Order Code RS20646
Updated July 2, 2007
District of Columbia
Tuition Assistance Program
Bonnie Mangan
Information Research Specialist
Knowledge Services Division
Summary
The District of Columbia College Access Act of 1999 (H.R. 974), enacted on
November 12, 1999 (P.L. 106-98), created the District of Columbia (DC) Tuition
Assistance Program. The DC Tuition Assistance Program provides scholarships for
undergraduate education to DC residents ranging from $2,500 to $10,000.
Scholarships may be used to attend public higher education institutions throughout the
country, as well as some private institutions. Originally, the program was limited to
providing scholarships for attending public higher education institutions in Maryland
and Virginia, but it was expanded to include public institutions nationwide in May 2000.
On March 14, 2002, Congress passed the District of Columbia College Access
Improvement Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-157), to allow more DC residents to participate in
the program. This report will be updated as necessary.
Scholarship Awards
The District of Columbia College Access Act of 1999 (H.R. 974), enacted on
November 12, 1999 (P.L. 106-98), created the District of Columbia (DC) Tuition
Assistance Program, which provides scholarships to DC residents for their undergraduate
education. Scholarships for public institutions of higher education (IHE) in all 50 states
are used to pay the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition, up to $10,000 per
student per school year (with a cumulative cap of $50,000 per student). Prior to May
2000, when the program was expanded to include public IHE nationwide, the scholarships
were designated to pay the cost of attendance at public IHE in Maryland and Virginia.
Initially, scholarships of $2,500 per student per year (with a cumulative cap of $12,500
per student) were available for tuition at a limited number of private colleges and
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in Maryland and Virginia. Under
the District of Columbia College Access Improvement Act of 2002 (P.L. 107-157),
students attending private HBCUs nationwide may now receive the tuition grants.

---

CRS-2
In the event that the amount of funds needed to cover approved applications exceeds
the annual appropriation, scholarships will be reduced based on each applicant’s financial
need, with returning applicants receiving preference over new applicants.
Eligibility for Scholarships
Students who graduated on or after January 1, 1998, are eligible to participate in the
Tuition Assistance Program. Under P.L. 107-157, students who graduated from secondary
schools or received the equivalent of a high school diploma prior to 1998 and are
currently enrolled in an eligible institution may participate.1 In addition, individuals who
enroll in an IHE more than three years after graduating from a secondary school may
participate in the Tuition Assistance Program.
Students must meet the residency requirement of having lived in DC for 12
consecutive months prior to the start of their freshman year at college. For individuals
who graduated from secondary school prior to 1998 and never attended college, or
individuals re-enrolling after more than a three-year break in post-secondary education,
the DC residency requirement is five consecutive years.2
P.L. 107-157 closed a loophole that allowed non-U.S. citizens residing in the DC to
receive the tuition assistance benefit. Under the revised legislation, students applying for
tuition assistance must meet citizenship and immigration status requirements under
Section 484(a)(5) of the Higher Education Act of 1965.3
Each applicant must be enrolled in or accepted for enrollment, on at least a half-time
basis, in a degree program at an eligible institution. Applicants who are currently enrolled
must have maintained satisfactory progress in their chosen course of study. Scholarships
may only be used for an individual’s first undergraduate baccalaureate course of study.
Program Administration and Funding
The Mayor of the District of Columbia, in consultation with the authorizing
committees,4 is responsible for administering the DC Tuition Assistance Program,
including setting policy and procedures. The program allows expansion to public
institutions nationwide based on assessment of need for admissions elsewhere and impact
on program costs. In May 2000, the Mayor exercised his administrative authority by
expanding the program to include public institutions nationwide. P.L. 107-157 also
requires the District to establish a dedicated account for the resident tuition program. This
1 P.L. 107-157 § 2 (A) (ii). (The General Educational Development (GED) test is the most
popular form of alternative secondary completion.)
2 P.L. 107-157 § 2 (A) (iii). (The three-year period excludes time served in active military duty,
Peace Corps, or Americorps service.)
3 20 U.S.C. § 1091 (a)(5).
4 Oversight and Government Reform Committee of the House of Representatives, and Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs Committee of the Senate.

---

CRS-3
dedicated account will contain all future appropriations, any unobligated balances, and
interest earned on the balances.5
The President’s FY2008 request for DC resident tuition support is $35.1 million.
With the passage of the Revised Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2007 (P.L. 110-
5), funding remained level at the FY2006 appropriation of $32.9 million.6 Funding had
been approximately $17 million, annually, from FY2000 through FY2004 and increased
to $25.6 million in FY2005.7
For the 2005-2006 academic year, 4,700 students received grants from the tuition
assistance program. There were 3,730 grants for public schools averaging $7,585, and
970 grants for private schools averaging $2,145.8 Information about the DC Tuition
A s s i s t a n c e G r a n t P r o g r a m i s a v a i l a b l e a t i t s w e b s i t e ,
[http://www.tuitiongrant.washingtondc.gov].
crsphpgw
5 P.L. 107-157 §4; D.C. Code § 38-2705 (h)
6 CRS Report RL32313, District of Columbia: Appropriations for 2007, Eugene Boyd and David
P. Smole.
7 District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2005. P.L. 108-335.
8 Number of grants and average grant awards provided in a June 1, 2007 email from Sylvia
Bailey-Charles, Executive Office of the Mayor, DC Tuition Assistance Grant Program.

---