An article fromDive Brief Washington governor eyes FAFSA requirement for high school students

Since taking office last year, Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson has prioritized increasing the state’s completion rate of the federal aid form.

Published July 15, 2026Laura Spitalniak Editor

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Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson speaks during a press conference on July 13, 2026, at Highline College in Des Moines, Wash. Courtesy of Ian Couch courtesy of the Washington State Office of the Governor Dive Brief:

• Washington's high school students would be required to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or the state equivalent to graduate under a new proposal from Gov. Bob Ferguson.
• Ferguson on Monday unveiled his plan to create the new requirement for graduating seniors, with the goal of increasing the share of students accessing aid. Students could opt out of the requirement by signing a form.
• The governor-requested legislation will be introduced in Washington's upcoming legislative session, which starts in January. 

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As of July 3, 59.6% of the high school class of 2026 completed the FAFSA — a record high — according to data from the National College Attainment Network. 

Washington state's completion rate fell below the national average, with just 50.7% of its graduating class filling out the form. Even so, that represents an 11.6% improvement from the previous year. 

Ferguson, a Democrat, has made increasing Washington's FAFSA completion rate a key policy goal since taking office last year.

“Washington provides more free money for students to attend college or job training than virtually any other state in the nation, yet we haven’t demonstrated the same commitment to helping students access that money,” he said in a Monday statement.

A handful of K-12 districts in the state already require graduating high school students to complete the FAFSA or opt out. Ferguson's office shared data at three of those districts where two-thirds of their students filled out the form, squarely beating both the state and national averages.

In September, Ferguson charged the Washington Student Achievement Council with creating a state FAFSA completion goal effective 2026-2027.

The state agency must also identify which K-12 schools and districts have the lowest FAFSA completion rates and convene an advisory board to develop recommendations to up the state's FAFSA completion rate. WSAC's first progress report is due this October.

The attention to the issue appears to have begun moving the needle. From 2025 to 2026, Washington rose from the 47th state in FAFSA completion to the 40th.

Ferguson’s office cast the proposal as a way to improve the state's ranking further. It would have to pass the state’s Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Around a dozen states have a version of a universal FAFSA requirement for graduating high schoolers, including three of the five top FAFSA-completing states, according to NCAN.

However, not every state that has adopted a universal FAFSA requirement for high school seniors has kept the policy on its books.

Louisiana and New Hampshire previously had FAFSA requirements but repealed them in 2024-25, in part citing privacy concerns.

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