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Press Releases
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For Immediate Release
September 7, 2007
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Price Hails Passage of College Cost Reduction Bill
Says it is a “Bright Day” for Triangle Students, Parents |
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Washington, D.C. - Congressman David Price (D-NC) today hailed final passage of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (H.R. 2669). The bill, which will provide a $20 billion boost in student aid over the next five years, represents the single largest investment in higher education since the GI bill. It is paid for by reducing excessive federal subsidies paid to lenders in the college loan industry.
“Today is a bright day for the tens of thousands of college students and their parents who call the Triangle home,” Price said. “The Democratic Congress has made good on its pledge to reduce the cost of college in America by passing the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, which significantly enhances federal support for students through grants and subsidized loans. And we have accomplished this without increasing taxes.”
Price has long championed efforts to make college more affordable. He is the author of a 1997 law allowing students and parents to deduct student loan interest payments on their tax returns.
“Making a college education affordable is essential to ensuring equal opportunity for all Americans,” he added. “And with college costs increasing faster than inflation for years, many students have been discouraged from pursuing higher education. With this legislation we will restore hope for college aspirants and their parents. I encourage the President to sign this bill as soon as it reaches his desk.”
More on the College Cost Reduction and Access Act:
The bill strengthens the middle class by making college more affordable by:
• Cutting interest rates in half on subsidized student loans over the next four years.
• Making student loan payments more manageable for borrowers by guaranteeing that borrowers will not have to pay more than 15 percent of their discretionary income in loan repayments, and allowing borrowers in economic hardship to have their loans forgiven after 25 years.
The bill increases the purchasing power of the Pell Grant Scholarship by:
• Increasing the maximum Pell Grant scholarship by $490 next year and at least $1,090 over the next five years, ultimately reaching a maximum scholarship of at least $5,400 by 2012.
• Expanding eligibility through needs analysis to include and serve more students with financial need.
The bill places highly qualified teachers in the classroom by:
• Providing upfront tuition assistance to qualified undergraduate students who commit to teaching in public schools in high-poverty communities or high-need subject areas.
The bill encourages and rewards public service by:
• Providing public servants loan forgiveness after 10 years of public service and loan repayment for military service members, first responders, law enforcement officers, firefighters, nurses, public defenders, prosecutors, early childhood educators, librarians, and others.
The bill makes historic new investments in minority-serving institutions by:
• Making a landmark new investment of $510 million over five years in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian institutions, and the newly designated Predominantly Black Institutions and institutions serving Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and Native American students – to ensure that students will not only enter college, but remain and graduate.
The bill encourages state and philanthropic participation in college retention and financing by:
• Establishing a partnership among federal, state and local government entities and philanthropic organizations through matching challenge grants aimed at increasing the number of first generation and low-income college students.
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