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Lawmakers urge restoring Pell Grant purchasing power to keep college affordable
Summary
At a members' day hearing, Rep. Seth Magaziner and others urged doubling and indexing the Pell Grant, citing that Pell currently covers less than one‑third of average public four‑year college costs and that about 6 million students received Pell in 2023–24.
Rep. Seth Magaziner told the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education that the Pell Grant program is essential to college access and competitiveness, and he asked the subcommittee to increase funding to restore the grant's purchasing power.
Magaziner said "approximately 6,000,000 students receive Pell Grants in the 2023–24 school year," and that the Pell Grant now "covers less than one‑third of the average cost of attendance at a public 4‑year university." He told the subcommittee he led 26 colleagues in calling for the Pell Grant to be doubled and indexed to inflation and said restoring purchasing power would help students cover basic needs and focus on school.
Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro also voiced support for increasing the Pell Grant, invoking its namesake, Sen. Claiborne Pell, to underscore the program's purpose of expanding educational opportunity.
Magaziner additionally asked the subcommittee to increase funding for career and technical education grants, noting that higher education grants and CTE together prepare a competitive workforce. The hearing consisted of members' statements; no appropriation decisions were made during the session.
