Burgess Owens: “Today I rise to urge my colleagues to pass H.R. 8932, the FAFSA Deadline Act. This bill addresses the urgent need for…”

“Today I rise to urge my colleagues to pass H.R. 8932, the FAFSA Deadline Act. This bill addresses the urgent need for predictability and transparency in release of FAFSA, the form that helps so many American families to plan and afford college. For years, students and parents could rely on the October 1 release date for FAFSA, giving families time to understand their aid options and make informed decisions about the future, but under the Biden- Harris administration, we have seen a pattern of delays, poor planning, and, worse: indifference to the impact these failures have on Americans. After years of groundwork laid by the bipartisan FAFSA Simplification Act, the Department of Education had every reason to be prepared, but in 2023, they missed their mark, and not just by days or weeks. They delayed the form's release until the end of December, leaving families in the lurch and scrambling to meet a last-minute deadline. The consequences of these delays are real. It isn't just about dates on a calendar. It is about futures on hold. The Department of Education's dysfunction means 430,000 fewer students filed a FAFSA this year. That is not a small number. It is hundreds of thousands of young people who have abandoned their plans for college simply because they couldn't get the information they needed.…”