[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 64 (Tuesday, May 8, 2012)]
[House]
[Page H2336]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       STUDENT LOAN INTEREST RATE

  (Ms. KAPTUR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, right now, student loan debt is higher than 
credit card debt for the first time in history. College costs are 
growing each year, forcing students to take out more loans to get the 
same education--an education that gives them the keys to the American 
middle class. And the Republican's response? Play political games that 
could result in interest rate hikes from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent on 
July 1 for student loans, affecting over 7 million students, making the 
average graduate pay an additional $1,000 in interest payments each 
year if rates are allowed to double. Ohio students alone will end up 
paying nearly $300 million in extra interest payments over the next 
year.
  Recent graduates have high unemployment rates and are the least 
prepared to deal with these increased payments. But House Republicans 
are content to plunge them deeper into debt while instead fighting for 
more tax breaks for millionaires, many of whom pay lower rates than the 
middle class.
  It's time for Republicans to come to the table and compromise. It 
seems logical that Congress would not stand in the way of making 
college more affordable by doubling the interest rates of college 
loans, but the Republican Party in this House is not acting logically. 
What a crying shame.

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