Davis offers bipartisan bill to study front-loading of college student financial aid

U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL) recently introduced a bipartisan bill that would help improve transparency in college student financial aid.

“Making the financing of higher education more transparent is vital to making college more affordable and accessible,” Rep. Davis said on Oct. 5. 

The congressman on Sept. 27 signed on as the lead original cosponsor of the Front-Loaded Aid Transparency (FLAT) Act, H.R. 5381, with bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ). The bill would address the “front-loading” of financial aid for college students, a potentially deceptive practice, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.

Specifically, front-loading occurs when a school provides more institutional grant aid to students in their first year than in subsequent years in an effort to attract students to enroll in the school. Incoming first-year students are often not aware that their financial aid will decrease in the following years, the summary says.

“The practice of front-loading financial aid may have serious impacts on the personal finances of students, particularly their student debt burdens,” said Rep. Davis. “That’s why I’m proud to join Congressman Kim and other House colleagues in introducing the bipartisan FLAT Act, to shine a light on this practice and make sure college students have a full picture of the costs of their college education.”

While there has been no large-scale study on front-loaded financial aid, federal data from the National Center for Education Statistics provides some insight into the prevalence of the practice, showing that in 2020, 83 of the 100 highest-ranked colleges in the country by U.S. News & World Report front-loaded their financial aid. Of these 83 colleges, the average first-year student received $2,411 more in institutional grant aid than second-, third-, and fourth-year students. For the three colleges that front-loaded their financial aid the most, that number increased to a $9,000 difference, according to Rep. Davis’ bill summary.

If enacted, H.R. 5381 would direct the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a study aimed at uncovering the prevalence, extent, and impact of front-loading institutional grant aid at accredited colleges and universities in the United States, according to the bill summary.

H.R. 5381 has been referred for consideration to the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee.