Simplifying the Application for Student Aid Act

Simplifying the Application for Student Aid Act

This bill amends title IV (Student Assistance) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require the Department of Education to provide for the use of tax information from the second preceding tax year (the "prior, prior year") to determine a student's financial aid eligibility. It requires data sharing between the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Education, pursuant to taxpayer consent.

[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3177 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3177

 To simplify the application used for the estimation and determination 
       of financial aid eligibility for postsecondary education.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 23, 2015

 Mr. Heck of Nevada (for himself, Mr. Roe of Tennessee, Mr. Polis, Mr. 
 Pocan, Mr. Kline, Mr. Scott of Virginia, Mr. Walberg, Mr. Messer, Mr. 
  Grothman, Ms. Stefanik, Mrs. Davis of California, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. 
   Sablan, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Takano, Ms. Clark of Massachusetts, Mr. 
  DeSaulnier, Mr. Royce, Mr. Bucshon, and Mr. Kelly of Pennsylvania) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                      Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To simplify the application used for the estimation and determination 
       of financial aid eligibility for postsecondary education.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Simplifying the Application for 
Student Aid Act''.

SEC. 2. USING DATA FROM SECOND PRECEDING YEAR.

    Section 480(a)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1087vv(a)(1)(B)) is amended to read as follows:
                    ``(B) Notwithstanding section 478(a) and beginning 
                not later than the second January 1 after the date of 
                enactment of the Simplifying the Application for 
                Student Aid Act, the Secretary shall provide for the 
                use of data from the second preceding tax year to carry 
                out the simplification of applications (including 
                simplification for a subset of applications) used for 
                the estimation and determination of financial aid 
                eligibility. Such simplification shall include the 
                sharing of data between the Internal Revenue Service 
                and the Department, pursuant to the consent of the 
                taxpayer.''.
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