Beyond tuition eligibility, new federal and state policy signals continue to reshape student access to higher education. Separate reporting notes U.S. legal disputes that have halted efforts to loosen sports-fishing rules—outside higher ed—but within higher-ed coverage, the key theme is compliance uncertainty and court-driven reversals affecting eligibility. In the broader higher education policy landscape provided here, federal enforcement and budget proposals remain intertwined with admissions and aid rules, with institutions facing shifting requirements and litigation risk. For campuses, the policy environment requires rapid compliance adjustments in admissions, scholarship criteria, and documentation processes—areas where student costs and eligibility turn directly on legal interpretation.