S. 3368: ASPIRE Act

114th Congress · introduced 2016-09-21 · Education · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2016-09-21 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

ASPIRE Act

Plain summary

Access, Success, and Persistence in Reshaping Education Act of 2016 or the ASPIRE Act This bill amends the Higher Education Act of 1965 by requiring the Department of Education (ED) to rank institutions of higher education based on the percentage of first-time, full-time students who receive Pell Grants and are enrolled at the institutions. The institutions in the bottom 5% must improve the enrollment of those students by specific deadlines or pay a fee-per-student penalty. Additionally, ED must rank institutions of higher education based on the percentage of first-time, full-time students who enroll at the school and graduate within 6 years. The bill gives institutions in the bottom 5% the option of receiving funding to improve student graduation rates. Those institutions must improve those rates by specific deadlines or pay a penalty. The bill establishes consumer warning requirements for institutions with low enrollment or graduation rates. ED must establish: (1) grant programs for improving graduation rates, and (2) a bonus program for providing nonfinancial rewards to institutions of higher education that make college more affordable and increase college access and success for low-income or working class students and moderate-income students. ED must collect the penalty fees and use them to fund the grant and award program.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

ASPIRE Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] · 1 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] reported raising $5.0 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (1)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114s3368.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/s>

Record fed-us-cong114-s3368 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114