Summary: 2006-2007 Verification Reporting and Verification Status Code "W" Warning Message

Publication Date: May 21, 2007

Author: William Leith, Acting General Manager, Application, Operations and Delivery Services, Federal Student Aid

Summary: 2006-2007 Verification Reporting and Verification Status Code "W" Warning Message

Posted on 05-21-2007

The verification of student aid application information regulations are in 34 CFR Part 668 Subpart E (34 CFR 668.51-668.61). In accordance with these regulations, schools are required to complete verification of the information submitted by an applicant for student financial assistance in connection with the calculation of the applicant's expected family contribution (EFC) for the Federal Pell Grant, ACG, National SMART Grant, campus-based, Federal Stafford Loan, and Federal Direct Stafford/Ford Loan programs.

Additionally, for the Federal Pell Grant (Pell Grant) Program, schools are expected to report a verification status code to the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System that reflects the appropriate verification status for each student selected for verification for whom a disbursement has been made.

The Verification Status Codes for the 2006-2007 Award Year are as follows:

• "V" (The school has completed verification.)

• "S" or "Blank" (The school has not completed verification because it was not required to do so in accordance with exclusions from verification provided for in 34 CFR 668.54(b).)

• "W" (The school has made an interim disbursement as provided for in 34 CFR 668.58 to a student selected for verification.)

2006-2007 Verification Status Code "W" Warning Message Processed on May 18, 2007

Schools that have made an interim Pell Grant disbursement to a student selected for verification should be concluding verification activities and changing a student's verification status code from "W" to "V", "S", or "Blank", as appropriate. On May 18, 2007, we began processing a message to schools that have one or more student records still reported with a verification status code of "W". The message is a warning that these disbursements will be considered overawards and reduced to a zero dollar amount ($0.00), even if the disbursements were previously accepted in the COD System. The reduction of the affected disbursements is scheduled to occur on June 7, 2007.

We sent the May 18, 2007 warning message to schools' Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) mailboxes in the message class PGTX07OP. Additionally, we sent a file of student records reported to the COD System with a verification status code of "W" in the Reconciliation Records message class PGRC07OP. Schools that receive the warning message should review the accompanying Reconciliation Records file and report appropriate changes to the verification status codes for affected students before June 7, 2007.

Note: Some of the student records included in the Reconciliation Records file may be for students who are still within the allowable timeframe for submitting verification documentation/completing the verification process as specified in the "Notice of Deadline Dates for Receipt of Applications, Reports, and Other Records for the 2006-2007 Award Year" published in the Federal Register on May 4, 2007 (72 FR 25276). After we reduce the affected disbursements on June 7, 2007, a school may inform us of the total amount of such disbursements, and we will increase the school's Current Funding Level (CFL) accordingly. We will provide instructions for this notification process when we communicate about the June 7, 2007 reduction in the "COD Processing Update" and via a message posted on the COD Web site.

Contact Information

If you have questions about the warning message or about reporting verification status codes to the COD System, contact the COD School Relations Center at 800/4PGRANT (800/474-7268) for ACG, National SMART Grant, and Pell Grant. You may also e-mail CODSupport@acs-inc.com.