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Why the FAFSA May Soon be Extinct
Pretty soon you may be able to shred that six-page FAFSA form.
By Kathryn Knight
January 20, 2009
With President Barack Obama’s inauguration, many people are looking forward to the changes he promised during his campaign in 2008. He set specific goals in evolving the college application and attendance process. One specific plan is the American Opportunity Tax Grant. Another is the elimination of the FAFSA.
President Obama and Vice President Biden hope to streamline the process of applying for federal student aid by completely eliminating the six-page form. Instead, families would simply have to check a box on their tax forms. This would indicate that all of their tax information could be used to determine financial aid availability.
In September of 2008, the College Board released a report also calling for the elimination of the FAFSA. A study group of policy experts, researchers, and higher education professionals drafted the proposal. Their plan closely mirrors Obama’s.
To determine aid, a student or family’s gross income and size would be collected from the Internal Revenue Service. From there, a student or their family would send in their name, address, and release form to the IRS, which would then be forwarded to the US Department of Education. Once the Department had the information, they could determine a student’s Pell Grant eligibility and then forward the case to the student’s respective state for state grants.
Although these plans simplify the process, they do have the potential to cause some complications. Some higher education professionals worry about the flexibility of the new program. For example, if a parent were to lose their job, there may not be the elasticity to change a financial aid package for a student like there had been previously.
Despite these concerns, elimination of the FAFSA seems to be favored amongst the majority of Americans who have ever filled out the six-page document. It will allow lower-income families, who are often intimidated by the FAFSA, to apply for financial aid with greater ease. These changes, however, may be a long time coming. Congress passed legislation in 2008 calling for FAFSA simplification, but implementation has been delayed by a year. Politicians and higher education professionals alike predict that the elimination of the FAFSA will take years before final implementation.
biancatobon
about 1 month ago
whoa this is the first, im hearing of it. FAFSA is easier than many other financail aid i applied for and it's much more easier to under the questions. Oh and its easier and faster online as well [=
PatriciaI37
about 1 month ago
I like the FAFSA its all done electronically so really there is no hassel. I think they should implement an alternative for those who would like to have their information sent directely from the IRS. Some of you are quite mistaken, they are NOT getting rid of financial aid, I have no idea where that notion came from but you might want to reread the articcle.
PatriciaI37
about 1 month ago
What about the people who don't file taxes because they cannot work.
JulianneL50
2 months ago
um wtf? i dont have any family and it took me literally 6 months to override FAFSA to become independent because im 20.. this had better work or im gonna be ripshit
PriscillaG84
3 months ago
lame.
SaraS16
4 months ago
7/09
TymH
4 months ago
Will it still allow for people to be independent from their families income though? I feel like this will only help people who are still relying on their families income for everything.
CarolinaP102
4 months ago
Sounds good but what happens to people/families who don't file taxes. Those that get income from social services, welfare and tanif, how will that be tracked?
ChandraD
4 months ago
FAFSA can be done electronically now, so there really isn't ANY paperwork. So why eliminate it??Great, now all I need is Big Brother looking at everything I do in school! Come on Obama.............jeeeez.................
jclower108
4 months ago
First of all some of you need to reread the article. They're not saying that they'll get rid of Finanical Aid there just saying that the hassel of the paper work would be over. Instead of you having to do all the work by yourself your tax info would be directly sent from the IRS. You would still be getting the same benefits but it'll just be easier for the student. And you might not have to wait that long for a answer back... you never know.
MikaylaH32
4 months ago
why would you want to eliminate a source of financial aid?? that will cause less people to be able to afford education. KEEP FAFSA ALIVE!!!
EvansC4
4 months ago
we are only kids and the facts is it is alot of us who been living our lives just trying to get to school and prepare ourselves for a better future if the government knew everything they would understand our situation a little better. I honestly believe that we should keep fasfa because if we need to go through verification then we can talk to our school and they would better understand us and why we need this amount of money for school....
DanielleG923
4 months ago
people seem to misunderstand. you'll still get financial aid but instead of filling out another form regurgitating what you already placed on ur irs forms, the US Department of Education simply gets a copy of ur irs form so you hav less work to do. The student jus has to fill out the usual tax forms and then the irs sends the stuff out in place of the fafsa form.
SheenaB31
4 months ago
I dont think that this is fair. There a lot of people out here that aren't able to pay for higher education and continue to make a living to keep a roof over their head. I also feel that if they take FAFSA away there will be a major decrease in education and a much higher crime rate. People in this world look for excuses and beleive me when i say you'll be giving them a reason to fail. The job market is decreasing as it is. The cost of living is steady increasing. Many people are financially poor.
CaseyFace
4 months ago
I don't think that FAFSA should be eliminated. I am a young colege student. Yes, I did have to give up a semester because I couldn't pay for it, but every semester that I have attended in the past two years has been paid for by FAFSA. I would not be able to carry on with the help that I get from FAFSA. I do feel that the FAFSA regulations are very unfair, but when you are eligle it REALLY does help.