College affordability, like many other postsecondary policy areas, requires coordinated federal and state policies built on coordinated information. While the potential for partnerships between states and the federal government is endless and often includes missed opportunities, this paper reimagines one form of federalism in higher education through more effective data partnerships to inform affordability policies. It (1) conceptualizes affordability as a concept lacking a consensus for how it is defined; (2) identifies challenges in addressing college affordability policy with existing data; (3) suggests ways that federal and state government could collectively work to provide clearer information about affordability; and (4) provides recommendations for both state and federal policymakers to create more effective data partnerships to produce a more complete picture of how affordability is constructed, leading to a more informed dialogue about what affordability looks like, and eventually to improved policies.