WASHINGTON – Today on the floor, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) blasted the Biden administration for their bungled roll-out of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) process, which was delayed for months, has hindered high school seniors’ ability to plan for and afford college, and has resulted in a more than 40 percent drop in the number of submissions from Texas high schoolers. Excerpts of Sen. Cornyn’s remarks are below, and video can be found here.  

“Despite today being College Decision Day, many Texas students and other students across the country are still waiting for their financial aid packages. They should have had this information weeks ago, even months ago.”

“The fault doesn’t lie with the students or the colleges, but rather the administration, which completely bungled the FAFSA process this year.”

“The FAFSA is typically available on October 1. This cycle, it wasn’t available until the end of December – nearly three months behind schedule. But once it went live, the problems had just begun. Applicants reported website crashes, system errors, and lengthy processing times.”

“The Biden Education Department says that FAFSA submissions by Texas students alone are down by more than 40 percent – 40 percent – over last year. This is a scandal.”

“Costs can vary significantly from one school to another so, without a financial aid offer, it’s impossible to understand how to put the puzzle together to figure out whether it’s even feasible for you to attend a particular university.”

“The ripple effects of the FAFSA fiasco are felt not only by students but by colleges and universities across the nation. Last month, I met with a number of leaders from Texas colleges and universities… they are absolutely outraged by the Biden administration’s mishandling of the FAFSA.”

“Unfortunately, it appears the Biden administration has been so busy looking for ways to forgive or erase existing student debt that they failed to help future and current college students.”

“Texas students, and students across the country, and the American people at large deserve a full explanation about how we ended up at this mess, and we will keep fighting for answers and accountability until we get those answers.”