Higher Education Act Action Alert

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HEA ACTION ALERT
FAX YOUR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE AND SENATORS NOW
PHONE ON THURSDAY

Friends,

As you know, since its inception, SSDP has campaigned against a 1998
amendment to the Higher Education Act that denies federal financial aid to
anyone convicted of a drug-related offense, no matter how minor. This
provision is counter-productive and causes enormous harm, particularly to
minority students and middle-class and lower-income students who can't
afford the high cost of college. Department of Education data indicates
that more than 128,000 students have been adversely affected by the
provision.

H.R. 685, a bill in Congress that would repeal the provision has the support
of sixty-five Representatives, and now nine Presidential candidates have
spoken out against the provision. A national coalition has formed to fight
for repeal of the provision. Allies include the United States Student
Association and the American Council on Education.

Pressure from our broad-based coalition has already started to trouble Rep.
Mark Souder, the provision's author. Recently, Rep. Souder introduced a
proposal that he sees as a "fix" to the problems associated with the
provision. While we applaud any efforts to reduce the suffering caused by
this bad law, we know that the only true solution is its full repeal.

We need you to send this message loud and clear to Congress!

Right now - with reauthorization of the Higher Education Act on the horizon
- is the best opportunity to repeal the drug provision.

ACTIONS TO TAKE:

1) FAX YOUR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE AND SENATORS RIGHT NOW and urge them to
support all opportunities to repeal the 1998 Higher Education Act amendment
that delays or denies federal financial aid to anyone convicted of a drug
related offense.
http://actioncenter.drugpolicy.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=14997&ms=hea
ssdp

2) Follow-up your fax with phone calls to their offices this THURSDAY,
FEBRUARY 12, 2004. We'll send you a reminder email Wednesday with sample
scripts.

3) Forward this action alert to your friends and family. The more people
who fax and call, the more likely can we end the ban!

In January, in freezing, frigid New Hampshire, we kicked off a national
campaign to demand full repeal of that provision to the Higher Education Act
that denies or delays federal financial aid to anyone with a drug-related
offense. Today marks the second step in a larger campaign that will
culminate in a National Day of Action sometime in April.

For more information, log on to http://www.raiseyourvoice.com

Sincerely,

Scarlett Swerdlow
National Director
Students for Sensible Drug Policy