Publication Date: February 27, 2007 Author: G. Kay Jacks, General Manager, Application, Operations and Delivery Services, Federal Student Aid Summary: Updated--Continuing Resolution's Impact on the 2007-2008 Award Year Posted on 02-27-2007 In an Electronic Announcement posted on December 29, 2006, we informed schools that the Department of Education's (the Department's) Fiscal Year 2007 (FY 07) appropriations had not been approved by Congress and that we were operating under a Continuing Resolution through February 15, 2007. We explained that we did not have actual minimum and maximum Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) amounts for the 2007-2008 Award Year and would use the 2006-2007 amounts for system development and implementation purposes until the FY 07 appropriations were approved. In addition, we explained that the 2007-2008 Tentative Awards for the Campus-Based programs would be based on the 2006-2007 funding levels. On February 15, 2007, the President signed the Revised Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2007, (P.L. 110-5). This legislation affects our Title IV programs as follows:
We have begun the work needed to modify our systems, Web and software products, technical documents, training materials, and publications to reflect the minimum and maximum Pell Grant amounts for the 2007-2008 Award Year. In addition, we have e-mailed the Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules to software developers with whom we work regularly so that they can begin making the necessary modifications to their systems and software products. At this time, we want to provide schools with high-level information about the impact on the Central Processing System (CPS) and the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System and our anticipated implementation dates related to these systems. Impact on the CPS After we implement the changes in the CPS, we will need to reprocess 2007-2008 CPS records for students who applied before March 15, 2007 and who, under earlier formulas were not designated as being "Pell Grant Eligible," but who are now eligible for a 2007-2008 Pell Grant. New 2007-2008 Student Aid Reports (SARs) and Institutional Student Information Records (ISIRs) will be generated for students impacted by this reprocessing. We are currently evaluating options for this reprocessing activity and will communicate the details through a forthcoming Electronic Announcement on the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) Web site. Note for EDExpress Users For packaging purposes, schools can use the Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules in Dear Colleague Letter P-07-01 to determine a student's Pell Grant award for the 2007-2008 Award Year. However, to report a Pell Grant to the COD System, the record must include the CPS transaction number for a transaction that has been designated as "Pell Grant Eligible." Note for ISIR Analysis Tool Users Impact on the COD System We plan to update the COD System with the Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules during the period May 11-12, 2007. We will communicate the details of this COD System update through a forthcoming Electronic Announcement on the IFAP Web site. Contact Information If you have any questions regarding the reprocessing of applicable CPS records, the updated EDExpress software release, or the ISIR Analysis Tool update, contact CPS/SAIG Technical Support at 800/330-5947 (TDD/TTY 800/511-5806) or by e-mail at CPSSAIG@ed.gov. If you have questions regarding the implementation of the Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules in the COD System, contact the COD School Relations Center at 800/4PGRANT (800/474-7268) for ACG, National SMART Grant, and Pell Grant or by e-mail at CODSupport@acs-inc.com. If you have questions regarding Campus-Based Final Awards for the 2007-2008 Award Year, contact the Campus-Based Call Center at 877/801-7168 or by e-mail at CBFOB@ed.gov. |