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Category: Higher Education

Obama Aims to Ease Student Debt

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President Obama announced today a new executive order aimed at easing student borrowers’ debt loads by capping repayments at 10 percent of their monthly income. Obama also made student loans the focus of his weekly address on Saturday, saying he’d be taking action this week.

The executive order will expand on a 2010 law, the Bipartisan Student Loan Certainty Act, that capped borrowers’ repayment. The law left a hole in eligibility for people with older loans — anyone who borrowed before October 2007 or stopped borrowing by October 2011, which is approximately 5 million borrowers — were not eligible for the cap. The executive order will close the hole, but relief, however, would not be available until December 2015. The time is needed for the Department of  Education (ED) to propose and put new regulations into effect.

In addition, the President will announce that ED will renegotiate contracts with companies that service federal loans to give them additional financial incentives to help borrowers avoid delinquency or default.  Further, both ED and Treasury will work with the nation’s largest tax-preparation firms, H&R Block and Intuit Inc., to ensure that borrowers are aware of repayment options and tax credits for college tuition.

Finally, the President is expected to urge the swift passage of S 2292, the Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act. The measure introduced by Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) last week and has been championed by people like Senators Murray and Cantwell. The measure would would allow an estimated 25 million Americans to refinance student loans, federal and private, at lower interest rates. Reduced interest payments would cost the government about $58 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office, but the legislation would raise $72 billion by imposing a new tax on some high-income individuals.

Fact Sheet on the Legislation Available here.

Bill Text Available here.

The Senate is expected to consider Warren’s bill (as S 2432) this week, but the measure has little chance of consideration by the House.

The Week Ahead

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This week lawmakers continue to debate FY2015 appropriations, student loans, and VA reform.

Tonight, the House will vote on S. 1254, the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act of 2013. The bill would authorize $20.5 million annually through 2018 for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to reduce the effects of algal blooms and hypoxia in bodies of water.

By mid-week, the Senate will turn its attention to a bill that would allow the nearly 40 million people with more than $1 trillion in student loans to refinance to current lower interest rates. The student loans bill is part of Senate Democrats’ “fair shot” 2014 agenda that included an unemployment insurance extension, minimum wage increase, and pay equity for women. But it is unlikely that enough Republicans will join Democrats to advance the bill, which is paid for by raising taxes on millionaires.

Read more about the week ahead at The Hill.

House Republican leadership has detailed a busy legislative agenda for the remainder of June in a memo sent from Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) to House Republicans sent Friday. The House will address issues at the Department of Veterans Affairs, three appropriations bills, three tax extender bills, and legislation to make gas and other energy prices cheaper. Notably absent from the agenda: any mention of immigration, an unemployment extension, or the expiring Export-Import Bank. Read the memo at Roll Call.

The Office of Federal Relations continues to advance our appropriations priorities, as well as monitoring legislative efforts on student loans.

Senate Committees Hold Hearings on Student Loans

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This morning Senators discussed student loans in two simultaneous committee hearings.

The Senate Budget Committee, which is chaired by Washington State’s Senator Patty Murray, held a full committee hearing titled, “Impact of Student Loan Debt on Borrowers and the Economy.” Key witnesses in the hearing included representatives from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Student Virginia Education Association, and the Contemporary History Institute at Ohio University. A video of the hearing and written testimony can be found here.

Over in the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection held a hearing titled, “Student Loan Servicing: The Borrower’s Experience.” Scheduled witnesses included representatives from the Student Veterans of America, the American Federation of Teachers, the Heritage Foundation, and the Denison University director of financial aid. A webcast of the hearing along with written testimony can be viewed on the Committee’s website here.

Easton to leave IES

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 John Easton announced today that he will be leaving his position as Director of the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) this Fall to take a position at the Spencer Foundation in Chicago.

As director of IES, Easton oversaw the National Center for Education Statistics, the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, the National Center for Education Research, and the National Center for Special Education Research.

Easton was confirmed by the Senate and has served at Director of IES since May 2009. He was confirmed for a 6 year term. Prior to coming to IES, he was the executive director of the Consortium on Chicago School Research at the University of Chicago.

House Continues CJS, House Science Cmte Passes FIRST

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Adjourning well after midnight last night, the House will consider its floor consideration of the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill this morning. The House is expected to pass the measure late tonight. Thus far, the House has considered a number of amendments, and some of interest are below.

Passed Amendments:

  • An amendment, offered by Mr. Reichert (R-WA), to reduce funding for periodic census and programs by $110 million and to increase funding for community oriented policing services programs (hiring and rehiring of additional career law enforcement officers) by a similar amount.
  • An amendment, offered by Mr. Langevin (D-CT), to designate $5 million for a survey on the NIST cybersecurity framework for reducing cyber risks to critical infrastructure.
  •  An amendment, offered by Ms. Sinema (D-AZ), to reduce funding for Salaries and Expenses, General Administration in the Department of Justice by $1 million and to increase funding for Violence Against Women Prevention and Prosecution Programs (College Campuses) by a similar amount.

Failed Amendments:

  • An amendment, offered by Mr. McDermott (D-WA), to reduce funding for Periodic Censuses and Programs by $3 million and to increase funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for the purpose of salmon propagation by a similar amount.
  • An amendment, offered by Mr. Holt (D-NJ), to transfer $37,450,000 within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for the purpose of climate change research.

Amendments pending a vote:

An amendment, offered by Mr. Bridenstine (R-OK), to reduce funding for Periodic Censuses and Programs by $12 million and to increase funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for the purpose of weather research by a similar amount.

 

Also last night, the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee (HSSTC) passed H.R. 4186, the “Frontiers in Innovation, Research, Science, and Technology Act of 2014 Act”. The controversial measure was marked up last week with final votes postponed until after Memorial Day. In straight party-line votes, the committee speedily made its way through all 15 amendments and ultimately passed the measure by a vote of 20-16.

The remaining votes on amendments also passed along party lines. Of note, Congressman Rohrabacher’s (R-CA) Amendment #28, which passed, would reduce funding for Social, Behavioral, and Economic research at the National Science Foundation by $50 million. Also, the committee approved Amendment #67 offered by Congressman Bridenstine (R-OK) that would repeal the National Technical Information Service.