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Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Feb 26, 2025
Pell to Grad Act
This bill raises from 12 to 16 the total number of semesters during which a student may receive a Pell Grant. It also allows income-eligible graduate students who received Pell Grants during their undergraduate education to utilize their remaining Pell Grant eligibility toward their first graduate degree, subject to this 16-semester duration limit. Currently, Pell Grants are available only to undergraduate students, subject to the 12-semester duration limit.
People & committees
Rep. Stevens, Haley M. [D-MI-11] · D–MI
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Jul 21, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-02-26 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
This bill would let some students receive Federal Pell Grants for their first course of study after a bachelor's degree. They would need to have received Pell Grants as undergraduates, meet the other eligibility requirements, and stay within the grant duration limit. The proposal would also expand that duration limit.
(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).
in paragraph (5)(A), by striking 12 each place it appears and inserting 16.
Section 1 gives the proposal the short title “Pell to Grad Act.”
This Act may be cited as the Pell to Grad Act.
The proposed eligibility rule would cover completion of a student's first undergraduate bachelor's course of study. Time in qualifying noncredit or remedial study would not count toward that completion period; the referenced rules defining that study are not reproduced.
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;
Eligibility after a bachelor's degree would cover the first course of study at an eligible institution meeting the referenced legal definition of an institution of higher education. The bill would also add this category of student to subsection (b)(8)(A).
in subsection (b)(8)(A), by inserting or as a postbaccalaureate student in accordance with subsection (d)(1), after as an undergraduate,;
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
To qualify after a bachelor's degree, a student must have received Pell Grants during their first undergraduate bachelor's course of study for at least one but fewer than 16 semesters, or the equivalent. Completing that undergraduate course must be the only reason they would otherwise be ineligible, and their grant receipt must remain within their duration limit.
(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).
The bill would replace every occurrence of “12” with “16” in the existing duration-limit provision, paragraph (5)(A). The full paragraph is not supplied, so its detailed counting rules cannot be explained from this bundle.
the period during which the student receives Federal Pell Grants does not exceed the student’s duration limits under paragraph (5).
in paragraph (5)(A), by striking 12 each place it appears and inserting 16.
The supplied actions snapshot, updated July 21, 2025, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Education and Workforce on February 26, 2025.
Source snapshot updated 2025-07-21T19:44:15Z. 2025-02-26: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce. 2025-02-26: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-02-26. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy change attached to appropriations was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish the contents of other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for particular recipients or places was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version; accompanying earmark materials are not supplied.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
None identified in the reviewed text
No narrow preferential carve-out warranting a separate finding was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. Its eligibility changes define the program's intended beneficiaries. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish the contents of other versions or accompanying materials.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Jul 21, 2025. How PlainBill uses AI