CONGRESS PUSHES FINANCIAL AID REFORM

Bad grades and plagiarism may get students kicked out of college, but
past drug convictions may not hinder their eligibility for enrollment
or financial aid.

As of Wednesday, Congress proposed to revise the Higher Education Act
Drug Provision.

The HEA was instituted in 1965 under President Lyndon Johnson and was
modified in 1998 to include a drug provision. The provision
stipulates that if a student has a previous or current drug
conviction on his or her record, he or she cannot receive financial
aid or the aid will be suspended or revoked depending on the situation.

If a student is convicted of possession of a controlled substance
once, his or her aid is suspended for one year; two convictions means
a suspension of two years and three results in indefinite suspension.
If the student is convicted of selling a controlled substance once,
his or her aid is suspended for two years, and on the second offense,
the aid is indefinitely suspended.

On Feb. 1, Congress rewrote the provision. If President Bush signs
it, it will allow students with previous drug offenses to receive
aid. However, those students who are convicted while enrolled in
college and are consequently receiving aid will still lose their eligibility.

Chris Collins, associate director of the Office of Financial Aid and
Scholarships said that it is unclear when the revision would be implemented.

According to the Students for Sensible Drug Policy press release, the
HEA Drug Provision has affected about 175,000 students to date.

"In the 04-05 academic year, four SDSU aid applicants were determined
to be ineligible due to drug convictions," Collins said.

Since 1998, SSDP and the 250 organizations, including schools and
addiction recovery centers that support them, have been working hard
to convince Congress to revoke the drug provision all together.

Kris Krane, executive director of SSDP, said that, after years,
Congress is finally helping some students who have been harmed by the policy.

Not all students feel the same compassion for colleagues with drug
convictions as the SSDP.

"I think if you are willing to act that illegally, you sort of waive
the right to any government benefits," political science and
linguistics junior Garrett Heckman said. "Including financial aid.

"Any drug you take is killing brain cells; it may not make you dumber
per se, but I think drug use definitely makes you less qualified for
government support."

The government now has to consider its budget. The provision is
included in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. Congress approved the
Reduction Act last year, which created legislation that would help
reduce government spending by $35 billion from 2006 to 2010.

"There are no savings that would be achieved through the modification
of the drug conviction provision," Collins said. "The higher
education provisions of the HEA create savings primarily from the
federal student loan programs."

Still, the SSDP believes students should take more action and go to court.

"This minor change is just a ploy to sweep the penalty's problems
under the rug," said Krane, whose goal is see the HEA Drug Provision
fully repealed.

For now, students await Bush's acceptance or rejection of the
provision revision.