Congress mandates college for people with drug convictions

BREAKING NEWS!!!!!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: **April 1, 2006** CONTACT: Tom Angell, SSDP – 202.293.4414 or tom@ssdp.org

Congress Forces People with Drug Convictions to Attend College

Law that Stripped Aid from 200,000 Students Reversed

WASHINGTON, DC - In a stunning reversal of federal policy, Congress passed a law yesterday that not only repeals the Higher Education Act Aid Elimination Penalty that has denied financial aid to nearly 200,000 students with drug convictions, but actually mandates that people with drug convictions attend college and that the federal government foot the bill.

Frightened by overwhelming public support for a recent lawsuit filed by Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) challenging the constitutionality of the original penalty, members of Congress scurried to quickly pass a law that would win them favor with their constituents in this election year.

“After eight years of hard work and lobbying by students all across the country, we are thrilled that members of Congress have finally realized that people with drug convictions deserve the right to an education just like anyone else,” said Kris Krane, executive director of SSDP. “However, we are surprised and simply overjoyed that Congress felt it important enough to ensure that all students with drug convictions be given a second chance at an education. SSDP would like to thank Rep. Mark Souder for championing this new law. Sometimes politics truly makes for strange bedfellows.”

Rep. Souder (R-IN), the author of the original HEA Aid Elimination Penalty, had a sudden change of heart after a series of articles written by so-called “whiny campus reporters” led to his staff being flooded by calls from constituents demanding he change the law or be voted out of office. “It is clear to me now that college students deserve to be treated with dignity and respect,” Souder said in a written statement about the new policy. “This new law will help me atone for ruining so many students futures over the last eight years.”

For more information on the new law, have a HAPPY APRIL FOOLS DAY!!! If you would like to find out more about the real campaign to repeal the HEA Aid Elimination Penalty, please visit http://www.ssdp.org/lawsuit

Students for Sensible Drug Policy, a national organization with college and high school chapters, is committed to providing education on harms caused by the War on Drugs, working to involve youth in the political process, and promoting an open, honest, and rational discussion of alternative solutions to our nation's drug problems.

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