The Center for American Progress and Campus Progress are pleased with today’s passage by the House of Representatives of the College Opportunity and Affordability Act (H.R. 4137). This legislation continues to build on Congress’s commitment to making college more affordable and ensuring that Americans are prepared to compete in an increasingly knowledge-based economy. 

The bill includes several provisions that would help prevent the kinds of conflicts of interest and deceptive marketing practices that have been so prevalent in the student loan industry. Campus Progress has worked actively to address the lack of clear, unbiased information available to students about how to finance their education. This legislation will improve the information that students receive, and help ensure that financial aid offices at their schools are making recommendations based on what is best for students and their families.

The College Opportunity and Affordability Act will have other meaningful impacts:

• Allowing students to receive Pell Grants throughout the year
• Expanding loan forgiveness programs for those entering public service
• Encouraging schools and states to control tuition costs and invest in higher education
• Providing students an easier way to compare costs and other information when selecting a college or university
• Simplifying the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA)
• Improving access and services for students with disabilities
• Increasing funding for graduate programs at minority-serving institutions

We are disappointed, however, that the House of Representatives did not withstand a last-minute rush by student loan industry lobbyist to stop the Davis Amendment, which will allow borrowers to discharge their private student loans in bankruptcy like any other form of consumer debt. We hope that Congress does away with the special treatment currently given to private student loan companies in Conference Committee.

In 2004, The Center for American Progress released Fast Track to College: Increasing Postsecondary Success for All Students, a report that recommended that the federal government support state efforts to develop three “fast tracks to college” that would give all students, regardless of socio-economic status, an alternative to the traditional high school senior year.

We hope that during conference members will support a provision in SB 1642 that provides funds to states that are developing alternatives to the traditional high school junior and senior years that give students a head start on a recognized postsecondary credential. This policy would also assist high school drop-outs in completing high school and beginning college-level work.

Finally, conferees should also consider repealing the “Aid Elimination Penalty,” which has denied financial aid to roughly 200,000 students with drug convictions. The policy only affects low- and middle-income students, and is not an effective way to counter the drug abuse in the United States.