Referred to the Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness.
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Jul 25, 2003
Financial Aid Simplification Act - Amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 to direct the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance to study and report to specified congressional committees on the feasibility of simplifying the need analysis methodology for all Federal student financial assistance programs and the process of applying for such assistance through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
Requires the Secretary of Education within one year after the report's submission to initiate a redesign of the FAFSA
Revises eligibility requirements for filing of a simplified FAFSA to allow, as an alternative to not being required to file an income tax return, that the student's parents or the student (and the student's wife, if any) received benefits under a means-tested Federal benefit program.
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Directs the Secretary to make special efforts, in conjunction with State efforts, to: (1) notify students and their parents who qualify for a free lunch under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, the Food Stamps program, or other such programs of their potential eligibility for a maximum Pell Grant; and (2) disseminate such informational materials as necessary.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Mar 23, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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