AID Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Nutrition, oversightCongress's review of how the executive branch carries out the laws it passed: hearings, document demands, investigations, and the spending power behind them.Read the full definition (opens a new tab), and Department Operations.
Achieving Independence through Degrees Act or the AID Act
This bill revises certain federal student-aid programs. Among other changes, the bill expands access to Pell Grants, expands loan counseling requirements, revises the Federal Work-Study Program, updates the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process, and extends Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits to certain students.
The bill expands access to Pell Grants by (1) increasing the maximum award and indexing it for inflation; (2) increasing the semester eligibility limit to 15 semesters; (3) extending eligibility to certain short-term workforce training programs; (4) excluding from gross income, for income tax purposes, any amount received as a Pell Grant; and (5) allowing Pell Grants to be used for living and non-tuition expenses.
The bill revises student loan counseling requirements applicable to institutions of higher education (IHEs) by requiring annual financial counseling and expanding exit counseling.
Additionally, the bill permanently reauthorizes the Federal Work-Study Program and otherwise revises the program, including by allocating program funds to IHEs based on the amount of Pell Grant funds received by each IHE. It establishes a pilot program that provides work-based learning opportunities for students who demonstrate exceptional financial need.
The bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to allow students to complete FAFSA as independent students under special circumstances. Further, the bill prohibits ED from asking about drug-related convictions on FAFSA.
The bill also allows certain students, including those who have an expected family contribution of zero, to qualify for SNAP benefits.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on January 19, 2022. 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 February 8, 2022: Referred to the Subcommittee on Nutrition, Oversight, and Department Operations.
- 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 117th Congress (2021-22), 362 of the 15,242 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.4 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?
PETER DEFAZIO (D-OR) introduced it on January 19, 2022. No cosponsors are recorded.
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 January 19, 2022, 1695 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1675 days ago, on February 8, 2022.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 117th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2023 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