Miller: President Obama’s New Plan Will Help Millions Manage their Student Debt
WASHINGTON—Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), senior Democrat on the Education and the Workforce Committee, released the following statement today in support of President Barack Obama’s plan to help millions of people who have borrowed to pay for their college education better manage their debt:
“A higher education remains the surest path to the middle class and economic prosperity in this country,” said Rep. Miller. “Unfortunately, too many families have been engulfed by debt as they work to afford the cost of college. This is not only holding back a generation of Americans, but it is also stifling our overall economy. President Obama’s new initiatives will help millions of people better manage unprecedented levels of student debt.
“Ultimately, this is an issue that Congress must address, but steadfast Republican opposition has hamstrung legislative efforts to provide Americans feeling trapped by student loan debt with some relief,” Miller continued. “We simply can’t wait for congressional Republicans to decide they’re willing to invest in our nation’s hard-working students, graduates, and middle-class families. That is why President Obama has announced these new initiatives. That is why Congress must pass my Bank on Students Emergency Refinancing Act. This legislation, which I’ve introduced with Representative John Tierney, would allow more families struggling to reach the middle class to save money by refinancing their loans to more manageable rates. This country has always made a commitment to putting a high-quality, post-secondary education within reach for as many Americans as possible. People go to college seeking greater economic security, professional advancement, and personal achievement–not the burden of student loan debt. We must help more people realize the promises of the American Dream.”
The Bank on Students Emergency Refinancing Act (H.R. 4582), introduced by Representatives Miller and Tierney (D-Mass.) last month, would help tens of millions of college students, graduates, and middle-class families nationwide refinance their existing federal and private student loans to lower rates, similar to those that are currently available to new loan borrowers. In total, American families would save around $55 billion under the legislation, which they can then reinvest in their local economy.
Specifically, a recent analysis by the Congressional Research Service shows that a middle-class undergraduate student with an average loan debt would save more than $4,000 over the life of his or her loan. A typical graduate student would save more than $2,500, and parents who borrowed to pay for their child’s education would save more than $3,500.
Rep. Miller was the author of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 to make student loans repayments more manageable. The bill not only halved interest rates on need-based federal student loans, it also instituted the Income-Based Repayment program, which caps repayment rates at a manageable percentage of borrower's income.
Learn more about the Bank on Students Emergency Refinancing Act here.
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