Kay Hagan: “I come to the floor today to also speak about preventing student loan interest rates from doubling from 3.4 percent to…”

“I come to the floor today to also speak about preventing student loan interest rates from doubling from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent. I am disappointed that partisan gamesmanship is threatening the financial futures of students in North Carolina and around the country. In North Carolina we are very proud of our 16 excellent public universities and 58 outstanding community colleges. In addition, dozens of the best private colleges and universities in the Nation also call North Carolina home. Our excellence in higher education sets North Carolina apart. Business owners I talked to routinely told me that our highly educated and highly skilled workforce is what attracted their companies to North Carolina. There is no doubt that the strength of our economy going forward depends on the continued strength of our educational system. However, the cost of college continues to rise in North Carolina and across the country. If Congress does not act before July 1, more than 160,000 North Carolina students will be saddled with an additional $1,000 in student loan debt. According to the project on student debt, more than half of North Carolina's 300,000 students at 4-year colleges and universities borrowed money to pay for their education. On average these students graduated with more than $21,000 in debt. That debt has real consequences for our graduates and for North Carolina's economy.…”