John Kline: “I think, again, this amendment is underscoring the many issues that students and their parents and families are facing…”

“I think, again, this amendment is underscoring the many issues that students and their parents and families are facing as they go into this postsecondary education adventure. Some of them, really, are coming off of jobs. The last thing they are thinking about is bankruptcy or the size of their loans. Most of them don't even know what bankruptcy is--or many of them don't know. Maybe they are a lot smarter than I was at that time. This amendment makes it clear that they understand the difference between the rules under a student loan--if they don't pay it or can't pay it--and under other loans. Without this sort of explanation, they wouldn't have any idea that their loans were not dischargeable in bankruptcy except, as the gentleman says, in some unusual circumstances. Again, that is why this sort of financial counseling early and often is going to be very careful, because this isn't a simple matter of taking out--we will use a car loan as an example with a set amount, a set interest--a set amount that you pay back for a set number of years. Folks understand how that works. But in having student loans merged with all sorts of other programs--workstudy programs and Pell grants and so forth--it is no wonder that students are graduating, stepping out and--oh, by the way--they can't find jobs because the economy is in so much trouble.…”