Discretionary Spending
Function 500 - Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services
Tighten Eligibility for Pell Grants
CBO periodically issues a compendium of policy options (called Options for Reducing the Deficit) covering a broad range of issues, as well as separate reports that include options for changing federal tax and spending policies in particular areas. This option appears in one of those publications. The options are derived from many sources and reflect a range of possibilities. For each option, CBO presents an estimate of its effects on the budget but makes no recommendations. Inclusion or exclusion of any particular option does not imply an endorsement or rejection by CBO.
Billions of dollars | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 | 2031 | 2032 | 2033 | 2034 | 2025– | 2025– | |
Change in discretionary spending | |||||||||||||
Budget authority | 0 | -2.5 | -2.5 | -2.6 | -2.7 | -2.7 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -10.3 | -24.2 | |
Outlays | 0 | -0.6 | -2.5 | -2.6 | -2.6 | -2.7 | -2.7 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -2.8 | -8.3 | -22.1 | |
Change in mandatory outlays | 0 | -0.3 | -1.0 | -1.1 | -1.1 | -1.1 | -1.1 | -1.1 | -1.2 | -1.2 | -3.5 | -9.2 | |
This option would take effect in July 2026.
The Federal Pell Grant Program is the largest source of federal grant aid to students with low income for undergraduate education. Eligibility for Pell grants is chiefly determined by a person's student aid index—an amount that measures their family's ability to contribute toward the cost of their postsecondary education. The student aid index is calculated using a formula established under federal law and using information that the student provides on their student aid application. The amount of a student's grant is determined on the basis of the student's financial need and enrollment status (such as whether they attend school full-time or part-time). Funding for the Pell grant program has both discretionary and mandatory components.
This option would restrict eligibility to students eligible for the maximum award.