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Politics

Rooney Abandons Education Committee, but Can't Resist Student Loan Reform

August 1, 2019 - 9:00am
Francis Rooney and Mike Lee
Francis Rooney and Mike Lee

Even though he has left a key committee for higher education issues, U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, R-Fla., has teamed up with U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, on a bill trying to hold tuition down by reforming federal student loans. 

Rooney and Lee brought out the Higher Education Reform and Opportunity (HERO) Act which they showcased on Wednesday. 

Under the proposal, federal loans for undergraduate education would be capped  at $30,000 with a 15-year repayment period while the cap would be raised to $40,000 with a 25-year repayment period for graduate school. The bill would have the federal government keep track on the time needed for student to graduate and monitor their debt and how they do in finding jobs. If the bill passes, universities would have to repay 10 percent of the student default amount minus the Federal unemployment rate.

“Student tuition inflated 439 percent between 1982 and 2007, in part due to the excess of federal loans available,” Rooney said on Wednesday. “A 2015 study done by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed that for each additional dollar the federal government allows students to borrow, colleges and universities increase their tuition by 60 cents. The HERO Act would streamline federal student loans and create caps to ensure that students can afford their education, and pay back their loans once they graduate.

“Further, education policy should be dictated at the local and state levels, and not by an out of touch bureaucracy in Washington. Many students have aptitudes and career goals that do not require and are not enhanced by college. Perhaps this is why only about one-half of college students today manage to graduate within six years. Higher education should respond to the needs of our economy and today’s job market. This legislation allows states to accredit innovative non-traditional programs like online courses, apprenticeships, or vocational schools to better prepare today’s students for the modern workforce,” Rooney added. 

Rooney's bill was sent to the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee on Tuesday. Last week, Rooney gave up his spot on that committee to serve on the U.S. House Science, Space and Technology Committee. 

Comments

What kind of idiot would conclude that capping student loan amounts would "ensure that students can afford their education, and pay back their loans once they graduate" or that the availability of federal student aid is why tuitions have skyrocketed. What's your real focus here, Congressman? Default on student loans? If you were honest and actually concerned about education costs, you would take into consideration how for-profit schools have impacted tuition cost and and students failing to finish degrees. You're also overlooking other reasons students default like finishing school and still not being able to get a halfway decent paying job because part time retail or service jobs are all that's available. It would be nice if politicians would start taking more time to consider a bigger picture view, research and THINK about issues instead of just focusing on trying to punish Americans who rely on federal aid in one way or another, you might have time to get something done.

Putting caps on student loans will cause some students to run out of money before they graduate. And since they're hard caps, they'll have to be increased regularly (with legislation that may, or may not, pass) otherwise their impact will get worse and worse each year with inflation. Also, the 439% increase figure (over the 25 year period from 1982 to 2007) that you came up with breaks down to 6% annually. I agree that's too much, but at least it's a figure that people can understand because they can compare to inflation etcetera. I can't help but suspect that you were trying to confuse or baffle people with the 439% figure - because there was no reason for that.

To be a little more more precise, the annual percentage would be 6.1% instead of 6%

Old man Rooney has too much free time on his hands.

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