Pubdate: Fri, 03 Nov 2006 Source: Hoya, The (DC Edu) Copyright: 2006 The Hoya Contact: http://www.thehoya.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1821 Author: Ji-Hye Park Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) JUDGE UPHOLDS AID RESTRICTIONS A federal court ruled last Friday that legislation prohibiting students with drug-related offenses from receiving federal financial aid is constitutional. Students for Sensible Drug Policy Foundation, a network of student organizations that works on drug policy issues, filed the lawsuit in conjunction with the American Civil Liberties Union in March. The groups argued that the law targets specific students by denying federal aid to drug offenders and limits access to education for many low-income students. "The United States Department of Education refuses to disburse financial aid, including loans, grants and work-study opportunities, to these students pursuant to a little-known law with very serious consequences," the SSDPF said in their complaint. The law, part of the 1998 reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, aimed to reduce drug abuse among students, and prevents drug offenders from receiving federal financial aid for eight years after their conviction. Under the law, universities that receive federal funding must take away aid eligibility from students convicted of a first drug possession offense for one year. A student convicted of a second offense loses financial aid for two years, and loses all aid after a third offense. Tom Angell, campaign manager for SSDPF, said that the law produces ineffective results by forcing students to drop out of school because they cannot pay for tuition without federal aid. "This law is supposedly intended to reduce drug abuse, but it actually causes more drug abuse by kicking students out of school," Angell said. "It does the exact opposite of what it intends to do." But Judge Charles Kormann of the U.S. District Court in South Dakota dismissed the claim against the constitutionality of the law and said that Congress has a constitutional right to enact such measure. He argued that the law does reduce drug abuses in colleges and that the denial of federal aid is a civil, not criminal, sanction. Angell said that the SSDPF will continue to fight the law. Congress amended the drug policy this year in response to large opposition from student groups. In contrast to the old law that denies federal aids to students with drug charges convicted at any time, the amended law says that only those students convicted while receiving federal aid will lose eligibility. Universities have had a difficult time implementing the drug policy provision. Scott Fleming (SFS '72), vice president for federal relations, said that Georgetown has been concerned with the law since it passed in 1998. In addition to raising questions about the fairness in denying aids to students convicted only of drug abuse and not other criminal offenses, Fleming said that the 1998 law is difficult to implement, but that the new provision is much more manageable for university administrators. "Since many drug laws are state [or] local laws, it would be difficult, if not impossible, for a student aid administrator to know definitely if an individual otherwise eligible for aid had no applicable drug convictions," Fleming said. Georgetown students have also been involved in calling for the repealing of the law. Fleming said that GUSA adopted a resolution to support changes in the provision in 2001. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek