In February, Congress voted to cut $12 billion in student aid programs to finance a $70 billion tax cut, benefiting primarily those with the highest incomes.  At the same time, the tuition tax credit program was allowed to expire, ending a deduction of up to $4,000 for higher education expenses for American college students.

On July 1, college students and their parents will feel these changes when interest rates on college loans dramatically increase.  Every year, the U.S. Department of Education adjusts the interest rates on outstanding college loans.  This year, interest rates on subsidized student loans – those most in need – are expected to rise to more than 7% and interest rates on parent loans will increase to 7.8%.

It is very shortsighted and poor public policy to make it more difficult for American families to finance a college education. Our nation’s economic strength depends on an educated workforce.  To ensure that, I have co-sponsored the Reverse the Raid on Student Aid Act (HR 5150) to cut the interest rate on student loans. For students with subsidized loans, it would cut in half the current fixed rate from 6.8% to 3.4%; for parent borrowers, it would cut the current rate from 8.5% to 4.25%.   

As college costs increase, we need to do all we can to make college more affordable. According to recent reports, tuition and fees at four-year colleges have risen 46% since 2001.  The Department of Education states that the average student debt has increased by more than 50% over the last decade. 

Enactment of HR 5150 would substantially help student borrowers by allowing the typical undergraduate borrower with $17,500 in loan debt to save approximately $5,600 over the life of his or her loan.

As the price of a college education increases, so does the need to get one.  Today, six out of every 10 jobs require some postsecondary education and training.  It is estimated that college graduates over their lifetime earn more than $1 million than those who have no college degree.
  
Too many Americans are finding a college education harder to afford.  According to the Congressional Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance, financial barriers will prevent 4.4 million high school graduates from attending a four-year public college over the next decade, and will prevent another 2 million high school graduates from attending any college at all. 

By 2020, the United States is expected to experience a shortage of up to 12 million college-educated workers.  Higher education is critical to building a strong, dynamic workforce, which we will need if we want to maintain our competitiveness in the global economy.  

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