# H.R. 7892 (119th): No Aid for Ghost Students Act of 2026

No Aid for Ghost Students Act of 2026 This bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to establish an identity fraud detection system for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Beginning on October 1, 2026, ED must use an identity fraud detection system to review each submitted application to determine whether the applicant presents a reasonable suspicion of identity fraud. If ED makes such a determination, it must notify the applicant and each institution of higher education (IHE) designated on the application that the applicant is subject to additional identity verification. An IHE may not disburse federal financial aid to an applicant that presents a reasonable suspicion of fraud unless the IHE verifies the applicant's identity in person or by live video. If the applicant's identity is confirmed, the IHE must notify ED that the applicant's identity has been verified. ED must establish guidelines for the identity verification procedures conducted by IHEs. (On April 26, 2026, ED began implementing a real-time identity fraud detection process within the FAFSA form that places applicants into one of four risk categories. High-risk applicants must confirm their identity by presenting documentation during the online application process, including via a live camera process. Applicants who are rejected via this automated process must then have their identity verified in person by IHEs.)

## How this bill is scored

Tier: no Tier 1 record. A bill with no record cannot newly become Tier 1.
Lane: appropriations. Category: corruption_stewardship. Lane tag: general equity.
Lane: education. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: federal_funding. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: fraud_prevention. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: identity_fraud. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: program_integrity. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Lane: student_aid. Category: not stored. Lane tag: not stored.
Tier 1 sign-off: no record. A bill with no record cannot newly become Tier 1.
Stored polarity: mixed. Only tags the rules mark scoreable on a mixed bill are scored. A yea can draw a penalty or a credit according to the tag. A nay on a tag scored as good can draw a penalty.
Roll 217: On Passage. Vote type: final_passage.
Polarity rationale: Reviewed enrichment (llm_import) polarity: The bill's core aim, preventing identity fraud against federal student aid, is a prudential good tied to honest stewardship. It does not directly advance moral harm. Its concerns are real but secondary: automated risk-category profiling, live camera verification, and in-person checks may burden lawful applicants and raise questions of proportionality and privacy. Because the title and summary give enough to make a prudent high-level judgment, the classification is mixed rather than unclear. The existing 'mixed' polarity is consistent with this, though the existing 'appropriations' tag is not a good fit because this is an administrative program-integrity measure, not an ordinary appropriations bill.
Theological note: Scripture affirms honest stewardship and the just use of public resources, and it condemns fraud and deceit in dealings (Proverbs 11:1; Leviticus 19:11). Protecting public funds from theft is a legitimate concern under general equity. Issues of relevance include the burden placed on ordinary applicants, the proportionality of automated suspicion, and whether intrusive live-camera or in-person verification is limited to what fraud prevention requires.

## Recorded votes

Roll 217: On Passage. Yea 249 · Nay 172 · Other 10.

HTML: https://justmeasure.org/bill/hr-7892-119/