SCOOP: Republicans Want to Eliminate Protections for Trafficking Survivors to Benefit Cubans and Predatory Colleges
While extending aid to Cuban immigrants, Senate Republicans’ bill cuts Pell eligibility and loan access for low-income migrants and trafficking survivors, deepening inequality.
WASHINGTON — The Republican-controlled Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s contribution to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (June 10) reshapes higher education through budget reconciliation, refining the House’s proposal to align with Senate rules and priorities. While offering opportunities for some, the bill risks disenfranchising vulnerable groups, particularly human trafficking survivors, whose access to critical financial aid is jeopardized. Migrant Insider breaks down the provisions, winners, losers, and the specific impact on trafficking survivors.
What the Senate HELP Proposal Says
The Senate HELP Committee’s proposal, part of the broader One Big Beautiful Bill Act, reforms federal financial aid, student loans, and institutional accountability. Key provisions include:
Student Eligibility (Sec. 80001): Extends financial aid to certain Cuban immigrants alongside citizens, nationals, and legal permanent residents.
Pell Grant Restrictions (Sec. 83001): Excludes students with a Student Aid Index (SAI) twice the maximum Pell Grant ($14,790) and incorporates foreign income into calculations.
Workforce Pell (Sec. 83002): Funds short-term (150–599 hours, 8–15 weeks) workforce programs with 70% completion and job placement rates.
Loan Limits (Sec. 81001): Caps lifetime borrowing at $257,500, with reduced amounts for part-time students, and limits parent loans to $20,000 annually ($65,000 total per dependent).
Repayment Assistance Plan (Sec. 82001): Replaces income-contingent repayment with a plan featuring $10 minimum payments and $50 deductions per dependent child, with a 30-year repayment timeline.
Regulatory Rollbacks (Sec. 85001–85002): Reverts to Trump-era borrower defense and closed school discharge rules, weakening protections against predatory colleges.
Program Accountability (Sec. 84001): Bars federal loans for “low-earning” programs where graduates’ median earnings fall below high school-educated adults (ages 25–34) for two of three years.
Who Benefits?
Cuban Immigrants: Certain Cuban immigrants gain access to Pell Grants and federal loans, enabling pursuit of higher education or workforce training—a critical step for integration.
Low-Income Families with Dependents: The Repayment Assistance Plan’s $50 monthly deduction per child and $10 minimum payment ease loan burdens for migrant families.
Students in High-Demand Fields: Workforce Pell Grants support short-term, high-skill programs, benefiting migrants seeking quick entry into stable careers like IT or healthcare.
Who Loses Out?
Low-Income Students with Assets: Students with SAIs ≥ $14,790 lose Pell eligibility, disproportionately affecting migrant families with illiquid assets like small businesses or homes.
Part-Time and Non-Traditional Students: Reduced loan access for part-time enrollment and eliminated deferments for unemployment (post-July 2026) hit migrants juggling work and study.
Students in Low-Earning Fields: Programs like teaching or social work, popular among community-focused migrants, risk losing loan eligibility due to low median earnings.
For-Profit College Enrollees: Weakened borrower protections expose low-income and migrant students to predatory institutions, risking debt for worthless degrees.
Impact on Human Trafficking Survivors
The proposal’s tightened eligibility and regulatory rollbacks severely threaten survivors of sex and labor trafficking, who rely on financial aid under the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act (TVPA) to rebuild their lives after cooperating with law enforcement—a dangerous act risking trafficker retaliation. Pell Grant restrictions based on SAI or foreign income could exclude survivors with minimal assets, while loan caps and limited deferments hinder those with unstable finances. Reverted borrower defense rules leave survivors vulnerable to predatory colleges, which often target them. These cuts may deter cooperation with authorities, weakening anti-trafficking efforts and increasing survivors’ risk of re-exploitation by trapping them in low-wage jobs.