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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.
anaispila
4 months ago
We should keep FAFSA because it helps a lot of people who can't pay for school.
molotov345
5 months ago
FAFSA sucks.. I cant get finacial aid i win 14k a ayear at work and im independet. and i do not qualify for it sucks, i live paycheck by pay checlk and i cannot qualify for,. so i think FAFSA should be eliminated
JonS591
5 months ago
The FAFSA isn't fair!!! An example is an individual who is single, independant, lives in San Francisco (expensive) with no dependants, no spouse and gets Social Security Disability for income making a mere $15,000 annually doesn't qualify for a Pell Grant. But if this person had "earned income", had a child or a spouse they would qualify for a pell grant. I know there is more things to look at to determine this but lets look at this example more closely. Rent is $1190/monthly. Monthly income is about $1,300. But that is not enough "NEED" for a pell grant. What the...? Amazing.
Acacia1991
5 months ago
I say we keep FAFSA becasue it really isn't that complicated. It is lengthy, but that just teaches people to have more patience. Of course, I'm definitely no fan of Obama's, but his choices really suck so far. No offense though, That's just my opinion.
KatrinaS260
5 months ago
My real rate for this article is -100. I hate his changes. I can't do anything about it yet, but by the time Im out of college, he'll be out of office I think. I can't say for certain. Oh well.
KatrinaS260
5 months ago
I don't agree with his idea about this. My family isn't rich, and my mom still wants to pay for my college education, I'm willing to join a small part of the military to pay for college, but I have to wait a year for that. My mom says it is best to use the FAFSA.
DarleneC54
6 months ago
just ask the financial aid to rewrite the fafsa in easy elementary form so we all can understand it because its too complicated.
MattD410
6 months ago
Considering how complicated I found filling the FAFSA was this is great news!
NadjaJ7
6 months ago
I think it's better to keep the FAFSA because many people in this world aren't rich at all. I mean he is a good president but this is one bad decision he made.
SamuelT60
6 months ago
I really dont like this idea because, as it said in the article, it can cause more complications. Why don't we just keep it
AngelaG301
6 months ago
fafsa isnt hard, each question says where to find it (e.g. line 36 on form 1040A).
eliminating it would be a bad decision.
OliviaJ169
6 months ago
The FAFSA is a huge hassle this idea seems great and a whole lot easier
MichaelC4373
6 months ago
Eh, my advice to everyone is go to a community college first. Get a simple A.A.S. degree, which gives you job training. Universities are too expensive and most of the time, having a degree doesn't get you a job b/c you don't have the necessary experience. But anyway, yeah, the FAFSA is a pain to fill out. I had to send it off 3 TIMES to get the application right, and i'm still waiting to get my summer work-study approved!
FatimaA127
6 months ago
It's so bad. Students need help.
SamanthaM2514
6 months ago
What about the middle class families who do not qualify for anything from FAFSA and have to take out student loans or have their family take out loans for them? I think the FAFSA should be reviewed and that money should be distributed differently. We are all Americans and should get something from this program. It seems that the very low income and minorities are able to qualify. I work and pay taxes, seems to me everyone should get some help.