Federal Updates
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBA), signed into law on July 4, 2025, made significant changes to federal financial aid. Beginning primarily with the 2026-27 academic year, California Community College students may see changes to Pell Grant eligibility, federal student loans, short-term workforce training, and other aspects of financial aid administration.
NOTE: Many of these provisions required additional federal regulations before they can be fully implemented.
This webpage highlights the changes most relevant to the California Community College and provides resources for students and campus professionals. For the most up-to-date information from the Department of Education, please visit Federal StudentAid's OBBA Updates.
What Changed?
The federal changes span multiple Title IV programs, with some provisions taking effect immediately, while others beginning July 1, 2026 or later.
| Change/New | Effective Date | Impact |
| Workforce Pell | July 1st, 2026 | New Pell eligibility for qualifying short-term workforce programs. |
| Pell Grant Eligibility | 2026-27 Academic Year | New SAI limitation and changes |
| "Full-Ride" Pell Limitation | July 1st, 2026 | Pell may be unavailable when qualifying nonfederal aid meets/exceeds COA |
| Federal Student Loan Changes | July 1st, 2026 | New loan limits, aggregate limits (for PLUS borrowing) and enrollment based restrictions |
| Program/Institution Accountability | 2026-27 Academic Year and Beyond | New federal accountability requirements affecting loan eligibility and workforce programs |
Beginning July 1, 2026, Pell Grant eligibility expanded to certain short-term workforce programs that previously were generally too short to qualify for federal Pell.
Workforce Pell is designed to expand financial aid opportunities for students pursuing short-term programs that lead to employment or an industry-recognized credential.
California Community Colleges are currently awaiting the final approval process. All California Community Colleges are on hold until the official state approval process is finalized, which is expected October 1, 2026. This process will be handled by the California Student Aid Commission (CSAC).
In the meantime, College of the Desert is identifying programs that may be eligible for Workforce Pell and reviewing them against the federal and state eligibility requirements. This preparation will help COD be ready to move forward once the official approval process is finalized.
Important: Not every short-term program will qualify for Workforce Pell. Programs must meet specific federal and California requirements and receive the appropriate approvals.
For up-to-date information about Workforce Pell, visit CSAC Workforce webpage.
Beginning with the 2026-27 academic year, a student is not eligible for Pell Grant if their Student Aid Index (SAI) is equal to or greater than twice the maximum Pell Grant award for the academic year.
For the 2026-27 Academic Year, the maximum Pell Grant is $7,395. Any SAI over the threshold of $14,790 (twice the max) will be ineligible for Pell Grant.
One of the more important changes for ALL financial aid is the new limitation involving nonfederal grant and scholarship assistance.
Beginning July 1, 2026, a student is not eligible for Pell during a payment period in which qualifying nonfederal grant or scholarship assistance equals or exceeds the student's Cost of Attendance.
This can include:
- State Grants/Scholarships
- Institutional Grants/Scholarships
- Private Scholarships
- Other qualifying nonfederal grant assistance
New federal student loan rules beginning in 2026-27 may affect how much some student can borrow.
Enrollment Proration
Students who are enrolled less than full-time will have their annual federal direct loan limits reduced based on their enrollment level.
This means students attending less than full-time may not be eligible to borrow the full annual loan amount available to a full-time student.
New Lifetime and Aggregate Loan Limits
OBBA established new federal borrowing limits. These changes are particularly important for students who plan to continue their education beyond a bachelor's degree into graduate or professional programs.
Students attending a California Community College should be aware that their federal borrowing history may affect their eligibility for loans later in their educational career.
Before borrowing:
- Review how much you have already borrowed in federal student loans.
- Consider how much you actually need to borrow.
- If you plan to transfer or attend graduate or professional school, understand how borrowing now may affect your future loan eligibility.
Program Length Requirement:
New federal requirements will also affect federal student loan eligibility based on the length of an academic program.
For California Community Colleges, which generally offer two-year associate degree programs, Colleges are preparing for changing related to this requirement.
College of the Desert is currently reviewing how this requirement will be implemented for the upcoming academic year(s). Additional information will be shared with students as decisions are finalized and implementation details become available.
Program and Institutional Accountability
The OBBA introduces new accountability requirement that look at the outcomes of students completing eligible educational programs.
These requirements are important because the results are not only about an individual program, they can also have broader consequences for the institution's participation in federal financial aid programs.
Measuring Student Outcomes
The U.S Department of Education will use Information such as student earnings and program outcomes to evaluate whether programs meet federal accountability requirements.
Colleges will need to collect and report accurate information about their programs and students to support these measures.
Why Does this Matter?
If a program does not meet the applicable federal earnings requirements, that program may become ineligible for new federal student loans.
In addition, if a significant portion of an institution's students or Title IV funding is associated with programs that fail the applicable earnings measure, the consequence can extend beyond individual programs and may affect the institution's Federal Pell Grant eligibility.
In other words, program-level outcomes can have institution-level implications for Title IV eligibility.
What is College of the Desert doing?
College of the Desert is reviewing the new federal accountability requirements and evaluating the data and processes needed to monitor program outcomes.
The College will continue working to ensure that accurate program and student information is available for required federal reporting and compliance.
What does this mean for students?
Students do not need to take any additional action at this time. Continue completing your FAFSA or CADAA application and meeting your financial aid requirements.
If federal requirements result in changes that could affect students' financial aid eligibility, College of the Desert will provide additional information as decisions and implementation details are finalized.
