[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 132 (Thursday, September 17, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2299-E2300]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           STUDENT AID AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY ACT OF 2009

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                  HON. GREGORIO KILILI CAMACHO SABLAN

          of the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 16, 2009

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 3221) to 
     amend the Higher Education Act of 1965, and for other 
     purposes:

  Mr. SABLAN. Madam Chair, I rise today in support of H.R. 3221, the 
Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act. I wish to thank Chairman 
Miller for his leadership on this bill, and express my thanks to the 
staff as well.
   Madam Chair, the financial resources of local governments and 
college and university scholarship funds are quickly dwindling. I am 
encouraged that this Congress is working to ensure access to student 
grants and loans at a time when many families, including those in my 
district in the Northern Mariana Islands, are struggling to make ends 
meet. The changes made by H.R. 3221 will mean that even more students 
will get the opportunity to pursue higher education.
  This legislation will raise the annual maximum Pell grant to 
unprecedented levels and ensure that these grants will continue to 
increase with the cost of tuition. It will open up an additional $4 
million for Pell grants in the Northern Marianas alone. It will make 
investments in financial aid that will benefit students from every 
district, no matter where they go to college. Increased funding to 
minority-serving institutions, including those with large populations 
of Pacific Islanders, will ensure that our students from the Northern 
Marianas are cared for and supported, both socially and academically, 
when they are so far away from their home.
   Three quarters of a million dollars will be available in the 
Northern Marianas for programs that encourage students to stay in

[[Page E2300]]

school and make sure they succeed. And money will also be dedicated to 
community colleges, like Northern Marianas College, to help them 
finance new projects and cover existing needs.
   Higher education is truly the investment of a lifetime--it creates 
opportunities and opens doors that will benefit our students and 
families far into the future. I applaud this legislation.

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