S. 1832: College for All Act of 2025 (119th Congress) Bill Summary

The College for All Act of 2025 aims to enhance access to higher education by eliminating tuition and required fees for eligible students attending public colleges and universities. This initiative focuses particularly on benefiting low-income and minority students through a federal-state partnership, thereby making higher education more affordable and accessible.

Key Features of the Act

Tuition Elimination: The act proposes to eliminate tuition and required fees for eligible students. This measure is intended to reduce the financial burden of attending college, especially for those from low-income backgrounds.
Support for Historically Black Colleges: The legislation introduces grant programs specifically aimed at supporting historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), which play a crucial role in higher education for minority students.

State Participation Criteria

To qualify for Tier IV relief under this act, a state must meet specific conditions concerning its unemployment rate. A state qualifies for Tier IV relief if:

The state’s average unemployment rate is between 8.5% and 9.5%.
The national unemployment rate falls within the same range.
The state is not eligible for Tier V relief.

Additionally, states must continue to provide support for their public institution employees during the period of relief, ensuring that staff are not adversely affected by funding changes.

Amendments to the Higher Education Act

This act also includes amendments to the Higher Education Act by designating certain scholarship amounts as qualified regardless of their usage. This change aims to simplify the guidelines surrounding scholarships and ensure that students can utilize financial aid more flexibly. The amendments will take effect for taxable years following the enactment of the act.

Summary

The College for All Act of 2025 represents a significant effort to make public higher education more accessible by eliminating costs for students and providing targeted support for specific educational institutions. By incorporating measures for state eligibility based on economic factors and modifying scholarship usage rules, the act seeks to address both educational and financial challenges faced by students.