Sec. 201. Grant program to eliminate tuition and fees for eligible students at private nonprofit historically Black colleges and universities and minority-serving institutions
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Part F of title VII of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as added by section 101, is further amended by adding at the end the following: In this subpart: Except as provided in subparagraph (E), the term eligible institution means a private nonprofit 2-year institution or 4-year institution that— is— a part B institution (as defined in section 322); a Hispanic-serving institution (as defined in section 502); an Alaska Native-serving institution (as defined in section 317(b)); a Native Hawaiian-serving institution (as defined in section 317(b)); a Predominantly Black institution (as defined in section 371(c)); an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution (as defined in section 371(c)); or a Native American-serving nontribal institution (as defined in section 371(c)); and has not received funds under subpart 1.
The Secretary shall determine whether an institution is an eligible institution under subparagraph
(A)based on the most recent data available, and shall review such determination annually to ensure that the institution continues to meet the requirements for participation under this subpart. The term 2-year institution means an institution at which an associate degree is the most frequently awarded degree. The term 4-year institution means an institution of higher education (as defined under section 101(a)) that is not a 2-year institution. An eligible institution as described in subparagraph
(A)shall not be an eligible institution for purposes of this section for the period described in clause
(ii)if such institution was a for-profit institution at any time that converted to a nonprofit institution. An institution described under clause
(i)shall not be an eligible institution for purposes of this section for a period of 25 years from the date the institution converted from being a for-profit institution to a nonprofit institution or 25 years after the date of enactment of this subpart, whichever period is longer. The term eligible student means a student enrolled in an eligible institution who has not obtained a baccalaureate degree or a higher degree and— for the first award year of the program under this subpart, if the student— is a dependent student— in a single parent household, the student's parent's adjusted gross income for the taxable year that is 1 year prior to the taxable year that ends immediately prior to the beginning of the award year is equal to or less than $125,000; or with married parents, the student's parents’ adjusted gross income for the taxable year that is 1 year prior to the taxable year that ends immediately prior to the beginning of the award year is equal to or less than $250,000; and is a— single independent student, the student's adjusted gross income for the taxable year that is 1 year prior to the taxable year that ends immediately prior to the beginning of the award year is equal to or less than $125,000; or married independent student, the student's adjusted gross income for the taxable year that is 1 year prior to the taxable year that ends immediately prior to the beginning of the award year is equal to or less than $250,000; and for each award year after the first award year of the program under this subpart, if the student— is a dependent student, the student’s parents’ adjusted gross income for the taxable year that is 1 year prior to the taxable year that ends immediately prior to the beginning of the award year is equal to or less than the applicable amount; and is an independent student, the student’s adjusted gross income for the taxable year that is 1 year prior to the taxable year that ends immediately prior to the beginning of the award year is equal to or less than the applicable amount. In this paragraph, the term applicable amount means an amount equal to, for any award year beginning after the first award year of the program under this subpart, the income amount determined under this paragraph for the preceding award year adjusted in the same manner as income is adjusted under section 478(b). The term full-time equivalent eligible students means the sum of the number of eligible students projected to enroll full time at an institution for an award year, plus the full-time equivalent of the number of eligible students projected to be enrolled part time (determined on the basis of the quotient of the sum of the credit hours of all part-time eligible students divided by 12) at such institution, for such award year. Beginning with award year 2024–2025, from amounts appropriated to carry out this subpart for any fiscal year, the Secretary shall award grants to eligible institutions to enable the eligible institutions to eliminate tuition and required fees for eligible students. For each year for which an eligible institution participates in the grant program under this subpart, such eligible institution shall receive a grant in an amount equal to— in the case of an eligible institution that is a 2-year institution, the product of the number of eligible students enrolled in such institution multiplied by— for the 2024–2025 award year, $4,880; and for each subsequent award year, the amount determined under this subparagraph for the preceding award year, increased by the lesser of— a percentage equal to the estimated percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (as determined by the Secretary) since the date of such determination; or 3 percent; or in the case of an eligible institution that is a 4-year institution, the product of the number of eligible students enrolled in such institution multiplied by— for the 2024–2025 award year, $10,200; and for each subsequent award year, the amount determined under this subparagraph for the preceding award year, increased by the lesser of— a percentage equal to the estimated percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (as determined by the Secretary) since the date of such determination; or 3 percent. For the first award year for which an eligible institution applies for a grant under this subpart, such eligible institution shall not increase tuition and required fees at a rate that is greater than any annual increase in tuition and required fees at the eligible institution for the 5 years preceding such first award year. For each award year after the first award year for which an eligible institution receives a grant under this subpart, such eligible institution shall not increase tuition and required fees from the preceding award year at a rate that is greater than the percentage increase in the Employment Cost Index for the award year for which the grant is received, as compared to the Employment Cost Index for the award year preceding the award year for which the grant is received. In this subparagraph, the term Employment Cost Index , when used with respect to an award year, means the Employment Cost Index for total compensation for private industry workers by bargaining status and census region and division (not seasonally adjusted) of the division in which the eligible institution is located, as provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the Department of Labor, that is provided for the December that immediately precedes the start of the award year. The Secretary shall establish a process through which each eligible institution that participates in the program under this subpart— provides the necessary eligible student enrollment data at the start of the award year; and initially receives grant funds, as calculated under this subsection, based on such data. For each year for which an eligible institution receives a grant under this subpart, the Secretary shall, once final enrollment data for such year are available— in consultation with the eligible institution concerned, determine the actual number of full-time equivalent eligible students for the year covered by the grant; and adjust the grant amount received by the eligible institution to reflect the actual number of full-time equivalent eligible students by applying the relevant adjustment to such grant amount in the subsequent award year in accordance with subparagraph (C). If the actual full-time equivalent eligible students figure for the preceding award year reported under subparagraph (B)— exceeds the projected enrollment that was used for determining the allotment under paragraph
(1)for the preceding award year, notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the grant amount for the subsequent award year for the eligible institution shall be increased to reflect such actual enrollment, which figure shall be increased by the Gross Domestic Product Price Index of the State in which the eligible institution is located; or is below the projected enrollment that was used for determining the allotment under paragraph
(1)for the preceding award year, notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the grant amount for the subsequent award year for the eligible institution shall be decreased to reflect such actual enrollment, which figure shall be increased by the average interest rate on 5-year United States Treasury securities issued during the preceding award year. An eligible institution that desires to receive a grant under this subpart shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require. In the case of an eligible institution that is a 4-year institution that receives a grant under this subpart and enrolls students who transfer from another institution, the institution shall— commit to increasing the transferability of individual courses within certificate or associate programs offered by community colleges in the State to related baccalaureate programs offered by such institution to maximize the transferability of credits for students who transfer before completing an associate degree; and maintain a formal, statewide articulation agreement with community colleges in the State in which such institution operates that, at a minimum, ensures that associate degrees awarded by community colleges in the State are fully transferable to, and credited as the first 2 years of related baccalaureate programs at, such institution. An eligible institution that receives a grant under this subpart shall use the grant funds to— except as provided in paragraph (3), eliminate tuition and required fees for eligible students enrolled in the eligible institution during any period for which the institution receives a grant under this subpart; maintain expenditures on instruction per a full-time equivalent eligible student at levels that meet or exceed the expenditures on instruction per a full-time equivalent eligible student for award year 2023–2024; and maintain expenditures on need-based financial aid programs for students enrolled in the institution at a level that meets or exceeds the level of such support for award year 2023–2024. An eligible institution that receives a grant under this subpart may not use grant funds— for the construction of a nonacademic facility, such as a student center or stadium; for merit-based or need-based student financial aid; to pay the salaries or benefits of school administrators; for capital outlays or deferred maintenance; or for expenditures on athletics other than activities open to all members of the campus community. An eligible institution that receives a grant under this subpart and that does not have authority to set the tuition and required fees for eligible students enrolled in the eligible institution shall provide tuition assistance to eligible students enrolled in the eligible institution during any period for which the institution receives a grant under this subpart in an amount equal to the grant amount determined under subsection (a)(1). An eligible institution that receives a grant under this subpart shall provide an assurance to the Secretary that the institution will— increase, to the extent practicable, the amount of instruction provided by tenured or tenure-track faculty; and not adopt policies to reduce enrollment. Funds made available to carry out this subpart shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, other Federal, State, Tribal, local, and institutional funds that would otherwise be expended to carry out activities under this subpart. No individual shall be determined, by an eligible institution or the Secretary, to be ineligible for benefits provided under this subpart except on the basis of eligibility requirements under this subpart. There are authorized to be appropriated, and there are appropriated, to carry out this subpart— such sums as may be necessary for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024; and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2025 through 2033. .