[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 117 (Thursday, July 24, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1231]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         H.R. 3136 AND H.R.4984

                                  _____
                                 

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 24, 2014

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the two bipartisan 
higher education bills we are considering this week--the Advancing 
Competency-Based Education Demonstration Project Act (H.R. 3136) and 
the Empowering Students Through Enhanced Financial Counseling Act (H.R. 
4984).
  H.R. 3136, on the floor today, allows schools to pilot new 
competency-based education programs to give students more flexibility 
to pursue their educations. By exploring new options to measure student 
growth, rather than relying solely on completed credit hours, we can 
reduce costs and time to degree for non-traditional students.
  H.R. 4984, which we will consider tomorrow, increases financial 
counseling for students and parents to ensure that they understand any 
lower-cost options that are available before turning to more expensive 
loans, have an accurate picture of their debt and obligations, and can 
predict and manage their monthly payments upon graduation.
  While I support both of these efforts, much more needs to be done to 
ensure that students have access to affordable education and address 
college debt, which has now surpassed $1 trillion. I look forward to 
working on a bipartisan basis to reauthorize the Higher Education Act 
and give America's students the opportunity to pursue the skills and 
education they need without accumulating debt they can't afford.

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