Basic Assistance for Students In College Act or the BASIC Act
This bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to award planning and implementation grants to institutions of higher education in order to identify and meet the basic needs of students, including food, housing, transportation, and health care. ED must also implement an agreement to (1) share data with other federal agencies in order to identify students who may be eligible for certain federal benefits; and (2) coordinate efforts to enroll those students in federal benefits programs, including Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3857 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3857
To provide for the basic needs of students at institutions of higher
education.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 11, 2021
Mrs. Torres of California introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide for the basic needs of students at institutions of higher
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 ``Basic Assistance for Students In
College Act'' or the ``BASIC Act''.
SEC. 2. DATA SHARING.
(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Secretary of Education, in coordination with the
Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall
develop and implement an agreement to--
(1) securely share data among the respective Federal
agencies of such Secretaries in order to, notwithstanding
section 483(a)(3)(E) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1090(a)(3)(E)) and section 444 of the General Education
Provisions Act (commonly known as the ``Family Educational
Rights and Privacy Act of 1974''), identify students described
in subsection (b) who may be eligible for Federally funded
programs to support basic needs through--
(A) the supplemental nutrition assistance program
established under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7
U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), a nutrition assistance program
carried out under section 19 of such Act (7 U.S.C.
2028), or a nutrition assistance program carried out by
the Secretary of Agriculture in the Northern Mariana
Islands;
(B) the supplemental security income program under
title XVI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1381 et
seq.);
(C) the program of block grants to States for
temporary assistance for needy families under part A of
title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et
seq.);
(D) the special supplemental nutrition program for
women, infants, and children established by section 17
of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786);
(E) the Medicaid program under title XIX of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.);
(F) Federal housing assistance programs, including
tenant-based assistance under section 8(o) of the
United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)),
and public housing, as defined in section 3(b)(1) of
such Act (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(1));
(G) Federal child care assistance programs,
including assistance under the Child Care and
Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858 et
seq.) and the Child Care Access Means Parents in School
Program under section 419N of the Higher Education Act
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070e);
(H) the free and reduced price school lunch program
established under the Richard B. Russell National
School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.);
(I) the refundable credit for coverage under a
qualified health plan under section 36B of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986;
(J) the Earned Income Tax Credit under section 32
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
(K) the Child Tax Credit under section 24 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986; or
(L) any other Federally funded program determined
by the Secretary to be appropriate; and
(2) coordinate efforts to provide assistance to
institutions of higher education to facilitate the enrollment
of eligible students in the programs listed in paragraph (1).
(b) Covered Students.--Students described in this subsection are
students who--
(1) have applied for Federal financial aid;
(2) are enrolled at institutions of higher education (as
defined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1002)), including full-time and part-time students; and
(3) have not opted out of the information sharing under
this section through the process described in subsection (c) or
any other process established by the Secretary of Education.
(c) Inclusion on FAFSA.--
(1) In general.--Students and borrowers, through the Free
Application for Federal Student Aid under section 483 of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1090), may authorize
the Secretary of Education to disclose to the Federal agencies
described in subsection (a)(1) information provided by the
applicant on the application described by this subsection, as
well as such applicant's student aid index and scheduled
Federal Pell Grant award, to assist in identification, outreach
and application efforts for the application, award, and
administration of such means-tested Federal benefits programs,
except such information shall not include Federal tax
information as specified in section 6103(l)(13)(C) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
(2) Opt-out.--The Secretary shall provide an opportunity
for students and borrowers to opt out of the authorization
described in paragraph (1).
SEC. 3. GRANTS TO SUPPORT THE BASIC NEEDS OF STUDENTS.
Title VIII of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1161a) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``PART BB--GRANTS TO SUPPORT THE BASIC NEEDS OF STUDENTS
``SEC. 899. GRANTS TO SUPPORT THE BASIC NEEDS OF STUDENTS.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Basic needs.--The term `basic needs' means the needs
of students that support their success while enrolled at an
eligible institution, including needs such as--
``(A) food;
``(B) housing;
``(C) transportation;
``(D) child care;
``(E) health care; and
``(F) technology.
``(2) Community college.--The term `community college'
means a public institution of higher education at which the
highest degree that is predominantly awarded to students is an
associate degree, including a 2-year Tribal Colleges or
University, as defined in section 316.
``(3) Eligible institution.--The term `eligible
institution' means an institution of higher education (as
defined in section 102) that participates in programs under
title IV.
``(b) Planning Grants.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall award planning
grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible institutions to
enable the eligible institutions to conduct research and
planning to reduce incidences of student food insecurity,
housing insecurity, and homelessness and to meet other basic
needs of students, by carrying out the activities described in
paragraph (2).
``(2) Activities.--An eligible institution receiving a
grant under this subsection shall use grant funds to carry out
the following:
``(A) Establish a basic needs steering committee
that will be responsible for creating and approving the
basic needs strategy described in subparagraph (C), and
that will be comprised of relevant campus stakeholders,
such as--
``(i) students who have experienced
challenges in meeting basic needs;
``(ii) student government representatives;
``(iii) institutional staff representing
the areas of student financial aid, housing,
dining, student affairs, academic advising,
equity support services, accessibility
services, and well-being services (including
counseling or psychological services);
``(iv) faculty;
``(v) relevant administrators, including
local human services administrators;
``(vi) community-based organizations; and
``(vii) representatives from local
governmental agencies.
``(B) Conduct research regarding--
``(i) the level of unmet basic needs at the
institution, disaggregated by race and
ethnicity, income quintile, status as a first-
generation college student (as defined in
section 402A(h)), Federal Pell Grant
eligibility status, disability status, status
as a student parent, sex (including sexual
orientation and gender identity), or other
subgroup as determined by the institution;
``(ii) the presence of institutional
barriers (such as award displacement) and
current institutional interventions to address
basic needs insecurity;
``(iii)(I) the resources and activities
available to address basic needs of students,
both on campus and off campus, as of the date
of the research; and
``(II) the impact of such resources and
activities; and
``(iv) opportunities for coordination and
collaboration between the institution and
government or community-based organizations,
such as--
``(I) the local office that
administers benefits under the
supplemental nutrition assistance
program established under the Food and
Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et
seq.) and carries out employment and
training programs under that Act or the
temporary assistance for needy families
program (TANF) and subsidized programs
that meet the work requirements under
part A of title IV of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
``(II) organizations that
participate in the Federal work-study
program under part C of title IV; or
``(III) low-income housing
assistance organizations, including
those assisting with tenant-based
assistance under section 8(o) of the
United States Housing Act of 1937 (42
U.S.C. 1437f(o)), and public housing,
as defined in section 3(b)(1) of such
Act (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(1)).
``(C) Create a basic needs strategy that describes
how the institution will--
``(i) seek to address or meet the basic
needs of students through on-campus and off-
campus providers; and
``(ii) incorporate the research conducted
under subparagraph (B), including with respect
to the subgroups identified under clause (i) of
subparagraph (B), into the basic needs
strategy.
``(3) Grant amounts; duration.--
``(A) Amount.--A grant under this subsection shall
be in an amount not to exceed $50,000.
``(B) Duration.--A grant under this subsection
shall be for a period of not more than 2 years.
``(4) Report.--Not later than 60 days after the end of the
planning grant period under this subsection, each eligible
institution that receives such a grant shall submit a report to
the Secretary describing the outcomes of the planning grant,
regardless of whether the eligible institution intends to apply
for an implementation grant.
``(c) Implementation Grants.--
``(1) In general.--
``(A) Authorization of award.--The Secretary shall
award implementation grants, on a competitive basis, to
eligible institutions to enable the eligible
institutions to develop infrastructure to meet the
basic needs of students, by implementing a basic needs
strategy developed through a grant award under
subsection (b) or another existing basic needs plan
approved by the Secretary, and carrying out the
activities described in paragraph (2).
``(B) Ongoing external funding.--In order to be
eligible to receive an implementation grant under this
subsection, an eligible institution shall identify, in
the application for such grant, an ongoing non-Federal
funding mechanism to support the activities carried out
with grant funds after the grant period has expired.
``(2) Activities.--An eligible institution receiving a
grant under this subsection shall use the grant funds to carry
out at least two of the following:
``(A) Providing free or subsidized food, secure
sleeping arrangements, temporary housing, priority
access to existing on-campus child care, and other
basic needs to eligible students.
``(B) Conducting outreach to students to reduce
stigma, educate, and encourage students to participate
in programs and receive services (including programs
and services provided through grant funding) to meet
basic needs.
``(C) Educating students about public assistance
programs (including State and local public assistance
programs, and the supplemental nutrition assistance
program under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7
U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), Federal housing assistance
programs, and other income-based Federal assistance
programs), supporting students' applications for those
programs, and providing case management and training
for students to maximize the public assistance that
students receive to meet basic needs.
``(D) Coordination and collaboration between the
eligible institution and government or community-based
organizations, such as the local office that
administers benefits through the supplemental nutrition
assistance program under the Food and Nutrition Act of
2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.) or a low-income housing
assistance organization.
``(E) Purchasing materials, equipment,
transportation, or facilities to reduce incidences of
food and housing insecurity and address the basic needs
of students at the eligible institution.
``(F) Hiring and training personnel to build basic
needs infrastructure and implement programming to meet
the basic needs of students at the eligible
institution.
``(G) Other activities or services determined
appropriate by the Secretary.
``(3) Grant amounts; duration.--
``(A) Amount.--A grant under this subsection shall
be in an amount not to exceed $1,000,000 total for each
5-year period.
``(B) Duration.--A grant under this subsection
shall be for a period of 5 years.
``(4) Report.--The Secretary shall prepare and submit to
Congress a report that describes--
``(A) the impact of the grant under this subsection
on eligible students;
``(B) best practices for the provision of basic
services to eligible students;
``(C) the obstacles faced by grant recipients; and
``(D) State or Federal policy barriers to meeting
the basic needs of students at institutions of higher
education.
``(5) Best practices.--The Secretary shall disseminate to
eligible institutions information about best practices, as
described in paragraph (4)(B).
``(d) Reservation; Priority; Equitable Distribution.--
``(1) Reservation.--In awarding grants under subsections
(b) and (c), the Secretary shall reserve an amount equal to not
less than 25 percent of the total amount available for grants
under those subsections for grant awards to community colleges.
``(2) Priority.--In awarding grants under subsections (b)
and (c), the Secretary shall give priority to the following:
``(A) Eligible institutions with respect to which
not less than 25 percent of enrolled students are
students that are eligible to receive a Federal Pell
Grant under subpart 1 of part A of title IV.
``(B) Eligible institutions that are described in
section 371(a).
``(3) Equitable distribution.--In awarding grants under
subsections (b) and (c), the Secretary shall ensure an
equitable distribution of grant awards to eligible institutions
in States based on State population.
``(e) Limitation.--An eligible institution receiving a grant
under--
``(1) subsection (b) shall not use more than 50 percent of
grant funds for personnel expenses; and
``(2) subsection (c) shall not use more than 75 percent of
grant funds for personnel expenses.
``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $1,000,000,000 for fiscal years
2022 through 2028, of which--
``(1) $40,000,000 are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out planning grants under subsection (b); and
``(2) $960,000,000 are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out implementation grants under subsection (c).''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
Llama 3.2 · runs locally in your browser
Ask anything about this bill. The AI reads the full text to answer.
Enter to send · Shift+Enter for new line