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Date: February 8th, 2008
Author: Career College News
House overwhelmingly approves bill to address rising college prices & remove other barriers to college enrollment
The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly today to address the soaring price of college and remove other obstacles that make it harder for qualified students to go to college.
By a bipartisan vote of 354 to 58, the House approved the College Opportunity and Affordability Act (H.R. 4137), which would reform and strengthen the nation’s higher education programs to ensure that they operate in the best interests of students and families.
“Last year, by enacting a $20 billion increase in federal student aid – the largest increase since the G.I. Bill of 1944 – this Congress took an historic step to help American families pay for college,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee. “Now we are redoubling our commitment to college students and parents by reining in skyrocketing tuition prices and making our whole system of higher education far more consumer-friendly.”
“For too many years, the cost of a college education has been spiraling out of control and closing the doors of higher education to aspiring students. Despite a considerable federal investment, colleges and universities have continued to push tuition upward,” said the Committee’s Senior Republican, U.S. Rep. Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA). “With the College Opportunity and Affordability Act, we can turn this trend around. To solve the college cost crisis, we’re empowering consumers with meaningful information about college costs and holding institutions and states accountable for keeping higher education affordable.”
“The health of our nation depends on our ability to prepare our students for the 21st century economy. We need smart strategies that will boost our educated workforce and secure our competitive edge for years to come,” said U.S. Rep. Rubén Hinojosa (D-TX), the chairman of the House Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness. “This bill answers these challenges by opening up the doors of opportunity for more students than ever before. It closes gaps in access and affordability for low-income and minority families so that our nation has more college graduates ready to succeed in the globalized workplace.”
“I support this legislation because it will expand college access for millions of worthy students primarily by strengthening and reauthorizing the Pell Grant Program and Perkins Student Loan program,” said U.S. Rep. Ric Keller (R-FL), the Senior Republican on the Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness Subcommittee. “This bill strengthens the Pell grant program by providing year round Pell grants to help college students get through college quicker and by increasing the authorization levels. This legislation makes sure all children rich and poor have the opportunity to obtain their dream of a college education.”
An October 2007 report from the College Board showed that, over the previous five years, tuition and fees had increased across the board, at public and private colleges and at two-year and four-year colleges. The bill would address these rising prices by encouraging colleges to rein in price increases, ensuring that states maintain their commitments to higher education funding, and providing students and families with consumer friendly information on college pricing and the factors driving tuition increases.
The legislation also strengthens provisions previously approved by the House to avoid conflicts of interest in the student loan programs. The bill’s new provisions include requiring better consumer disclosures and protections on private student loans. The lawmakers said that these new protections form a Bill of Rights for college consumers.
In addition, the College Opportunity and Affordability Act would:
- Streamline the federal student financial aid application process;
- Make textbook costs more manageable for students by, among other things, helping them plan for textbook expenses in advance of each semester;
- Allow students to receive year-round Pell Grant scholarships;
- Strengthen college readiness programs;
- Increase college aid and support programs for veterans and military families;
- Improve safety on college campuses and help schools recover and rebuild after a disaster;
- Ensure equal college opportunities and fair learning environments for students with disabilities; and
- Strengthen our nation’s workforce and economic competitiveness by boosting science, technology, and foreign language educational opportunities.
H.R. 4137 is the second of two major higher education bills passed by the House in the 110th Congress. The first, the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, was signed into law in September 2007. H.R. 4137 is a comprehensive reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, the primary federal law aimed at expanding college access for low- and middle-income students.
For more information on the College Opportunity and Affordability Act, click here.
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