College or Bust: The Bill To Take Some Stress Away

Within the health care Bill that Obama passed on March 30, 2010, another bill had been tucked. The Health and Reconciliation Act is a bill split into two parts. Though the health care part of the bill has been so prevalent in the past months, the Education part of the bill will soon make a huge impact on the students looking to get loans for college in the coming years. This bill is a change that has set the republican senators up in arms with no republicans voting 'yea' for the bill and the overall tally at 56 yeas and 43 nays.

The education section of the bill entitled “The Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act” will come into effect July 1st 2010. The bill will omit private lenders so that student loans will become solely federal. In order to make loans will also become more affordable to pay off the government is giving 1.5 billion dollars towards federal loans. By replacing the 15% of monthly borrowers to 10% of their income per month. Pell grants will receive a $36 billion increase over the next 10 years so that individual Pell grants will be awarded at up to $5,975 by 2017, from the present $5,550. The bill also states that Community Colleges and Minority Schools will receive 2.55 billion dollars and 2 billion dollars respectively to aid with education and faculty expenses.

Many republican senators such as Lamar Alexander have opposed the bill, arguing that there will be a huge loss in private lending jobs due to the passing of the bill. Some in the senate are also opposed to the education bill and the health care bill being created into one, rather than two separate bills, that would focus on each specifically.

John, of Maine senator Olympia Snow's front desk, who refused to give his full name, stated that, "the bill received no republican support because it was put in the reconciliation package."

Republican senators are concerned that students will not have a choice for their own private lenders. Glee Smith, legislative councilman of Georgian Senator Johnny Isakson's office said that, “We opposed it, because out of the large schools in Georgia, all said they would rather their students have choices from where to borrow money.”

In response to the concerns of the senators who voted against the bill, among the senators who were for the bill was Vermont senator Bernie Sanders. The office of senator Sanders said that the loss of jobs are necessary sacrifice to the bill. "[The jobs] are the waste of the bill." Senators who are for the bill are suggesting that, though people may feel more comfortable with their private banks, the recipient pool and finances are so much bigger.

Rep the Federal Student Aid Information Center said that "if you're talking about the loans being through the department of education, that's good because they offer certain loan forgiveness programs that other lenders do not." Overall the consolidation of the loans has been applauded by financial experts as well as there being extra room for loan forgiveness.

This bill has been a long time coming. In his speech to the country at the signing of the Health and Reconciliation Act, Obama stated that the struggle has been "after almost a century of trying." The bill that was signed on March 30th is one reincarnation of a bill that was passed in 1965 as the Higher Education Act (HEA), which gave scholarships and grants to students attending college. The Higher Education Act has been authorized several times since its signing. The government's struggle to help students pay for college has become more and more pressing. In higher education institutions, student numbers are rising and it is becoming essential for colleges to accommodate with more government financial support. The government is pushed to aid students as well because of the ever rising price of colleges, at an present average of $26,273 in private colleges and $7,020 in public colleges according to College Board. According the the US Census Bureau, 79.5% of all students received both federal and private financial aid in the 2007-2008 academic year. Most students leave school with an average debt of $23,200 according to Mike Kantrowitz, the President of a financial consulting agency. Colleges are also in need for money with the number of students rising to almost 12,900,000 undergraduate students in 2007, a decrease of about 1 million since 2000 according to the Census Bureau.

Many families are not fully aware of the bill and its components. Jim Carroll, a father whose son
will be attending Mcgill University next year, was unsure that the change will affect the family.
"I have done the paperwork already" Mr. Carroll said "and I'm not sure if it will just be behind the
scenes, right now, I don't think the students will notice."

here is a video of Obama's speech at the signing of the bill