The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a bill designed to stop identity thieves from taking federal college financial aid.
The “No Aid for Ghost Students Act” targets criminals who use stolen or entirely fake identities to submit FAFSA applications and pocket the money. Representative Burgess Owens introduced the legislation in the House. Now that the bill has cleared that chamber, the focus shifts to the Senate. Florida Sen. Ashley Moody is championing the companion bill there, sponsored alongside Senators Tommy Tuberville and Maggie Hassan.
“Fraudsters should never be able to steal taxpayer dollars meant to help hardworking students pursue a higher education,” Sen. Moody said after the House vote. “This bill is a commonsense step to protect students and stop criminals from exploiting the FAFSA system with stolen or fake identities. This is a great step in the right direction, and I applaud my colleagues in the House of Representatives for passing this legislation, but there is still work to be done. I strongly urge my Senate colleagues to join us in this effort to combat fraud and swiftly pass this critical legislation.”
If the bill becomes law, it will change the Higher Education Act to place strict new requirements on both the Department of Education and colleges. The federal government will have to run every single FAFSA application through an identity fraud detection system. If an application looks suspicious, the department must notify the applicant and any schools listed on their form.
At that point, colleges cannot give out any federal student aid until they prove the applicant is a real person. Schools will have to verify the student’s identity either in person or over a live video call.
Once a college confirms an applicant’s identity, administrators must keep a record of the verification and notify the Department of Education. To make sure the process is uniform, the bill also requires the department to establish clear guidelines for schools to follow when handling these flagged applications.
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