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Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Feb 27, 2025
Pell Grant Sustainability Act
This bill indexes the maximum award amount for Pell Grants to the rate of inflation. The bill also permanently reauthorizes the discretionary statutory authority for the Pell Grant program.
People & committees
Rep. Casten, Sean [D-IL-6] · D–IL
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: Sep 19, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-02-27 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 proposes changing the maximum Pell Grant available to each student, a grant Congress describes as helping lower-income students attend college. It would combine an amount set by annual funding legislation with a separate component starting at $1,060 for 2024–2025. Beginning in 2025–2026, that separate component would receive an annual adjustment tied to consumer prices.
The value of Federal Pell Grants must keep pace with students’ costs in order to fulfill their mission of enabling lower-income students to attend college.
For award year 2024–2025 and each subsequent award year, the total maximum Federal Pell Grant award per student shall be equal to the sum of— (i) (I) for award year 2024–2025, $1,060; or (II) for award year 2025–2026 and each subsequent award year, the amount determined under this clause for the preceding award year, increased by a percentage equal to the annual adjustment percentage for the award year for which the amount under this clause is being determined; and (ii) the amount specified as the maximum Federal Pell Grant in the last enacted appropriation Act applicable to that award year.
the term annual adjustment percentage, as applied to an award year, is equal to the estimated percentage change in the Consumer Price Index
Section 1 would name the legislation the Pell Grant Sustainability Act.
This Act may be cited as the Pell Grant Sustainability Act.
Section 2 states Congress's rationale: the maximum Pell Grant covered 80 percent of base educational costs at public four-year colleges in 1974–1975, compared with 31 percent in 2022–2023. These figures are legislative findings presented by the bill.
Congress finds the following: (1) The purchasing power of the Federal Pell Grant has declined rapidly since the 1970s. In academic year 1974–1975, the total maximum Federal Pell Grant covered 80 percent of base educational costs at public 4-year institutions of higher education. By academic year 2022–2023, the maximum Federal Pell Grant covered just 31 percent of those base costs.
Section 3 would replace the statutory formula for the total maximum Pell Grant. For the 2024–2025 award year, the maximum per student would equal $1,060 plus the maximum specified in the latest enacted funding law applicable to that award year. The $1,060 would be one component, not the entire maximum grant.
Section 401(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a(b)) is amended— (1) by amending paragraph (5) to read as follows:
the total maximum Federal Pell Grant award per student shall be equal to the sum of— (i) (I) for award year 2024–2025, $1,060;
(ii) the amount specified as the maximum Federal Pell Grant in the last enacted appropriation Act applicable to that award year.
For 2025–2026 and every subsequent award year, the separate component would be calculated from the previous year's component using the annual adjustment percentage. This adjustment instruction applies to that component rather than to the entire combined maximum.
(II) for award year 2025–2026 and each subsequent award year, the amount determined under this clause for the preceding award year, increased by a percentage equal to the annual adjustment percentage for the award year for which the amount under this clause is being determined; and (ii) the amount specified as the maximum Federal Pell Grant in the last enacted appropriation Act applicable to that award year.
The annual adjustment would use the estimated percentage change in the Consumer Price Index, a measure of consumer prices, for the latest calendar year ending before the award year begins. The Secretary would determine that change using the definition referenced in section 478(f).
In this paragraph, the term annual adjustment percentage, as applied to an award year, is equal to the estimated percentage change in the Consumer Price Index (as determined by the Secretary, using the definition in section 478(f)) for the most recent calendar year ending prior to the beginning of that award year.
The total maximum Pell Grant would be rounded to the nearest $5 each award year.
The total maximum Federal Pell Grant for any award year shall be rounded to the nearest $5.
Section 3 would replace the ending reference “through 2034” in paragraph (6)(A)(ii) with “and each subsequent fiscal year.” This removes that endpoint from the amended wording; the surrounding statutory provision is not supplied.
(2) in paragraph (6)(A)(ii)— (A) by striking each of the fiscal years and inserting fiscal year; and (B) by striking through 2034 and inserting and each subsequent fiscal year;
Section 3 would also delete “through fiscal year 2034” from paragraph (8)(A). The supplied bill does not reproduce the surrounding provision, so this establishes the removal of that endpoint without explaining the underlying provision's full operation.
(3) in paragraph (8)(A), by striking through fiscal year 2034.
The supplied actions snapshot, updated September 19, 2026, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Education and Workforce on February 27, 2025.
Source snapshot updated 2026-09-19T23:14:13Z. 2025-02-27: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce. 2025-02-27: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-02-27. 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 rider was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in 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 materials needed for a broader formal earmark assessment are absent.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
None identified in the reviewed text
No materially narrow carve-out, special exemption, or preferential exception was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. Ordinary treatment of a program's intended beneficiaries does not itself qualify. This conclusion is limited to the supplied version.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Sep 19, 2026. How PlainBill uses AI