[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 42 (Thursday, April 10, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E624-E625]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF THE PELL GRANT STUDENT/TAXPAYER PROTECTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MARGE ROUKEMA

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 10, 1997

  Mrs. ROUKEMA. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased today to introduce the Pell 
Grant Student/Taxpayer Protection Act. This legislation would prevent a 
postsecondary school from participating in the Pell Grant Program if 
that school is already ineligible to participate in the federally 
guaranteed student loan program. Plain and simple, this legislation 
will make sure that if you have high default rates, then you should not 
receive any title IV higher education funding period.
  This is a critical time for our country. Congress is trying to save 
taxpayer dollars while improving the quality of postsecondary education 
that is available to all Americans. We have taken strong steps forward 
in achieving this when we reauthorized the Higher Education Act with 
nearly 100 sorely needed reforms that were good for students and good 
for taxpayers.
  Reforms such as the 3-year 25 percent cohort default rate were 
intended to put an end to risk-free Federal subsidies for those 
unscrupulous, for profit trade schools who promise

[[Page E625]]

students a good education that leads to a good job and then fail to 
deliver on that promise--at the expense of both students and the 
taxpayers. If these schools violated these rules, then they would be 
bounced from the program.
  We have already determined that schools with unacceptably high 
student loan default rates should not be permitted to participate in 
the federally guaranteed student loan program. I submit that if a 
school is deemed ineligible to participate in the federally guaranteed 
student loan program, then it should also not be permitted to 
participate in the Pell Grant Program.
  We were able to put this into effect by making it a part of the 
Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996. After 
going into effect for 1 year, about $8 million were redistributed to 
responsible schools.
  If we could find a way to pay for an increase in title IV student aid 
programs, there would be very few Members, if any, who would be 
unsupportive. But, faced with a $4.7 trillion debt and annual deficits 
exceeding $200 billion, we do not have that luxury. However, today we 
have an opportunity to stretch our Pell grant funds by disqualifying 
those schools that we have already disqualified from the federally 
guaranteed student loan program.
  I urge my colleagues to support this critical legislation. Make our 
Pell grant money go farther. Throw the scam schools out of the Pell 
program. Protect the taxpayer. Cosponsor the Pell Grant Student/
Taxpayer Protection Act.

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