Financial Aid Drug Law Draws Opposition June 5, 2001
News Summary
The U.S. Department of Education is hearing a great deal of opposition to a federal law that cuts federal financial aid to drug offenders, the Kansas City Star reported May 28.The law went into effect last JulY, and is being fully enforced under the Bush administration. Under the law, students who are convicted of possessing an illegal drug lose their loans, grants, and work assistance for a year from the date of their conviction. A second conviction results in a two-year loss of aid, while a third conviction means an indefinite loss. Aid may be reinstated if students complete a drug rehabilitation program and agree to two unannounced drug tests.
Also being enforced this year are rules regarding the federal financial-aid application. Those who leave the question pertaining to drug use unanswered will not receive financial aid.
"We don't feel there should be this second punishment that applies only to illegal drug users and no other criminals," said David Borden, executive director of the Drug Reform Coordination Network, a national organization working to overturn the law.
Borden added that the law discourages people from getting a college education after paying for their crimes in a court of law.
The law also is opposed by student governments at more than 60 universities. They have banded together to urge a repeal. "I couldn't believe that the government was doing this," said Katherine Dinkel, a junior at the University of Kansas who helped organize a chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, another national group fighting the law. "I'd rather go to school with someone who's smoking a joint than walk down a hallway with a rapist."
U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has introduced legislation to repeal the law.
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