The top Republicans on the House and Senate education panels are accusing the Department of Education of hindering a government investigation into the botched rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) forms.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, say the department is “illegally obstructing” the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) probe into the matter, demanding it “immediately comply” with the agency’s record requests.
“GAO is investigating the FAFSA rollout at our request, and by stonewalling, the Department is interfering with our ability to carry out our constitutionally-mandated oversight responsibilities,” the lawmakers said in a letter to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.
The lawmakers say the department has not turned over documents that were requested by the GAO, stymieing efforts to complete the probe this summer.
The Republicans called for an investigation after the FAFSA rollout had numerous delays, ranging from technical problems with the site to issues with how the Education Department was calculating student aid. The problems have caused lower than average completion of the applications, with invested parties scrambling to get the numbers back on track before the new school year starts.
“The Department’s ongoing failure to comply with GAO’s requests is unacceptable. GAO is a part of the Legislative Branch, and by preventing GAO from doing its job, the Department is interfering with our efforts to address concerns with FAFSA and pursue transparency and accountability on behalf of the American people,” the letter read.
Foxx and Cassidy are demanding Cardona turn over the requested information to the GAO, as well as to them, by Friday.
A spokesperson for the Department of Education said officials have “received the letter.”
“The Department remains committed to continuing to respond to GAO’s extensive requests as quickly as possible while also remaining focused on the ongoing work for this critical program,” the spokesperson said.
—Updated at 12:35 p.m. ET