Inside Republicans’ 'Big, Ugly Law'

Republicans' 'Big, Ugly Law' makes extreme cuts to federal education, health, and child nutrition programs, and raises the federal deficit, all to give more tax breaks and handouts to wealthy Americans and corporations.

 Watch Ranking Member Scott Rip Apart Republicans' 'Big, Ugly Law' on YouTube.

Republicans' 'Big, Ugly Law' will make college less affordable for students, raise student loan payments for current borrowers, and expose students to predatory, for-profit institutions— all to pay for tax cuts for billionaires and corporations. Republicans’ “Big Ugly Law” raises costs for students by:

Forcing student loan borrowers into unaffordable repayment plans.  For the more than 42 million Americans who hold federal student loan debt, this law replaces existing income-driven repayment plans with a single plan that would increase payments for most borrowers and remove existing safeguards that protect borrowers from carrying debt for more than 25 years.  For the average borrower, the Republican proposal would increase monthly student loan payments by almost $200.  

Eliminating resources to help struggling borrowers.  This law eliminates economic hardship forbearances and limits the length of time loans can be in deferment, regardless of any administrative challenges borrowers may face with their loan servicer.  This law makes it harder for borrowers who may be struggling with life costs, such as child care, medical bills, or job loss, to meet their basic needs since they would be forced to continue loan payments they cannot afford.  

Pushes students into the predatory, private loan market by eliminating Graduate PLUS loans, capping Parent PLUS loans, and limiting Pell Grant access.  This law prohibits students with full scholarships from receiving Pell Grants if their college believes the student’s basic needs are met.  Additionally, it requires undergraduate students to exhaust their unsubsidized loans before parents can utilize Parent PLUS to cover the remaining cost of attendance, and sets a limit for Parent PLUS loans of $65,000 per child.  With these student aid caps, students would be pushed to take out predatory, unregulated private loans to finance their degree – or walk away from their education.  

To learn more about how the Republicans’ 'Big, Ugly Law' will make college less affordable and expose students and taxpayers to risk, click here.  

Republicans’ extreme cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will negatively impact children’s access to school meal programs and threaten food security for millions of families.  

Millions of working families rely on school meals for their children to be healthy and fed during the school day.  Through a process known as direct certification, children are directly certified for free or reduced-price school meals if their household participates in SNAP.  And, in most states, a household’s participation in Medicaid also directly certifies children for free or reduced-price school meals. 

If a family loses SNAP or Medicaid because of Republicans’ ‘Big, Ugly Law,’ that means kids could also lose direct access to free or reduced-price school meals.   Additionally, fewer students directly certified through SNAP or Medicaid also means fewer schools will be able to use CEP.   

There are at least 16 million children enrolled in schools that provide free meals to all children – all of whom could be negatively impacted under the Republicans’ ‘Big, Ugly Law.’ 

To learn more about how the Republicans' 'Big, Ugly Law' limits access to free school meals, click here. 

Republicans’ 'Big, Ugly Law' will create the first nationwide federal school voucher program, force taxpayers to fund private schools and homeschools, and effectively divert funding and resources away from public schools that serve over 90 percent of students.

Republicans’ budget reconciliation law creates an unprecedented tax cut for the rich by: 

• Enabling donors to school voucher programs to receive a 100 percent tax credit for contributions up to $1700 per year in states that elect to participate.  This would elevate donations to voucher programs above all other donations, including donations made to food pantries, hospitals, houses of worship, and every other kind of charity.
• Letting wealthy people—those earning up to and including 300 percent of the area median gross income—qualify for the vouchers to use for their own children for private schools, including religious schools.
• Creating a permanent tax credit to fund school vouchers with zero accountability and forcing taxpayers to foot the bottomless cost. 

To learn more about how the Republicans’ 'Big, Ugly Law' is bad for public education, click here.