The record

LegislationLegislation· Jun 2026
HR 7892 Passed House — in Senate

Sponsored by Burgess Owens (R)

No Aid for Ghost Students Act of 2026

Requires colleges to verify applicants' identities before disbursing federal student aid when fraud is suspected.

Tradeoff

Adds identity verification steps for FAFSA applicants flagged as fraud risks, starting October 1, 2026. Aims to prevent aid fraud but may delay aid disbursement for flagged students.

What's in it

See official bill text

Less than $500,000 in federal implementation costs over the 2026–2036 period.

The $500,000 is only the federal cost to set up and run the fraud-detection system — the bill's real impact is a requirement that colleges verify the identity of flagged applicants before releasing aid, shifting some verification burden to institutions.

H.R. 7892, No Aid for Ghost Students Act of 2026 · May 2026

The House passed this 249-172 on June 10, 2026 — now in the Senate.

  1. House

    Introduced

    (Mar 12, 2026)

  2. House

    Committee on Education and Workforce(Mar 12, 2026)

  3. House

    The Committee on Education and Workforce voted to send it to the floor

    Reported 30 - 3(Mar 17, 2026)

    Committee report H. Rept. 119-669.

  4. House

    Passage of the bill

    Passed(Roll #217 · Jun 10, 2026)

    249 yeanay 172

  5. Senate

    Received from the House

    on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions(Jun 11, 2026)

Passage votes so far· Jun 10, 2026· 119th Congress · 2025–2027