The Pell Grant, a national scholarship widely awarded to low-income students, could experience a serious shortfall for the 2009-10 fiscal year, though officials remain hopeful Congress will act to correct the lapse.

The grant fund, which helps millions of students pay for tuition, educational expenses and additional fees, could experience a deficit of 40 percent, which, according to the New York Times, amounts to about $6 billion.

Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, said the number of students eligible for the grants seems to be increasing faster than Congress’ ability to appropriate funds.

“People simply don’t anticipate the rapid growth in enrollment, and consequently the amount that Congress has set aside is not enough to cover the grant,” Nassirian said.

At the University of Wisconsin alone, approximately 3,600 students receive an average of $4,000 from the grants each year, according to Susan Fischer, director of financial aid at UW.

“It is the biggest single grant that we are able to give out,” Fischer said.

According to FinAid, a public service offering financial information for students and parents, in 1970, the first year the awards were granted, the average grant was $270 with 176,000 recipients. By the 2006-07 fiscal year, total funding increased to approximately $5 billion and reached nearly 3.5 million recipients.

Each year the federal government has an annual budget process, in which money received from taxes is designated in proportionate amounts to different federal expenditures. To address the potential shortfall, Nassirian is expecting Congress to appropriate necessary funding to protect the grant.

Christy Anderson, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Education, said in an e-mail to The Badger Herald Friday that if a shortfall occurs, Congress will create a supplemental appropriation to ensure sufficient funds are available for qualifying students.

According to Fischer, the grant is one of the biggest in the nation and a large shortfall would not be likely.

“It has served as the foundation of financial aid, and it’s really important in that regard. … I’ve never seen the government really back down,” Fischer added. “What I really don’t want to do is scare students who receive help.”

Nassirian said it is the responsibility of Congress to put more money in the program. However, he said the deficit is a “worst-case scenario.”

“[Congress] simply just has to pay for the shortfall. The program has run a deficit that has to be now somehow funded,” Nassirian added. “I don’t for a moment think this is going to happen.”

Adding another factor to the already speculative 2009-10 fiscal year is a new president.

“Education has not been as well-funded as it should be, and I hope that the new administration makes it a priority,” Nassirian said.

Nassirian anticipates Congress to “step up to the plate” because he considers the grant to be the “bedrock for equal financial opportunity in the United States.”

“I’m usually not this optimistic about such funding matters, but this [case] is so drastic that I don’t think it’s going to happen. It is not necessary to alarm anybody,” Nassirian said.