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To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to increase the period of eligibility for Federal Pell Grants, and for other purposes.
Summary
This bill would expand eligibility for Federal Pell Grants to allow students to receive grants while pursuing postbaccalaureate (graduate) study, not just undergraduate degrees. A student would be eligible to receive Pell Grants for graduate study if they received Pell Grants for their undergraduate degree and attended school for at least one but fewer than 16 semesters as an undergraduate. The bill also increases the overall duration limit for Pell Grant receipt from 12 semesters to 16 semesters. These changes would allow low-income students who did not complete their undergraduate studies within the original timeframe to continue receiving Pell Grant support to pursue graduate education.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
1 cosponsor
- Rep. Gomez, Jimmy [D-CA-34] (D-CA)
Actions (2)
- Feb 26, 2025 Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce. · house
- Feb 26, 2025 Introduced in House
More bills on these subjects (8)
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Text versions (1)
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Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 26, 2025
Ms. Stevens (for herself and Mr. Gomez) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce
A BILL
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to increase the period of eligibility for Federal Pell Grants, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Pell to Grad Act”.
SEC. 2. PERIOD OF ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANTS.
Section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a) is amended—
(1) in subsection (b)(8)(A), by inserting “or as a postbaccalaureate student in accordance with subsection
(d)(1),” after “as an undergraduate,”;
(2) in subsection (d)—
(A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
“(1) The period during which a student may receive Federal Pell Grants shall be the period required for the completion of the first undergraduate baccalaureate course of study being pursued by that student at the institution at which the student is in attendance except that—
“(A) any period during which the student is enrolled in a noncredit or remedial course of study, as described in paragraph (2), shall not be counted for the purpose of this paragraph; and
“(B) the period during which a student may receive Federal Pell Grants shall also include the period required for the completion of the first postbaccalaureate course of study at an eligible institution that is an institution of higher education as defined in section 101, in a case in which—
“(i) the student received a Federal Pell Grant during the period required for the completion of the student’s first undergraduate baccalaureate course of study for at least 1 but fewer than 16 semesters, or the equivalent of at least 1 but fewer than 16 semesters, as determined under paragraph (5);
“(ii) the student would otherwise be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant, but for the completion of such baccalaureate course of study; and
“(iii) the period during which the student receives Federal Pell Grants does not exceed the student’s duration limits under paragraph
(5).”; and
(B) in paragraph (5)(A), by striking “12” each place it appears and inserting “16”. <all>
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