In a largely party-line vote, the state Assembly approved a measure March 9 that would deny state financial aid to students convicted of possessing controlled substances with the intent of distributing.

The measure, Assembly Bill 1035, is an effort to more fairly distribute financial aid to law-abiding, low-income students, according to its author, Rep. Eugene Hahn, R-Cambria.

"If you have been messing around with drugs … that would be reason to not allow you to get loans," Hahn said, adding students who complete a drug rehabilitation program would be eligible to reapply two years after their conviction.

But bill opponents call the measure counterproductive, pointing to education as a key to escaping the cycle of drug abuse.

"I don't think we should take financial aid away from students because they made a mistake," Rep. Spencer Black, D-Madison, said. "If they're willing to get a college education … I think they should have the opportunity."

One of 25 representatives to vote against AB 1035, Black is also a member of the Assembly Colleges and Universities Committee, which approved the bill earlier this month in a partisan vote.

The Assembly passed an amended version of the bill that takes into account recent changes to the federal law that already denies federal assistance to students convicted of possessing with the intent to distribute.

Because federal law was recently altered to apply only to students convicted while receiving financial aid, Hahn agreed to amend his bill to mirror the change — an action bill opponents see as a minor but still inadequate improvement.

"We were encouraged that they did amend the bill to reflect the federal regulation, but we were still disappointed that they still passed the legislation that we think penalizes one segment of the population more than any other," said Steven Schuetz, president of the Wisconsin Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.

According to Schuetz, the bill unfairly targets convicted drug abusers with a disadvantaged background who need the financial aid to access higher education.

Black agreed, adding the bill would punish low-income students trying to get back on track after drug abuse.

"[AB 1035] wouldn't affect those students from wealthier families who got a similar conviction," he said. "If someone is willing to try to straighten out their lives … they shouldn't be stopped just because they're from a less-wealthy background."

Hahn, however, argued such students are only depriving other low-income but law-abiding students from the aid they deserve.

"There are people that are turned down, and this might open the door for a few of those folks to be eligible to get the grant," Hahn said.

But according to Schuetz, the program may end up costing more money to implement than it is meant to save by possibly forcing the state to spend thousands of dollars performing background checks on every student.

Hahn said, however, that he hopes the bill will encourage students to follow the law and abstain from distributing drugs.

"Hopefully the message is out that if you go to school, you don't try to enhance your income or have these sorts of off-in-the-clouds events on the weekends," he said.

The Senate must approve AB 1035 before it is sent to Gov. Jim Doyle for review.