Pallone, Payne Call for Action as Student Loans Interest Rates Double

Newark, NJ – On Monday, July 1, Congressmen Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) and Donald Payne, Jr. (NJ-10) called for a solution to the doubling of interest rates for federally backed, need-based loans that went into effect today. The congressmen held a press conference at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and condemned House Republican leadership’s failure to allow a vote on the Democratic solution to freeze the rates at 3.4 percent. The rate hike affects 7 million students.

“Doubling student loan interest rates has real consequences for young people who are working hard to achieve the American dream. State funding and federal aid has not kept up with the cost of rising tuition, and House Republicans’ stubborn refusal to maintain interest rates means an average of $1000 more out of the pockets of the neediest students each year,” said Pallone. “It is in the nation’s long-term economic interest to minimize student debt and ensure that college is still an attainable goal. House Republicans are keeping students from realizing their dreams and all the opportunities a higher education brings. This should not be a partisan issue. This is common sense, and Congress must act to stop this rate hike immediately.”

“In speaking with young people in my district, I find that they are incredibly talented and eager to make it on their own, open their own business, and even continue on to grad school. But because of the steep rise in tuition over the last 30 years and the amount of debt they carry with them on graduation day, young people have to put their dreams on hold, move back in with their parents after graduation, and put more than fifty percent of their salaries toward paying off student loans,” said Payne. “We are stunting the growth of a generation of entrepreneurs, innovators, and leaders because some of my colleagues in Washington refuse to compromise. Our economy needs more small business owners, engineers, scientists, and mathematicians to compete in a global economy, and I will continue fighting to make sure that our students are given the chance to succeed.”

New Jersey’s recent college graduates hold an average of $28,183 in loan debt, which is 61% of their annual income according to a report released this month by the Congressional Joint Economic Committee Democrats.

Last year as well, interest rates were set to double for student loans, until a public outcry compelled the Republican led House to extend the 3.4 percent rate through the 2012 - 2013 academic year.

According to nonpartisan analysis by the Congressional Research Service, the House Republican proposal passed on May 23, 2013 would cost students and families even more in interest payments than the current situation of allowing the rates to double. House Republicans refused to allow a vote on the Democratic proposal, the Student Loan Relief Act, which would freeze current interest rates at 3.4 percent for the next two years.

President Obama's Weekly Address 7/7/12: Pushing Congress to Create Jobs, Keep College in Reach for Middle Class

WASHINGTON, DC—In this week’s address, President Obama spoke to the American people from Ohio about a bill signed on Friday that does two important things: it keeps thousands of construction workers on the job rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, and it stops interest rates on federal loans from doubling this year for more than seven million students. The President urges Congress to do more to help our economic recovery and create jobs, including taking half the money we’re no longer spending on war and using it to build roads, bridges and wireless networks at home, and expanding financial aid to two million students while giving them the opportunity to learn the skills that businesses need right now. It’s time for our elected officials to come together to help strengthen the middle class.

Will Your Vote Count?

From the E-Newsletter of Congressman Rush Holt: 

When we headed to the polls for this week’s New Jersey primary elections, most of us took for granted that our right to vote would be protected and that our votes would be counted. But the truth is that federal law does too little to guarantee these rights. 

Last month, I joined Reps. Jim Clyburn, John Lewis, Steny Hoyer, Judy Chu, and others to introduce the Voter Empowerment Act (VEA), a comprehensive voting rights bill that aims to protect the integrity of our democracy.  It combines key components of my past voting rights legislation with new initiatives to improve access to the ballot box, ensure the integrity of the election process, and protect the accountability of the results.

VEA includes provisions that I wrote to require voter-verified paper ballots while preserving voter privacy, to allow independent verification of vote totals, and to prohibit knowingly misleading any voter in order to prevent him or her from voting.  It also improves access to the ballot by modernizing the voter registration system, assisting people with disabilities, banning discriminatory practices, and making voting more convenient by allowing voters to cast their vote before Election Day.

More than a century ago, the Supreme Court described the right to vote as the most fundamental right in a democracy, because it is “preservative of all rights.”  In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson said that “the vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised by man for breaking down injustice.”  I will continue to work to protect this most fundamental of rights.

VEA has been referred to several House committees, including the committees on Judiciary and Administration, for further consideration.

24 Days to Prevent Student Loan Rates from Doubling

Last month, I wrote to you that the House had only 57 days to prevent America’s student loan interest rates from doubling to 6.8 percent.  Now, only 24 days remain.  If Congress fails to act, 143,892 New Jersey students will face an additional $115 million in borrowing costs over the next year alone.

Unfortunately, the Tea Party majority in the House has not and does not plan to take action to prevent these rate hikes.  The news in the Senate is also grim:  although a majority of senators voted in late May to stop the rate hike, Republicans filibustered the bill, preventing it from moving forward.

Time is running short.  I wrote to the Majority Leader on Wednesday to urge him to bring responsible legislation to the floor to prevent the rate hike.  We must not delay any longer.

Town Hall Meetings in South River and Princeton Township On Saturday

This Saturday, I’ll be hosting two town hall meetings to hear directly from you about issues affecting you and our community, such as job creation, health care, education, hometown security, and any other issues that you want to raise.  I hope to see you there!

Saturday, June 9, 2012

10:00 a.m.
South River Council Chambers
61 Main Street
South River, New Jersey

1:00 p.m.
Main Meeting Room
Princeton Township Municipal Complex
400 Witherspoon Street
Princeton, New Jersey

Sincerely,

Rush Holt
Member of Congress

Rush Holt: 57 Days...

The following is from the E-Newsletter of Congressman Rush Holt:


Think of the great moments of American public policy: the creation of land grant colleges, the G.I. Bill, providing student loans – all directed toward increasing access to higher education.

In Congress, one of my top priorities has been to continue the work of making college more affordable and accessible. In 2007, I helped write the law that lowered interest rates on federal subsidized Stafford loans to 3.4 percent, saving today’s typical student borrower a couple thousand dollars.

Yet if Congress fails to act now, interest rates will double to 6.8 percent on July 1, 2012. This would apply to any student taking out a new loan after July 1, whether to start college or to stay in school.

We have 57 days left to prevent this – 57 days to prevent students from facing higher costs when they start classes next year, 57 days to prevent 143,892 New Jersey students from paying an additional $115 million in borrowing costs over the next year alone.

Next week, the U.S. Senate will be voting on the Stop the Rate Hike Act of 2012, of which I am a cosponsor in the House. The bill would keep loan rates at 3.4 percent, and it would pay for the cost by reining in just a fraction of the taxpayer subsidies to Big Oil.

Among recent college graduates who have taken out student loans, the average borrower owes $25,000 in education debt. Meanwhile, the five biggest oil companies reported $33.5 billion in profits in the last three months alone. Who needs our support more: the student, or Big Oil?

2012 Teacher Appreciation Week

May 7th to 11th is Teacher Appreciation Week, a chance to recognize the contributions of educators who teach at levels from kindergarten through college and beyond.

Twelve years ago, I served on the National Commission on Mathematics and Science Teaching for the 21st Century, known as the John Glenn Commission. In a report titled "Before It's Too Late," we made clear that our nation must increase the number of teachers in those fields significantly and provide more opportunities for teachers to enhance their math and science teaching skills. Training better teachers was, we found, the single most powerful way to improve math and science education – more powerful even than improving the curriculum. Although the Commission’s purview was limited to math and science, I am convinced that high-quality teachers play an equally vital role in other subject areas.

It is long past time to implement the Glenn Commission recommendations and make professional development of teachers one of our top concerns.

2012 Congressional Art Competition

Each year, I host a Congressional Art Competition to celebrate and recognize works of art created by high school students. This year, more than 100 high school artists shared works in categories including painting, drawing, print, and mixed media. Their work demonstrated great creativity, talent, and originality, and I was honored to showcase their efforts.

The overall winner of this year’s competition was Loretta Liu from West Windsor Plainsboro High School South, and for the next year, her work “Rush Hour” will be displayed in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. I look forward to seeing her future work in the years to come.

Sincerely,


Rush Holt
Member of Congress