May 10, 2024

Duckworth, Durbin Join Warren and 22 Senators in Push for Funding to the Office of Federal Student Aid

 

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] — U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) this week joined U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and 22 of their colleagues in the Senate in encouraging U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin—Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies—and U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito—Ranking Member of the Subcommittee—to provide $2.7 billion in funding to the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) in fiscal year (FY) 2025.

“Fully funding the President’s request for FSA this fiscal year—a $625 million increase from the FY 2023 levels—is particularly critical given that FSA’s FY 2023 and FY 2024 funding was stagnant compared to previous years, severely undermining FSA’s ability to implement critical programs,” wrote the senators. 

FSA is the largest provider of student financial aid in the nation, serving over 46 million people and overseeing a $1.6 trillion student loan program. It is tasked with making major improvements to student financial aid services, including an overhaul of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). However, implementation of the FAFSA overhaul has been plagued by delays and glitches in processing, in part due to insufficient funding for FSA.

“Additional resources are necessary to fix the problems . . ., making federal student aid more accessible for more than 17 million students,” the senators continued.

FSA is also overseeing the return to repayment for student loan borrowers whose payments were paused during the pandemic and is working to implement a series of reforms to fix aspects of the student loan system that have failed borrowers.

“FSA’s responsibilities have increased to protect students and borrowers, but its federal funding has remained stagnant. The lack of adequate resources creates more barriers for students to start and continue their education,” concluded the senators. “We believe this funding request is needed to provide FSA with the resources it needs to fulfill its goal of ensuring that all eligible students and families can access federal student grants, loans, and work-study funds to pursue education and training beyond high school.”

Along with Duckworth and Durbin, the list of signers includes Tina Smith (D-MN), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Bob Casey (D-PA), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Peter Welch (D-VT), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Laphonza Butler (D-CA), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Ron Wyden (D-OR), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA). 

You can find a copy of the letter text linked here.

-30-