[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5402 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5402

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the limitations on 
     the deduction for interest on education loans and to make the 
                   deduction, as amended, permanent.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 18, 2002

  Mr. Israel introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Ways and Means

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the limitations on 
     the deduction for interest on education loans and to make the 
                   deduction, as amended, permanent.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reducing Education Loan Repayment 
Act of 2002''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Working families, because of their high student loans, 
        have difficulty saving for their children's education.
            (2) The average tuition for four years of college is 
        $15,000 to $32,000.
            (3) The average college graduate with student loan debt 
        begins working with $11,000 to $18,000 of debt.
            (4) Education is an American value, and going to school 
        should be encouraged by American public policy.
            (5) Education benefits not only the educated person but 
        also the entire community.
            (6) Education is important for everyone in the United 
        States, regardless of income level.
            (7) The interest on education loans is the bulk of student 
        loan payments in the first years after graduation, which 
        creates great financial hardships on new graduates.
            (8) High debt burdens too often limit a person's 
        occupational choices.
            (9) The mortgage interest deduction encourages home 
        ownership in America, giving more Americans a stable investment 
        they can count on for decades.
            (10) Education is another investment that can be counted to 
        increase earning potential for decades.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to equalize the tax 
treatment of student loan interest and mortgage interest.

SEC. 3. REPEAL OF LIMITATIONS ON DEDUCTIONS FOR INTEREST ON EDUCATION 
              LOANS.

    (a) In General.--Section 221 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to interest on education loans) is amended--
            (1) by striking subsections (b) and (f), and
            (2) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), and (e) as 
        subsections (b), (c), and (d), respectively.
    (b) Deduction Made Permanent.--Section 901 of the Economic Growth 
and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 is amended by adding at the 
end the following new subsection:
    ``(c) Exception.--Subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply with 
respect to the amendments made by this Act to section 221 of the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 6050S(e) of such Code is amended 
by striking ``221(d)(1)'' and inserting ``221(c)(1)''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to interest paid after December 31, 2002, in taxable years 
beginning after such date.
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