Dennis Kucinich: “I thank the gentleman. In February, this House passed a reconciliation bill that cut $12 billion from the student aid…”

“I thank the gentleman. In February, this House passed a reconciliation bill that cut $12 billion from the student aid program. That bill raised student loan interest rate caps and raised student loan taxes and fees. It placed billions of dollars in student aid at risk by cutting $2.2 billion in critical funds used to carry out and administer the student aid program. Just as the reconciliation bill did not help students, H.R. 609 will not improve access to college. The reauthorization bill we are debating today is not about making college affordable, and it is not about helping students pay for college. This bill makes significant changes in the Higher Education Act, but the purpose of many of the changes is not to benefit students. {time} 1245 H.R. 609 certainly helps for-profit colleges. Proprietary schools, which have faced a number of controls and regulations to protect taxpayers and students from abuse, will see markedly less oversight. The new single definition of an institution of higher education will allow for-profit colleges access to additional student aid Federal funding. At the same time, changes to the sanctions of the 90-10 rule will leave students at risk, allowing for-profit colleges to remain out of compliance for 3 consecutive years before losing eligibility to participate in Federal student aid programs. The purpose of the 90-10 rule was to ensure that schools were not relying on student aid programs for the entirety of their funding.…”