West Virginia Declares State of Emergency Amid FAFSA Rollout Challenges

West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice declared a state of emergency last week over ongoing complications with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, temporarily suspending a requirement for high school students to complete the form in order to qualify for the state’s biggest college financial aid programs. The move comes as the U.S. Department of Education has faced a tumultuous rollout to update the FAFSA. Because of the difficulties with the new form, West Virginia’s high school FAFSA completion rate is down almost 40%, according to a statement from the governor’s office. Several other states require high school students to complete the FAFSA in order to graduate. Among them is Illinois, where legislators are considering a bill to lift the requirement for the 2023-24 school year.