{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://lee.house.gov/news/press-releases/congresswoman-barbara-lee-supports-legislation-to-restore-federal-financial-aid-for-students-convicted-of-drug-offenses", "CONGRESSWOMAN BARBARA LEE SUPPORTS LEGISLATION TO RESTORE FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID FOR STUDENTS CONVICTED OF DRUG OFFENSES", "2001-02-27", "2001", "2001-02", "Democrat", "House", "CA", "Barbara Lee", "L000551", "lee.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "02.27.01\n\t\t\t CONGRESSWOMAN BARBARA LEE SUPPORTS LEGISLATION TO RESTORE FEDERAL FINANCIAL AID FOR STUDENTS CONVICTED OF DRUG OFFENSES \n\t\t\tWashington, DC - Congresswoman\r\nBarbara Lee today voiced her support for legislation to repeal a\r\nprovision in the 1998 Higher\r\nEducation Act (HEA) that prohibits students convicted of any state or\r\nfederal drug-related offense from receiving federal financial\r\naid for college.  According to Department of Education Statistics, 8,162 students were denied federal financial aid during the 2000-2001 school\r\nyear because of the HEA provision on drug convictions. \"This unfair law is overwhelmingly targeted at preventing low- and\r\nmiddle-income students from attending college because they\r\nare denied access to Pell Grants, student loans, and other much-needed\r\nforms of assistance,\" said Lee. \"Wealthy students can\r\nafford to pay for college on their own, without the help of federal\r\nfinancial aid. It is the low-income families that depend on these\r\nfederal funds for higher education.\"  According to the Department of Justice, in 1997, the most recent\r\nyear for which data is available, over 66,000 juveniles age 17\r\nand younger were adjudicated on drug-related cases. Drug related cases\r\nare the only convictions that prevent students from\r\nreceiving financial aid. No such automatic ban on federal financial aid\r\nexists for any other crime, including murder, rape, or other\r\nviolent crimes.  \"Education is the most critical weapon we have in the fight against poverty and crime,\" said Lee. \"We cannot allow youthful  \r\n   indiscretions to hold back individuals who want to better themselves by attending college. Under the HEA, low- and  \r\nmiddle-income children who cannot afford to pay for college, are\r\nfurther disenfranchised by a limitation of options for education,\r\nand are therefore less likely to make a positive contribution to their\r\ncommunity.\"  The legislation was introduced by Representative Barney Frank\r\n(D-MA) in the 106th Congress and has garnered support from\r\nmore than 70 university student government associations, including the\r\nUniversity of California Berkeley, and national education,\r\nstudent, drug policy reform, religious, women's and civil rights\r\ngroups. \r\n###\r\n\t\n\t  \n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n \n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tNext Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://lee.house.gov/news/press-releases/congresswoman-barbara-lee-supports-legislation-to-restore-federal-financial-aid-for-students-convicted-of-drug-offenses"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8340948261320591, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}