Title: Fair College Admissions for Students Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Fair College Admissions for Students Act
This bill prohibits an institution of higher education (IHE) that participates in federal student-aid programs from giving preferential treatment in the admissions process to applicants based on their relationships to donors or alumni of the IHE. The Department of Education may waive the prohibition against preferential treatment based on relationships to alumni for certain IHEs (e.g., historically Black colleges and universities or other minority-serving institutions) that demonstrate that the use of such preferential treatment is in the best interest of students who have been historically underrepresented in higher education.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3559 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3559

 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit institutions of 
 higher education participating in Federal student assistance programs 
from giving preferential treatment in the admissions process to legacy 
                          students or donors.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 2, 2022

Mr. Merkley (for himself and Mr. Casey) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit institutions of 
 higher education participating in Federal student assistance programs 
from giving preferential treatment in the admissions process to legacy 
                          students or donors.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fair College Admissions for Students 
Act''.

SEC. 2. BAN ON LEGACY OR DONOR PREFERENCES IN ADMISSIONS.

    (a) In General.--Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
(20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(30)(A) The institution will not provide any manner of 
        preferential treatment in the admission process to applicants 
        on the basis of their relationships to--
                    ``(i) donors to the institution; or
                    ``(ii) except as provided in subparagraph (B), 
                alumni of the institution.
            ``(B) The Secretary may waive the limitation described in 
        subparagraph (A)(ii) for an award year for an eligible 
        institution described in section 371(a) if such institution 
        demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Secretary that 
        preferential treatment in the admission process to applicants 
        on the basis of their relationships to alumni of the 
        institution is in the best interest of students who have been 
        historically underrepresented in higher education.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the first day of the second award year (as defined in 
section 481(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088(a))) 
that begins after the date of enactment of this Act.
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