Wall Street Journal - Lawmakers Try to Simplify Student Aid

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By Melissa Korn

U.S. Sens. Lamar Alexander (R., Tenn.) and Michael Bennet (D., Colo.) introduced legislation Wednesday proposing a dramatic slim-down of the form to a simple "postcard" with two questions: "What is your family size?" and "What was your household income two years ago?"

"At a time when the demands of the global economy require us to have more college access, not less, it's a shame that this bureaucratic piling up of questions is making it harder and harder for people to go to college," Sen. Bennet said.

Students received more than $164 billion in federal grants, loans, work-study and tax benefits for college in the 2013-14 academic year.

"I'm sure many of these questions are well intended, but we have learned that they are not necessary. And if they are not necessary, we shouldn't be asking them," Sen. Bennet added, calling the Fafsa a "bureaucratic nightmare."

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