Bush, signing $20B student aid bill, suggests it must be paid for with offsets in other programs

[BurtWorm]

Bush Signs Sweeping Student Loan Bill Into Law, Adding an Asterisk

By Ian Shapira
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, September 28, 2007; Page A06

President Bush signed into law yesterday a student loan bill that will provide more than $20 billion in federal aid to college students and is being likened to the G.I. Bill, which helped millions of World War II veterans attend college.

The law, which received overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress, will slash federal subsidies to private loan companies and increase grants for students. It will gradually reduce interest rates on federally subsidized loans for low-income students to 3.4 percent over five years. The law will also offer loan forgiveness for those who have held public service jobs for 10 years and will cap payments on federal loans at a certain percentage of a college graduate's income.

The new law, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, overhauls the nation's student loan system. Recent investigations have revealed how lenders have showered university officials with gifts to woo student borrowers and drive up profits. Congress reacted sharply to the disclosures, and the support to revamp the student loan industry was considered a rare bipartisan endeavor.

The House of Representatives approved the law 292 to 97; the Senate vote was 79 to 12. Only Republicans voted against it.

"This bill will help ensure that no qualified student is prevented from going to college because of the cost," said Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the House education committee chairman. He said he is proud that Congress has "provided the greatest investment to help students and parents pay for college since the G.I. Bill and has delivered on our promise to make college more affordable and accessible for families."

But as Bush signed the bill, he suggested that it is not perfect. "This bill makes some spending commitments that aren't paid for yet, and I look forward to working with the Congress to ensure Pell Grant increases that are not fully funded in this bill are paid for with offsets in other areas."


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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/27/AR2007092700958.html?nav=rss_politics


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Gee... what big bloated wasteful federal program might supply the billions necessary to pay for student aid?

:think:




Can't wait to see the Dems use that negtotiating tool. :sarcasm:

[DrDan]

1. I agree with him . . . let's offset it from some of the bloated Iraq war funding . . .

[rodeodance]

2. believe me---that thought is NOT in his peabrain!

[predfan]

3. We're operating in a deficit economy..................

who knows what's being paid for or not? We're certainly not paying for the war, that's off the books............BTW, the $200B we're running up this year in Iraq and Afghanistan.........do you ever hear anyone in the Administration speak to when we'll start paying that obscene amount back?

The $70B for schips is too expensive, the $20B for college loans is boarderline, but we have no problem with $200B? It would be funny if it weren't our grandchildren who are going to be stuck with the bill.

[Auntie Bush]

4. Or offset the student aid by reducing those unnecessary tax cuts for the rich.

But you are right! Take the money from the war. It makes me sick to think of all the great things we could be doing for our country with all that money...instead of killing people and making his rich friends and cronies richer.

[Wickerman]

5. So, does the "landmark" program restore Pell Grants to the level

they were at prior to Ronald Rayguns? Bastard pulled the rug out from under a lot of us in the 80's - took years to catch up. I'm guessing this "GI-Bill" of college finance doesn't even come close to the good old days pre-Reagan revolution.