Financial Aid and Drugs

Financial Aid and Drugs
By Judge Thomas J. Alisankus


Students and parents alike should be aware that the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended in 1998, prohibits students convicted of ANY drug offense from being eligible for federal financial aid. Examples of this type of aid include Pell Grants (generally, a ‘grant’ is money that does not have to be paid back), as well as low-interest student loans. Any conviction—including a conviction in Municipal Court—for possessing even less than one ounce of marijuana, for example, will make students ineligible for this type of financial aid.

Currently, if a person has ever been convicted of possessing a controlled substance (such as marijuana) as a first offense, he or she will be ineligible for federal aid for one year from the date of conviction. A conviction for a second offense makes the person ineligible for two years, and a third offense makes the person ineligible for life. Penalties are even more severe for convictions of possession with intent to deliver (drug) offenses. Students must disclose convictions on the Free Application for Student Financial Aid (FASFA). There are provisions for ‘rehabilitation’ that would make the student eligible again; they include, among other requirements, drug counseling, and at least two random drug tests. If a random audit finds that a student failed to disclose a conviction, they would have to repay all monies related to the aid provided, and they would be ineligible for future federal aid.

Last Friday, a panel in the House of Representatives voted to amend the Act such that it would apply only if the conviction “occurred during a period of enrollment for which the student was receiving [federal aid]”. The full House must still vote on that amendment; if it passes the full House, it will be sent to the U.S. Senate. Ultimately, of course, the President would have to sign the amendment Act into law.

Parents or students with questions should contact their guidance counselor, or college admissions office.