[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 10 (Thursday, February 3, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S986-S987]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DODD (for himself, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Jeffords, Mrs. 
        Murray, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Sarbanes, Ms. Landrieu, Mr. Dayton, 
        Mr. Levin, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Inouye, Mr. Corzine, Mr. Durbin, 
        and Mr. Akaka):
  S. 286. A bill to amend section 401(b)(2) of the Higher Education Act 
of 1965 regarding the Federal Pell Grant maximum amount; to the 
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, I rise and am joined by my colleagues 
Senators Mikulski, Jeffords, Murray, Lieberman, Sarbanes, Landrieu, 
Dayton, Levin, Lautenberg, Inouye,

[[Page S987]]

Corzine, Durbin and Akaka to introduce legislation to amend the Higher 
Education Act to improve access to higher education for low- and 
middle-income students by raising the authorized maximum Pell Grant to 
$11,600 within five years. This bill has the strong support of the 
Student Aid Alliance, whose 60 organizations represent students, 
colleges, parents, and others who care about higher education.
  Pell Grants were established in the early 1970s by our former 
colleague, I Claiborne Pell, of Rhode Island. They are the largest 
source of Federal grant aid for college students. For millions of low- 
and middle-income students they are the difference between attending or 
not attending college. But, unfortunately, they don't make as much of a 
difference as they used to.
  In 1975, the maximum appropriated Pell Grant covered all of the 
average student's tuition, fees, room, and board at community colleges. 
It covered about 80 percent of those costs at public universities and 
about 40 percent at private universities. In 2003, the average Pell 
Grant covered 32 percent of tuition, room and board at community 
colleges, 23 percent of the total charges at public universities, and 9 
percent of total charges at private universities. That's not just a 
drop, it's a free-fall.
  For low- and middle-income families, the cost of college also has 
increased significantly as a percentage of income. College is getting 
farther and farther out of reach for an entire generation of students.
  As a result of all this, low- and middle-income students who want to 
attend college are forced to finance their education with an ever-
increasing percentage of loans as opposed to grants. This increases the 
cost of attendance for these students even more, and in many cases, 
keeps them from going to college at all.
  For four years now, the Administration has not raised the maximum 
Pell Grant. On top of leaving millions of children behind by failing to 
meet the bipartisan promises of the No Child Left Behind Act, they have 
left even more children behind who work hard and do well in school and 
want to go on to college. If we're serious about leaving no child 
behind, if we're serious about having a society where equal opportunity 
for all is more than just rhetoric, then we need to reinvigorate the 
Pell program.
  It has been said that investing in a student's future is investing in 
our Nation's future. We can start investing in our Nation's future by 
supporting this bill to increase the maximum appropriated Pell Grant to 
$11,600. This bill won't bring the Pell Grant's purchasing power back 
to where it was in 1975, but it is a critical first step, and I intend 
to continue my efforts on this matter throughout this Congress. I hope 
that my colleagues will join me.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 286

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

     SECTION 1. FEDERAL PELL GRANT MAXIMUM AMOUNT.

       Section 401(b)(2) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
     U.S.C. 1070a(b)(2)) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C);
       (2) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the amount of 
     the Federal Pell Grant for a student eligible under this part 
     shall be--
       ``(i) $7,600 for academic year 2005-2006;
       ``(ii) $8,600 for academic year 2006-2007;
       ``(iii) $9,600 for academic year 2007-2008;
       ``(iv) $10,600 for academic year 2008-2009; and
       ``(v) $11,600 for academic year 2009-2010,

     less an amount equal to the amount determined to be the 
     expected family contribution with respect to that student for 
     that year.''; and
       (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) (as amended by 
     paragraph (2)) the following:
       ``(B) If the Secretary determines that the increase from 
     one academic year to the next in the amount of the maximum 
     Federal Pell Grant authorized under subparagraph (A) does not 
     increase students' purchasing power (relative to the cost of 
     attendance at an institution of higher education) by not less 
     than 5 percentage points, then the amount of the maximum 
     Federal Pell Grant authorized under subparagraph (A) for the 
     academic year for which the determination is made shall be 
     increased by an amount sufficient to achieve such a 5 
     percentage point increase.''.
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