01 — The Text
What.
- Excludes family farm net worth from federal student aid calculations, reversing 2024-2025 policy change.
- Also exempts small businesses (≤100 employees, family-owned) from being counted as financial assets.
- Restores prior rule where these assets didn't reduce a student's eligibility for federal aid.
02 — The Stakes
So what?
- Farm and business families: more students may qualify for federal student aid without asset penalties.
- Tradeoff: exemptions reduce federal aid pool available to non-farm/non-business families in tight budgets.
- 89 cosponsors suggest rural and small-business constituencies view asset counting as unfairly penalizing them.
03 — The Path
Now what?
- Bill introduced Feb. 7; now in House Committee on Education and Workforce for hearings and debate.
- Committee must vote to advance it; passage requires majority House and Senate votes plus presidential signature.
- Contact your House representative to support or oppose before committee markup begins.
Legislative History
Actions.
- Feb 7, 2025 — Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- Feb 7, 2025 — Introduced in House
- Feb 7, 2025 — Introduced in House