August 19th, 2025
The U.S. Department of Education rescinded Biden-era guidance that allowed Federal Work Study (FWS) programs to pay students to engage in certain partisan and nonpartisan political activities. In guidance issued today, the Department clarified that institutions should focus FWS funds on jobs that provide real-world work experience instead of political activities. The Department’s action follows a letter from sixteen Republican attorneys general that outlined how the Biden-era guidance violated federal law. In addition, the Department’s new guidance makes clear that the Higher Education Act (HEA) does not require institutions to distribute voter registration forms to students known to be ineligible to vote.
“Federal Work Study is meant to provide students opportunities to gain real-world experience that prepares them to succeed in the workforce, not as a way to fund political activism on our college and university campuses,” said Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent. “Under President Trump and Secretary McMahon’s leadership, the American taxpayer will no longer fund poll workers, voter hotlines, or political rallies on campus. We will also not require institutions to solicit students to register to vote if they know they are ineligible.”
Under the HEA, institutions are required to make a “good faith” effort to distribute voter registration forms to students. To give institutions ample flexibility to ensure that they are not aiding and abetting voter fraud, the Department has clarified that it does not interpret this “good faith” provision in the HEA to mean that institutions are required to distribute voter registration information to students who the institution has reason to believe are ineligible to vote in federal or state elections, such as foreign students. In addition, the Department requests institutions notify students that:
Only citizens of the United States may vote in federal elections;
Voting more than once, including voting in two or more states, is prohibited under federal law;
Knowingly or willfully providing false information, including relating to name, address, or period of residence, in the voting district for the purpose of establishing eligibility to register or vote is prohibited under federal law; and
In most states, individuals may only register to vote where they are domiciled, and they may not be domiciled in more than one place.
The Department drafted this DCL in response to the President’s Executive Order 14248 titled, Protecting the Integrity of American Elections.
Background:
Section 487(a)(23) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, requires certain institutions of higher education to “make good faith effort to distribute a mail voter registration form... to each student enrolled in a degree or certificate program and physically in attendance at the institution, and to make such forms widely available to students at the institution.”
The FWS program provides part-time jobs to students with financial need. The Department’s regulations under 34 C.F.R. § 675.22(b)(5) prohibit FWS funds from being used, among other things, to employ students whose work “involves any partisan or nonpartisan political activity.” Jobs involving voter registration, voter assistance at a polling place or through a voter hotline, or serving as a poll worker—whether this takes place on or off campus—involve political activity because these activities support the process of voting, which is a quintessential political activity whereby voters formally support partisan or nonpartisan political candidates by casting ballots. back...
“Federal Work Study is meant to provide students opportunities to gain real-world experience that prepares them to succeed in the workforce, not as a way to fund political activism on our college and university campuses,” said Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent. “Under President Trump and Secretary McMahon’s leadership, the American taxpayer will no longer fund poll workers, voter hotlines, or political rallies on campus. We will also not require institutions to solicit students to register to vote if they know they are ineligible.”
Under the HEA, institutions are required to make a “good faith” effort to distribute voter registration forms to students. To give institutions ample flexibility to ensure that they are not aiding and abetting voter fraud, the Department has clarified that it does not interpret this “good faith” provision in the HEA to mean that institutions are required to distribute voter registration information to students who the institution has reason to believe are ineligible to vote in federal or state elections, such as foreign students. In addition, the Department requests institutions notify students that:
Only citizens of the United States may vote in federal elections;
Voting more than once, including voting in two or more states, is prohibited under federal law;
Knowingly or willfully providing false information, including relating to name, address, or period of residence, in the voting district for the purpose of establishing eligibility to register or vote is prohibited under federal law; and
In most states, individuals may only register to vote where they are domiciled, and they may not be domiciled in more than one place.
The Department drafted this DCL in response to the President’s Executive Order 14248 titled, Protecting the Integrity of American Elections.
Background:
Section 487(a)(23) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, requires certain institutions of higher education to “make good faith effort to distribute a mail voter registration form... to each student enrolled in a degree or certificate program and physically in attendance at the institution, and to make such forms widely available to students at the institution.”
The FWS program provides part-time jobs to students with financial need. The Department’s regulations under 34 C.F.R. § 675.22(b)(5) prohibit FWS funds from being used, among other things, to employ students whose work “involves any partisan or nonpartisan political activity.” Jobs involving voter registration, voter assistance at a polling place or through a voter hotline, or serving as a poll worker—whether this takes place on or off campus—involve political activity because these activities support the process of voting, which is a quintessential political activity whereby voters formally support partisan or nonpartisan political candidates by casting ballots. back...
