Sen. Brian Schatz reintroduces legislation to cut cost of college
COURTESY SCOTT NISHI
Spirits were high during commencement exercises at the University of Hawaii at Manoa in May. U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz today pushed once again for debt-free college in an effort to make higher education more affordable and reverse the growing student debt crisis in the United States.
U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz today pushed once again for debt-free college in an effort to make higher education more affordable and reverse the growing student debt crisis in the United States.
Schatz, along with U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) led a group of 42 members of Congress in reintroducing the Debt-Free College Act, which establishes a state-federal partnership that would help students attend college free of debt.
Under the act, a dollar-for-dollar federal match would be available to states appropriating funds at public institutions of higher education to help students attend without having to take on debt. In addition, the Act would make “Dreamer” students as well as students with past drug-related offenses eligible for federal Pell grants.
A partnership office would be created in the Department of Education to administer the grants and monitor compliance with the requirements, as well as create a public website with information.
“The full cost of college — including books, room and board, and supplies — is more than twice as much as tuition,” said Schatz in a news release. “If we are going to be serious about solving the student loan debt crisis we need to focus on the real cost to students and their families. My bill brings states back to the table and leverages federal dollars to reinvest in public education, and help people cover the full cost of college.”
Schatz said beyond tuition and fees, the total cost of going to college has forced 44 million Americans to take on debt to cover their financial need. College debt has increased 170 percent since 2006, he said, and now exceeds $1.5 trillion dollars, second only to mortgage debt.
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The bill this year is co-sponsored by numerous U.S. Senators, including presidential candidates Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and more than 30 U.S. Representatives.
The bill is endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers, the Center for Law and Social Policy, Council for Opportunity in Education, Demos, Institute for Higher Education Policy, Jumpstart, NAACP, Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, Social Security Works and Young Invincibles.
