Legislation Around Capitol Hill: Congress Intros Bill to Close Digital Divide

Lawmakers in Congress introduced five bills this week that could impact the lives of teachers and students in significant ways.

• By Sara Friedman
• 04/12/19

Over the last week, lawmakers in the Senate have introduced five bills that are designed to radically shift the United States  educational system by supporting loan forgiveness, closing the digital divide, tracking down student debt relief scams, creating evidence-based education grants and restoring Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated individuals.

Here are five bills that would change how the federal government oversees educational programs:

• Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) introduced the What You Can Do for Your Country Act of 2019, which will overhaul the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. This bill will expand eligibility to make every type of federal loan and repayment plan included in the PSLF program and to allow public servants to count on repayment when they apply for loan forgiveness. The legislation is supported by several organizations including AFSCME, the National Education Association, Equal Justice Works and Student Debt Crisis.

• Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) introduced the Digital Equity Act of 2019, which will create federal investments targeted at closing the digital divide in communities across the United States. The legislation will create an annual $125 million formula grant program for all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico and an additional annual $125 million competitive grant program to support digital equity projects undertaken by individual groups, coalitions or communities of interest.

  The bill is supported by CoSN. “This new digital equity bill constitutes a major step forward toward closing the homework gap and providing equitable digital access to students nationwide — regardless of where they live or their family’s income,” said CoSN CEO Keith Krueger in a statement. “If enacted, the bill will ensure that schools in rural and underserved communities are not left behind in our increasingly digital world.”

• Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) is leading a group of bipartisan senators to introduce the Stop Student Debt Relief Scams Act. The legislation will enhance law enforcement and administrative abilities to identify and shut down student debt relief scams. Specifically, the bill will direct the Department of Education to create a new form of third-party access, similar to the current preparer function on the Free Application for Student Aid for individuals who are applying on behalf of a student and their family, in order to protect legitimate organizations. The legislation is supported by the Education Finance Council, Generation Progress, National Consumer Law Center, National Council of Higher Education Resources, Student Loan Servicing Alliance, The Institute for College Access and Success and Young Invincibles.

• Senator Todd Young (R-IN) introduced the Fund for Innovation and Success in Higher Education (FINISH) Act, which supports the use of evidence-based innovation grants and the pay for success model to improve student outcomes. The legislation would amend the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) to allow grant recipients to use a portion of their funds for tiered evidence-based grants. The bill also encourages institutions to make all forms of postsecondary open educational resources instructional content widely available and allows the Secretary of Education to approve up to five Pay-for-Success pilot initiatives each fiscal year to allow grant recipients to partner with outside organizations achieve the goals of federally funded higher education grant programs.

• Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) introduced the Restoring Education and Learning (REAL) Act to restore Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated individuals. In 1994, incarcerated individuals lost access to Pell Grant assistance, which caused a significant drop in the number of education programs in prison. The legislation is intended to restore access to these grants, which would reduce recidivism and incarceration costs by increasing access to higher education. This bill is supported by several organizations including National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, American Association of Community Colleges and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund.