<home> -- <press releases> -- <April 24, 2007>
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—September 7, 2007– By a vote of 292 to 77, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed the conference report for H.R. 2669, the College Cost Reduction Act of 2007, sending the final bill to the President’s desk for his consideration. The conference report represents the reconciliation of both college financial aid budget bills that were passed in July in the House and the Senate. The College Cost Reduction Act of 2007, which was supported by Congresswoman Bordallo, contains provisions which will make it easier for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and low- to moderate-income students across the country, to afford a college education and earn a college degree. The final bill provides for a total of $510 million in federal funds over the next two years to support “ Minority Serving Institutions,” which includes for the first time in the history of the Higher Education Act, designation of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI)-serving institutions. This new designation was championed by the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) and will mean institutions of higher education that have an enrollment of undergraduate students that is at least 10% Asian American and Pacific Islander, including the University of Guam, will qualify to receive new federal funding under this program. Specifically, $10 million is to be set aside across both years for AAPI-serving institutions. This funding, which will be awarded as grants, can be used by eligible institutions for the purchase of laboratory equipment, the funding of instruction activities, the purchase of educational materials, and the establishment of tutoring programs. “For the first time, Congress has recognized the important role of colleges that serve our Asian and Pacific Islander communities. The University of Guam stands to benefit from this new program and a college education will be more affordable for students who rely on loans for their tuition. This legislation represents the focus on education that the new leadership in Congress has promised and delivered.” Congresswoman Bordallo said. The maximum value of the Pell Grant scholarship under the final bill would increase by $1,090 over the next five years, reaching $5,400 by 2012. This increase would fully restore the purchasing power of the scholarship, which in recent years had been frozen at $4,050 until Congress boosted its value to $4,310 earlier this year. Close to 6 million low- and moderate-income students would benefit from this increase. To reduce the cost of loans for millions of student borrowers, the final bill will cut interest rates in half on need-based student loans, from 6.8 percent to 3.4 percent over the next four years. Once fully phased-in, this would save the average student– with $13,800 in need-based student loan debt – $4,400 over the life of the loan. About 6.8 million students across the country take out need-based loans each year. Over 2,700 current Pell Grant recipients are from Guam and over 500 are from the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands according to the U.S. Department of Education. The House version of the bill was passed in July 11, 2007, and the Senate version was passed on July 20, 2007. ### Contact: Joseph E. Duenas in joseph.duenas@mail.house.gov or cathy.gault@mail.house.gov |
