Legislation Reallocates Unspent Campus-Based Aid to Hurricane-Affected Schools

The U.S. Congress has approved legislation that could provide an estimated $36 million in additional federal student aid to students affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The Natural Disaster Student Aid Fairness Act would reallocate unspent funds from the campus-based programs — Federal Work-Study, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants and Perkins loans — to postsecondary institutions located in the hurricane-related disaster areas or institutions that have enrolled students displaced by the hurricanes.

The legislation also requires the U.S. secretary of education to waive the non-federal matching requirements for the campus-based programs for institutions affected by the hurricanes and permits a similar waiver for schools that have enrolled students displaced by the hurricanes.

The measure’s sponsor, Rep. Bobby Jindal, R-La., a former president of the University of Louisiana system, said, “The authority granted to the secretary in this bill is important to ensure that the affected institutions in the Gulf-Coast region do not experience additional financial strain and to provide assistance to get them back on their feet.”