MARIJUANA AND COLLEGE AID

Anything that keeps ex-offenders from attending college makes it more
likely that they will be caught in the revolving door that leads to
prison. Tens of thousands of people have been pushed in that
direction since the 1990s when Congress passed a law that barred even
minor drug offenders from receiving federal education aid. The law
applies even to offenses so minor that they are normally punished by
probation, a small fine or community service.

Congress softened the law last year, eliminating a provision that
denied assistance to people with even petty drug offenses more than a
decade old. Now it's time to repeal the remaining part of the law,
which affects students who commit crimes while actually receiving aid.

The law is wrong-headed on several counts. It primarily affects
low-income students and exempts the wealthy, who don't need aid to
attend college. It targets young people of color, who are
disproportionately prosecuted for drug offenses and already less
likely to complete college. It does not deter drug use, especially
among addicts who need treatment to break their habits.

Beyond that, young people who commit errors in judgment, as young
people can be counted on to do, are penalized twice -- once by the
courts and once by the student aid system. They are also placed at
risk of never getting an education at all.

Federal college aid was never intended to be used as a weapon of
enforcement. Any attempt to employ it that way inevitably results in
perverse and unintended results.