Federal aid may be denied to students convicted of drug use

By Arj Arjunan
Daily Bruin Contributor

The Bush administration’s strict enforcement of the 1998
Higher Education Act could lead to 34,000 students being denied
federal financial aid this year, according to the National
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

A provision of the act denies grants, loans and work assistance
to students with drug convictions who fail to undergo drug
rehabilitation programs approved by the Department of
Education.

Nicolas Valdivia, assistant director of the Financial Aid
Office, maintains that UCLA students have not been affected by the
provision.

“I’m not aware of students seeking aid that have
drug convictions,” he said.

When students fill out a Free Application for Federal Student
Aid, they must disclose any prior drug convictions in the
questionnaire.

The Bush administration has resolved to notify students that
have not answered the question to fill out a more detailed
worksheet on the subject, Valdivia said.

The Clinton administration did not seek details from students
that left it blank preferring to only withhold aid from students
who checked “yes” when asked of prior convictions.
During the 2000-01 school year, the government denied 8,100
students assistance because of drug convictions, according to the
Education Department.

The author of the provision, Congressman Mark Souder, R-Indiana,
said students receiving federal assistance must take responsibility
for their actions.

“Student aid is a privilege, not a right,” said Seth
Becker, Souder’s press secretary.

Though Becker supports the reasoning behind the provision, he
said the Education Department has not interpreted it in the manner
in which Souder intended.

“It’s not being enforced according to the
author’s intent,” he said. “It was supposed to
suspend loans for students convicted while receiving aid or while
their applications were pending.”

Instead, both the Clinton and Bush administrations withheld
federal assistance to students with drug convictions that occurred
after their 18th birthday, according to Betty Allenbrand,
supervisor at the Education Department’s Federal Student Aid
Information Center. Both administrations have also required that
students undergo drug rehabilitation in programs approved by the
department before regaining eligibility, Allenbrand said.

Becker said Souder’s office has contacted the department,
hoping to clear up confusion over the varying interpretations
without new legislation. A legislative solution would be too
time-consuming, Becker said.

Meanwhile, Congressman Barney Frank, D-Massachusetts, has
introduced legislation that would repeal Souder’s
provision.

NORML publications director Paul Armentano supports
Frank’s legislation and said Souder hasn’t done enough
to clarify the provision.

“Souder has told everyone that the language is being
misinterpreted, but he is not a co-sponsor of Barney Frank’s
legislation,” he said.

Becker said remedying the situation requires better
communication with the Education Department, not an abandonment of
the provision as Frank’s legislation proposes.

Armentano also opposes attaching conditions to federal
assistance, and said that poorer students will shoulder the burden.
“The focus is on people who are less fortunate. They will
bear the brunt of these denials of federal aid,” he said.

Allenbrand said dishonesty in filling out the FAFSA constitutes
fraud that can warrant fines and jail time.

But, Armentano said, verification could pose a problem for the
Education Department because the federal government does not have
the resources to check criminal records. As a result, he said,
students can circumvent the provision.

“No one is going to honestly check the box, knowing that
they don’t have the capacity to check records,” he
said.