Pell Grant Preservation and Expansion Act
Latest action. Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on the Budget, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdictionA court's legal authority to hear a case: over the subject matter, the parties, and the territory.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) of the committee concerned.
Pell Grant Preservation and Expansion Act
This bill amends the title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to revise the Federal Pell Grant Program. Specifically, it:
converts the Pell Grant program into a mandatory spending program;
increases the maximum Pell Grant award for academic year 2019-2020 and adjusts it in subsequent award years to account for inflation;
allows federal financial aid for higher education to be given to dreamer students (students who entered the country when they were under the age of 16 and who meet certain educational criteria) and students convicted for the possession or sale of illegal drug;
requires the Department of Education (ED) to carry out a program that awards Federal Pell Grants to students in job training programs;
requires ED to award Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grants under the Pell Grant program to assist veterans' dependents with the costs of attending institutions of higher education;
increases, in academic year 2018-2019, the income protection allowance levels for students who are dependent, independent without non-spouse dependents (e.g., children), and independent with non-spouse dependents to reduce such students' income available (and increase need for financial assistance) to cover postsecondary educational expenses;
increases the income threshold for an automatic zero expected family contribution from $23,000 to $34,000; and
increases from 12 to 15 the total number of semesters a student may receive a Federal Pell Grant.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on May 16, 2017. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on May 16, 2017: Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on the Budget, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 115th Congress (2017-18), 442 of the 11,421 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
SUSAN DAVIS (D-CA) introduced it on May 16, 2017, and 81 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 81 Democrats.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on May 16, 2017, 3404 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3404 days ago, on May 16, 2017.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 115th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2019 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers