Student-Aid Drug Law Architect Criticizes Implementation January 3, 2002
News Summary
A new report shows that more than 43,000 prospective college students would be denied federal aid for the 2001-02 school year because of a 1998 federal law that bans students with previous drug convictions from receiving aid, the Associated Press reported Dec. 30.Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.), who drafted the law, said the original intent was to take away federal aid from students already receiving assistance when convicted. But Souder blamed the Bush administration for being tougher on applicants than Congress had intended.
Souder has met with officials from the U.S. Education Department to change the manner in which the law is enforced, but little progress has been made in easing the rules. After reviewing the law, Education Department officials said any changes must come from Congress.
Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) has already introduced legislation to repeal the law. In the meantime, students are taking action against the law, with the American Council on Education demanding the law's repeal and students on nearly 200 campuses nationwide organizing to fight the law.
Under the law, a student with one drug-possession offense is ineligible for federal financial aid for one year after conviction. For a second drug-possession or first drug-sale conviction, a student is ineligible for aid for two years. More convictions would ban the student from federal financial aid indefinitely, unless the offender undergoes drug rehabilitation.
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