federal Student Aid Information Center resources that better equip personnel to assist students and to utilize the Department’s existing programs and authority to connect students with any resources that could help address financial aid opportunities they may have missed. The letter additionally includes asks for the Department of Education to disseminate resources and guidance to state education agencies and institutions to assist them in processing FAFSA backlogs, with particular attention to ensuring that students who submitted paper FAFSA forms receive the full measure of financial aid that they are entitled to.
The letter also encourages the Department of Education to create a secure online identity verification portal before the 2025-2026 FAFSA award year.
Read the full letter HERE.
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