Congressman Pat Harrigan Votes to Stop Identity Fraud in Federal Student Aid

Contact: Lexi Kranich (814) 380-4408

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Today, Congressman Pat Harrigan (NC-10) voted in favor of H.R. 7892, the No Aid for Ghost Students Act of 2026, legislation to require the Department of Education to use an identity fraud detection system to screen every FAFSA application for signs of fraud before federal financial aid can be disbursed.

"The federal government hands out hundreds of billions in student aid every year and until now has had no reliable way to confirm that the person filling out the FAFSA actually exists," said Congressman Harrigan. "We require more identity verification to open a bank account than we do to access federal student aid. That is not an oversight, that is negligence, and real students and real taxpayers have been paying the price for it."

Beginning October 1, 2026, the legislation requires the Secretary of Education to run every FAFSA application through an identity fraud detection system before aid is disbursed. If an application raises a reasonable suspicion of fraud, the applicant and the institution are notified, and no federal aid can be released until the student's identity is confirmed through in-person or live video verification. The Secretary is also required to report to Congress on the system's implementation and effectiveness on an annual basis.

Congressman Harrigan will continue working to ensure federal student aid reaches the students it was designed to serve and not those looking to exploit a system that has gone without adequate safeguards for too long.