I 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5390 
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to amend the process by 
which students with certain special circumstances apply for Federal fi-
nancial aid. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 22, 2018 
Mr. CUMMINGS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and the Workforce 
A BILL 
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to amend 
the process by which students with certain special cir-
cumstances apply for Federal financial aid. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘FAFSA Fairness Act 
of 2018’’. 
SEC. 2. CHANGES TO THE FAFSA FOR CERTAIN STUDENTS. 
Section 483 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 1090) is amended— 
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(1) in subsection (h)(1), by inserting the fol-
lowing before the semicolon: ‘‘, including the special 
circumstances under which a student may qualify for 
a determination of independence’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) PROVISIONAL INDEPENDENT STUDENTS.— 
‘‘(1) REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SECRETARY.— 
The Secretary shall— 
‘‘(A) enable each student who, based on 
the special circumstance specified in subsection 
(h)(1), may qualify for an adjustment under 
section 479A that will result in a determination 
of independence under such section and section 
480(d)(1)(I), to complete the forms developed 
by the Secretary under subsection (a) as an 
independent student for the purpose of an ini-
tial determination of the student’s Federal fi-
nancial aid award by a financial aid adminis-
trator at an institution of higher education to 
which the student is applying for financial aid, 
but subject to verification under paragraph 
(2)(B) for the purpose of the final determina-
tion of the award; and 
‘‘(B) specify, on the forms, the con-
sequences under section 490(a) of knowingly 
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and willfully completing the forms as an inde-
pendent student under subparagraph (A) with-
out meeting the special circumstances to qualify 
for such a determination. 
‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS FOR FINANCIAL AID AD-
MINISTRATORS.—With respect to a student who 
completes the forms as an independent student 
under paragraph (1)(A), a financial aid adminis-
trator shall— 
‘‘(A) provide an initial determination of 
the student’s Federal financial aid award to the 
student in the same manner as, and by not 
later than the date that, the administrator pro-
vides other independent students their initial 
determinations of Federal financial aid awards; 
and 
‘‘(B) in making a final determination of 
the student’s Federal financial aid award, use 
the discretion provided under sections 479A 
and 480(d)(1)(I) to verify whether the student 
meets the special circumstances to qualify as an 
independent student. 
‘‘(3) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this sub-
section, the term ‘other independent students’ means 
students— 
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‘‘(A) who meet the definition of ‘inde-
pendent’ under section 480(d)(1); and 
‘‘(B) whose independent status is not sub-
ject to verification by a financial aid adminis-
trator under paragraph (2)(B).’’. 
Æ 
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