Editing FAFSA (section)

== History ==
{{expand section|date=April 2021}}
FAFSA originally came from the 1965 Higher Education Act (HEA) by President [[Lyndon B. Johnson|Lyndon Johnson]], which established that the United States Government would be the primary provider of financial aid for students.<ref name=":2">{{cite web |title=Federal Financial Aid Policy: Then, Now, and in the Future |url=https://www.naspa.org/blog/federal-financial-aid-policy-then-now-and-in-the-future |access-date=2022-10-16 |website=www.naspa.org |language=en}}</ref> For years the application was called Financial Aid Form (FAF), which was an optional form used by some—but not all—colleges and universities. When Congress reauthorized the HEA in 1992 they created a standardized federal form for all prospective students seeking aid.<ref name=":3" /> The stated goal of FAFSA and other government funded education programs was to create equal opportunities for students seeking higher education. When the HEA was reauthorized again in 2008 lawmakers added a clause that schools must report information about who is receiving financial aid.<ref name=":2" />  Subsequent studies revealed continued inequality for students of color, who often had to take out more student loans than more privileged counterparts.<ref name=":3" />  

Recent updates have been made to increase accessibility of financial aid.<ref name=":4" /> The original FAFSA form had 108 questions, which was a significant barrier for many low-income families seeking financial aid.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |last=Shermer |first=Elizabeth Tandy |date=2021-05-03 |title=75 years of reforms have failed to fix our college financial aid system |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2021/05/03/seventy-five-years-reforms-have-failed-fix-our-college-financial-aid-system |access-date=2022-10-15}}</ref> The questions were broadly seen as excessively detailed and unnecessarily complicated, with students being required to dedicate several hours to completing their application. The [[Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021]] shortened the FAFSA from 108 questions to 36, to encourage more eligible students to fill out the form.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://money.com/fafsa-simplification-pell-grants-spending-bill/ |title=Congress Just Made It a Lot Easier to Apply for Financial Aid |date=22 December 2020}}</ref>  In addition, students now have the option to link their IRS account with their FAFSA account to make the application simpler to complete accurately. Students must now report the value of their family business or farm.<ref name=Newform/> The Consolidated Appropriations Act also opened financial aid eligibility to students that had previously been excluded from the program.<ref name=":4">{{cite web |title=FY 2021 Omnibus Appropriations Bill |url=https://www.ncsl.org/ncsl-in-dc/publications-and-resources/fy-2021-omnibus-appropriations-bill.aspx |access-date=2022-10-16 |website=www.ncsl.org}}</ref>
More than 14 Million applications were submitted in 2006. <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.unbiased.com/discover/banking/fafsa-statistics | title=FAFSA Statistics }}</ref>

=== 2024 changes ===
{{AI-generated|date=May 2024}}
In 2024, the Department of Education made substantial changes to FAFSA in response to the [[FAFSA Simplification Act in 2020]]. Some of these changes were initially plagued with technical errors and glitches, causing significant delays in the release of data to colleges and universities and considerable confusion and frustration among parents and students. Students from disadvantaged groups and low-income backgrounds are among the vulnerable student demographics who were disproportionately impacted by the technical obstacles. These students might not have access to the tools or assistance they need to deal with the challenges of submitting a financial aid application.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-02-18 |title=Why students applying for college financial aid are facing new technical hurdles |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/education/why-students-applying-for-college-financial-aid-are-facing-new-technical-hurdles |access-date=2024-05-02 |website=PBS NewsHour |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-20 |title=Getting to College: FAFSA Challenges for First-Gen Students {{!}} Harvard Graduate School of Education |url=https://www.gse.harvard.edu/ideas/edcast/24/03/getting-college-fafsa-challenges-first-gen-students |access-date=2024-05-03 |website=www.gse.harvard.edu |language=en}}</ref>

The problems with the FAFSA resulted in a congressional hearing where witnesses reported that the multiple errors and delays in releasing data to colleges and universities could significantly diminish enrollment. [[Richard Cordray]], the Department of Education employee in charge of Federal Student Aid, subsequently announced his resignation at the end of June.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2024/04/26/amid-fafsa-crisis-richard-corday-steps-down/73469057007/ |title=Top Education Department official steps down amid crisis over college financial aid |publisher=[[USA Today]] |first1=Zachary |last1=Schermele |first2=Alia |last2=Wong |date=April 28, 2024 |accessdate=May 3, 2024}}</ref>

In order to fill out the FAFSA, parents and students must create an FSA ID. Inconsistent personal information caused problems for some individuals surrounding ID verification, including errors in names, addresses, and other information, which has led to delays in the processing of applications for financial assistance.

Students from disadvantaged groups and low-income backgrounds are thought to be disproportionately impacted by the technical obstacles. Many are urging changes to the FAFSA application process in order to resolve these technical issues and guarantee fair access to financial assistance. They contend that students are unfairly burdened by the current system, especially those who already face obstacles to pursuing higher education. <ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-02-18 |title=Why students applying for college financial aid are facing new technical hurdles |url=https://www.pbs.org/newshour/education/why-students-applying-for-college-financial-aid-are-facing-new-technical-hurdles |access-date=2024-05-07 |website=PBS NewsHour |language=en-us}}</ref>

=== 2025 ===
In February 2025, the Department of Education announced that the FAFSA form would be altered to no longer allow students to identify as [[nonbinary]]. The change is being made to comply with the [[Executive Order 14168|executive order]] issued by [[Second presidency of Donald Trump|Donald Trump]] that defines gender as a strict male-female binary.<ref name="usa-4feb2025">{{cite news |last1=Schermele |first1=Zachary |title=Education Department removes nonbinary gender ID option from financial aid form |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2025/02/04/trump-fafsa-nonbinary/78222634007/ |access-date=February 17, 2025 |work=[[USA Today]] |date=February 4, 2025}}</ref>