Dive Snapshot:

• A bipartisan group of Senate lawmakers reintroduced legislation last week that would ban legacy admissions after past efforts have failed despite cross-party support and sharpened public scrutiny of the practice. 
• The Merit-Based Educational Reforms and Institutional Transparency Act would tie accreditation to colleges having admissions policies that don’t give preferential treatment to applicants based on their relationships with alumni or donors.
• Lawmakers proposed similar legislation in both chambers last year, but those bills failed to gain traction. The Merit Act was previously introduced in the Senate in 2023.

The impact: The Merit Act continues a debate in the higher education world about admissions fairness. That discussion has become all the more poignant in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 ban on race-conscious admissions, the Trump administration’s aggressive enforcement of that decision, and the university admissions bribery case that broke in 2019 known as the “Varsity Blues” scandal.  

Backing the new Senate bill are Republicans Todd Young, Tim Scott and John Kennedy, as well as Democrats Tim Kaine, Raphael Warnock and Andy Kim. 

“America is a land of opportunity, not a land of aristocracy,” said Young, of Indiana, in a July 23 statement. “Legacy admissions restrict opportunities for many bright and talented young Americans and provide unmerited advantage to the most connected individuals in our society.” 

The legislation defines “preferential treatment” as having applicants’ ties to alumni or donors be the “determinative factor” in admissions decisions or awarding educational benefits.

The Senate proposal also specifies that it would not prevent colleges from considering applicants’ “demonstrated interest” — where prospects show active engagement with the college and the admissions process —  in their decisions. Under the Merit Act, criteria for assessing that interest would have to be clearly defined and public, and the opportunities to demonstrate it would have to be accessible to all. 

The bill also includes language aimed at ensuring religious colleges can make admissions “decisions consistent with the institution’s faith-based values.” 

The context: Even without a ban, legacy admissions have steeply declined over the past decade, according to a 2025 report from the nonprofit Education Reform Now that the bill’s sponsors cited in a news release.

ERM’s latest report found that 24% of four-year colleges consider legacy status in their admissions practices, down from 29% in 2022 and 49% in 2015. Most of those changes were voluntary by colleges, though 14% were required by state laws. 

However, legacy practices “persist most strongly at the wealthiest and most selective colleges and universities,” of which more than half give a “birthright advantage” to relatives of alumni, according to the report. 

What we’re watching: The Merit Act might have a tough path to passage this year in a polarized Congress where Republicans hold thin majorities headed into midterm elections. But any bill drawing bipartisan support is a rare beast in today’s political climate. 

With or without federal legislation, pressure continues to mount on legacy admissions. One big question is whether the wealthiest private institutions will continue the practice if not forced by federal law to drop it. 

In California, lawmakers required colleges receiving state student aid to eliminate legacy admissions or else be put on a public list of violators. But Stanford University opted to forgo public money rather than change its admissions policies or be put on the list.