U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1 

59–010 

" ! SENATE 110TH CONGRESS

1st Session 

REPORT

2007

110–52 

Calendar No. 114 

TO EXTEND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 

COLLEGE ACCESS ACT OF 1999 

R E P O R T 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

TO ACCOMPANY

S. 343 

TO EXTEND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COLLEGE ACCESS ACT 

OF 1999 

APRIL 11, 2007.—Ordered to be printed 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPTE:\Seals\Congress.#13
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman 

CARL LEVIN, Michigan 

DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas 

MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana 

BARACK OBAMA, Illinois 

CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri 

JOHN TESTER, Montana 

SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine 

TED STEVENS, Alaska 

GEROGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio 

NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota 

TOM COBURN, Okalahoma 

PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico 

JOHN WARNER, Virginia 

JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire 

MICHAEL L. ALEXANDER, Staff Director 

DONNY R. WILLIAMS, Professional Staff Member 

DEBORAH P. PARKINSON, Professional Staff Member 

BRANDON L. MILHORN, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel 

DAVID COLE, Professional Staff Member, Subcommittee on Oversight of Government 

Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia 

AMY L. HALL, Minority Professional Staff Member 

TRINA DRIESSNACK TYRER, Chief Clerk 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Page 

I. Purpose and Summary .................................................................................. 1 

II. Background and Need for the Legislation ................................................... 1 

III. Legislative History ......................................................................................... 2 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis .......................................................................... 2 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 2 

VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate ................................................ 3 

VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ........................... 5 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT

hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
1Public Law 106–98. 

Calendar No. 114 

110TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 110–52 

TO EXTEND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COLLEGE 

ACCESS ACT OF 1999 

APRIL 11, 2007.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. LIEBERMAN, from the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 343] 

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 

to which was referred the bill (S. 343), to extend the District of Columbia College Access Act of 1999, having considered the same reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that 

the bill do pass. 

I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

The purpose of S. 343 is to reauthorize for five additional years 

the public school and private school tuition assistance programs established under the District of Columbia College Access Act of 

1999.1

II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION

The District of Columbia College Access Act of 1999 established 

the District of Columbia Tuition Assistance Grant (D.C. TAG) program for District residents. The aim of the D.C. TAG program is 

to assist District students, who do not have access to state-supported education systems, in attending institutions of higher education. 

The D.C. TAG program provides scholarships to District residents to cover the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition at state universities nationwide. Individual scholarship awards 

are capped at $10,000 per student per school year, with a cumulative cap of $50,000. In addition, the law provides District resiVerDate Aug 31 2005 04:21 Apr 13, 2007 Jkt 059010 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR052.XXX SR052

hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
2 

2Public Law 107–157. 3Public Law 108–457. 4Statistics provided by the District of Columbia State Education Office. 

5Statistics provided by the District of Columbia State Education Office. 

6 Examining the Challenges the District will Face Today, Tomorrow, and in the Future: Hearing Before the Senate Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal 

Workforce, and the District of Columbia, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

Affairs, S. Hrg. 109–511 (2006) (testimony of Anthony A. Williams). 

dents who attend private institutions of higher education in Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia with tuition grants 

of up to $2,500 per student per school year with a cumulative cap 

of $12,500 per student. 

In 2002, the District of Columbia College Access Improvement 

Act of 2001 2 amended the program to allow District residents attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) nationwide to receive tuition grants of $2,500 per student per school 

year, with a cumulative cap of $12,500 per student. The 2002 Act 

also eliminated the requirement that District residents must continue on to college within three years of high school graduation; expanded eligibility to include all District residents who have resided 

in the District of Columbia for at least five consecutive years prior 

to applying for the grant and who were enrolled at an eligible institution as of the date of enactment; and established a dedicated account for the resident tuition support program. In 2004, the program was reauthorized for an additional two years.3

Since the first grants were awarded in 2000, the program has dispersed more than 26,000 grants, totaling over $141 million to 

9,769 District students.4 More than 1,500 have graduated from college. The District of Columbia has seen a 60 percent increase in 

college attendance,5 with 55 percent of the students being the first 

in their family to attend college.6

S. 343 extends the authorization for five additional years. The 

extension will ensure that District of Columbia residents continue 

to have access to institutions of higher education. 

III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

On January 22, 2007, S. 343 was introduced by Senator 

Voinovich and cosponsored by Senators Akaka, Brownback, 

Landrieu, Lieberman, and Warner. The legislation was referred to 

the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. 

On February 15, 2007, by voice vote, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs ordered S. 343 reported favorably without amendment. 

IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1. 5-Year reauthorization of tuition assistance programs 

This section amends the D.C. College Access Act of 1999 by striking ‘each of the 7 succeeding fiscal years’ and inserting ‘each of the 

12 succeeding fiscal years’ in section 3, the public school program 

section, and in section 5, the private school section. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to the requirement of paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule XXVI 

of the Standing Rules of the Senate the Committee has considered 

the regulatory impact of this bill. CBO states that there are no 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
3 

intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and no costs on State, local, or tribal 

governments. The legislation contains no other regulatory impact. 

VI. ESTIMATED COST OF LEGISLATION

S. 343—A bill to extend the District of Columbia College Access Act 

of 1999 

Summary: S. 343 would amend the District of Columbia College 

Access Act of 1999 and reauthorize the District of Columbia tuition 

assistance grant (DCTAG) program for students who are residents 

of Washington, D.C. Current law authorizes the appropriation of 

such sums as may be necessary through fiscal year 2007, and S. 

343 would extend this authorization through fiscal year 2012. CBO 

estimates that the necessary appropriations would total $208 million over the 2008–2012 period. Outlays would match this total 

over the same period. The bill would have no significant impact on 

direct spending or revenues. 

S. 343 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates 

as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and 

would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of S. 343 is presented in the following table. The cost 

of this legislation falls within budget function 500 (education, 

training, employment, and social services). 

ESTIMATED BUDGETARY EFFECTS OF S. 343 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 

CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION 

Spending Under Current Law: 

Estimated Authorization Level ............................................. 33 0 0 0 0 0 

Estimated Outlays ............................................................... 33 0 0 0 0 0 

Proposed Changes: 

Estimated Authorization Level ............................................. 0 30 41 44 46 47 

Estimated Outlays ............................................................... 0 30 41 44 46 47 

Spending Under S. 343: 

Estimated Authorization Level ............................................. 33 30 41 44 46 47 

Estimated Outlays ............................................................... 33 30 41 44 46 47 

Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that S. 343 

will be enacted during 2007 and that the estimated amounts will 

be appropriated for each year. 

Current Law 

Under current law, DCTAG provides financial assistance to D.C. 

residents who attend public colleges outside of the District of Columbia, private postsecondary institutions in the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia, or any historically black college or university. The private-school tuition grants are restricted to nonprofit 

institutions. Students who attend public schools receive assistance 

equal to the difference between the tuition paid by residents of the 

state in which the institution is located and the tuition charged to 

nonresident students, with an annual limit of $10,000 and a lifetime limit of $50,000. Private-school students receive a $2,500 maximum annual grant, with a lifetime limit of $12,500. 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
4 

According to data from the District of Columbia’s State Education Office (SEO), the cost of DCTAG has grown substantially 

since the program’s inception (academic year 2000–2001). For the 

2005–2006 academic year, the most recent year for which final data 

are available, just over 3,800 students attending public institutions 

and 900 students attending private schools received awards. Both 

the number of participants and the size of average award have increased over time. Growth has been particularly high for students 

attending public schools. 

Current law authorizes the appropriation of such sums as may 

be necessary through fiscal year 2007. The Congress appropriated 

$33 million for this program in fiscal year 2007, although costs will 

likely exceed this total. Because costs for DCTAG were lower than 

the appropriated sums during the early years of the program, however, the SEO has been able to use carryover funds to supplement 

appropriated funds to make grants in recent years. As a result, the 

SEa has about $42 million available for the current academic year. 

The office has allocated just over $39 million for this award-year, 

but because not all students who receive award letters enroll in 

school, SEO’s spending for financial assistance will likely be closer to $35 million. SEO also spends about 3 percent of its funds on operating costs. 

Proposed extension 

S. 343 would authorize the appropriation of such sums as are 

necessary for DCTAG through 2012. CBO assumes that the SEO 

would use all of its estimated $7 million in carryover funds in 2008, 

so while program costs would probably total almost $38 million, additional federal funds needed to cover those costs would total only 

$30 million. CBO estimates that the necessary appropriations and 

resulting outlays would total $208 million over the 2008–2012 period. (Federal funds are disbursed and outlays are recorded when 

the SEO receives the funds, not when it actually makes the 

grants.) Based on population and high school graduation projections from the Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics, respectively, CBO estimates that the number of 

participants would continue to grow, but at a slower rate than in 

the early years of the program. In addition, some of the early 

growth was likely attributable to recruitment efforts, which would 

be expected to have a smaller effect as DCTAG matures. 

CBO estimates that a total of about 5,500 students annually 

would participate in the program by 2012. Based on data from the 

SEO and the College Board, CBO also estimates that the average 

cost per grant would continue to rise as the cost of tuition and fees 

at both public and private schools rises, although a growing share 

of the grants would be limited by the annual caps. On that basis, 

CBO estimates that the average cost per grant would reach $9,500 

for public schools and about $2,350 for private schools by 2012, assuming appropriation of the necessary funds. 

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: S. 343 contains no 

intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in UMRA 

and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Justin Humphrey. Impact 

on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Lisa Ramirez-Branum. 

Impact on the Private Sector: Fatimot Ladipo. 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
5 

Estimate approved by: Robert A. Sunshine, Assistant Director for 

Budget Analysis. 

VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the following changes in existing law made by 

the bill, as reported, are shown as follows: (existing law proposed 

to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed 

in italic, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in 

roman): 

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CODE 

TITLE 38. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS 

Subtitle IX. College Access Assistance 

CHAPTER 27. COLLEGE ACCESS ASSISTANCE 

SEC. 38–2702. PUBLIC SCHOOL PROGRAM. 

(a) GRANTS.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts appropriated under subsection (i) of this section the Mayor shall award grants to eligible institutions that enroll eligible students to pay the difference between the tuition and fees charged for in-State students and the tuition and fees charged for out-of-State students on behalf of each eligible student enrolled in the eligible 

institution. 

* * * * * * * 

(i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to 

be appropriated to the District of Columbia to carry out this section 

$12,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and (subject to Sec. 38–2706) such 

sums as may be necessary for øeach of the 7 succeeding fiscal 

years¿ each of the 12 succeeding fiscal years. Such funds shall remain available until expended. 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 38–2704. PRIVATE SCHOOL PROGRAM. 

(a) GRANTS.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts appropriated under subsection (f) the Mayor shall award grants to eligible institutions 

that enroll eligible students to pay the cost of tuition and fees 

at the eligible institutions on behalf of each eligible student enrolled in an eligible institution. The Mayor may prescribe such 

regulations as may be necessary to carry out this section. 

* * * * * * * 

(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to 

be appropriated to the District of Columbia to carry out this section 

$5,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and (subject to Sec. 38–2706) such 

sums as may be necessary for øeach of the 7 succeeding fiscal 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT
6 

years¿ each of the 12 succeeding fiscal years. Such funds shall remain available until expended. 

Æ 


hmoore on PRODPC68 with HMRPT