I will work to expand access to Pell grants so more children can afford a college education
Work to expand access to Pell grants so more children can afford a college education.
Occurrences
Evidence
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Last Action Date Listed: April 30, 2026. Action: Mr. Menefee introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce. Full Title: To increase the total maximum Federal Pell Grant and extend flexibility for eligibility.
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Roll Call 251 on H.R. 133 was held Dec. 21, 2020. The vote question was concurring in the Senate amendment with amendment except divisions B, C, E, and F; status: passed; yeas 359, nays 53. The roll call lists Veasey, Democratic, TX, as voting Yea.
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GAO reported that Pell Grant eligibility increased for school year 2024-25 after FAFSA simplification and updated eligibility criteria. GAO found about 570,000 more students eligible for Pell Grants and about 1.9 million more eligible for the maximum Pell Grant award compared with 2023-24.
Assessments
Veasey voted for the enacted H.R. 133 package in December 2020, which included FAFSA Simplification Act changes relevant to Pell Grant eligibility. GAO later found those changes increased Pell eligibility for the 2024-25 school year, including hundreds of thousands more students eligible and many more eligible for the maximum award. Because the concrete access expansion occurred in a later congressional term but stemmed from legislation Veasey supported while in federal office, the promise is best scored as delivered with later_term timing.
Veasey has at least some direct federal legislative credit for this promise: he voted yes on both December 21, 2020 House votes on H.R. 133, the measure that became the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021. That law expanded Pell access by increasing the maximum award, simplifying FAFSA, and restoring Pell eligibility for incarcerated students. The April 30, 2026 Menefee bill shows the issue remains active, but it was only introduced and is not the core delivery evidence. Because the promise was to work to expand access, Veasey’s support for enacted expansion is enough for full delivery, though the available context does not clearly tie the result to a specific campaign term.
The provided evidence shows a Pell Grant expansion bill was introduced and referred in the 119th Congress, but it attributes the action to Mr. Menefee, not Marc A. Veasey, and does not show enactment or a material Veasey role. Because the record does not establish that Veasey sponsored, cosponsored, voted for, or otherwise materially advanced Pell Grant expansion, the promise cannot be credited as delivered or as a serious failed Veasey effort on this evidence alone.