[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 71 (Wednesday, May 1, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H3397-H3399]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          STUDENT DEBT CRISIS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 3, 2019, the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Tlaib) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, I rise today recognizing the amazing 
contribution of our Congressional Progressive Caucus in allowing many 
of our colleagues who are pushing bold and progressive ideas, 
especially around college affordability.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Porter).
  Ms. PORTER. Mr. Speaker, this weekend, college students around the

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country will cross the graduation stage, accept their diplomas, and get 
ready to begin their careers. It will be a weekend of well-deserved 
celebration. Their hard work and years of study have paid off. Yet, for 
too many of these students, they will soon face the reality of paying 
the high price of their diplomas.
  Too many of these students will soon come face-to-face with a 
mountain of debt that will take them years, often decades to pay. 
Today, nearly 43 million Americans, that is one in six adults, have 
Federal student loan debt. The Federal student loan portfolio has risen 
to over $1.4 trillion.
  Tomorrow's graduates will face an average of $30,000 in debt, a 
crippling amount for any young person to shoulder before they have even 
entered the workforce. That amount of debt increases every single year. 
How can we expect young people in this country to choose the course of 
their careers, to contribute to their communities, and to plan and 
start their families while simultaneously allowing lenders to saddle 
them with loan burdens on decades-long repayment timelines?
  Among borrowers of all ages with outstanding student loan debt, the 
median self-reported amount owed among those with less than a 
bachelor's degree was $10,000. Bachelor's degree holders owe a median 
of $25,000, and those with a postgraduate degree owe a median of 
$45,000.
  I have heard stories from students at colleges and universities 
throughout California's 45th Congressional District.
  Merhpad and her family immigrated to the United States in 2014. After 
they settled in Orange County, earning a college degree became her 
primary goal. But without Federal financial aid programs, such as the 
Pell grant, she would not have been able to afford and pursue an 
education. Her commitment and dedication to her education inspired her 
parents to also attend Irvine Valley College to pursue degrees.

  She uses her financial aid to afford transportation, food, 
healthcare, and school supplies. Because she lives with her parents, 
she doesn't need to spend financial aid on housing. But other students 
aren't so lucky.
  Community colleges typically don't offer housing for their students, 
and with an average rent of $1,000 to $2,000 in Orange County, it is 
almost impossible to afford to live near our colleges' campuses.
  Jose, a student at Saddleback College in Orange County is studying 
psychology and playing football. He is the eighth of 11 kids. He 
received a scholarship to cover his tuition and meals, but it isn't 
enough to help him afford housing. Jose was homeless for two semesters, 
sleeping in his car and at his football teammates' houses. Despite 
these challenges, Jose has a 3.8 GPA and he hopes to graduate from 
Saddleback to go on to pursue a degree in clinical psychology.
  He explained, ``I move forward towards graduation, believing that if 
I can overcome the adversities I have faced in my life, anyone can.''
  His persistence and dedication are inspiring. But no student should 
ever have to choose between getting an education and being homeless. 
Unfortunately, these stories are all too common. Too many students are 
struggling just to keep a roof over their heads.
  Recently, I met with students from the University of California 
Irvine to discuss the challenges they are facing. One of those students 
was Stephanie, a first-generation student studying public health.
  She completed the full college application process on her own, 
including applying for financial aid. She received both a Pell grant 
and a Cal grant, but she still has to work three part-time jobs 
throughout the year to afford housing and food.
  She spends more than 12 hours most days in class and at her part-time 
jobs, fighting to ensure that she doesn't have to take on student 
loans, so she can go on to pursue a masters in global public health. 
Stephanie is not the only one facing challenges affording living 
expenses while in college.
  Another one of those students was Deshay, a junior at UC Irvine who 
will soon become the first person in his family to graduate from 
college. Deshay left home at 17, so when he applied for financial aid a 
year later, he did so on his own, declaring himself as an independent.
  His expected family contribution was zero. While he got the funding 
necessary to attend UC Irvine, the aid didn't cover all of his living 
needs, including groceries. Deshay had a goal when he started college. 
He wanted to graduate loan free. He didn't want to take out loans to 
pay for his living expenses and so he took on two part-time jobs. But 
the reality of the cost of living in Orange County soon set in.
  After nearly 2 months of eating only one meal a day, Deshay was left 
with few choices. When he finishes college next year, he will graduate 
with nearly $30,000 of debt.
  Still, he is excited to graduate and to start giving back to our 
community. He plans to move home to Sacramento and he hopes to open a 
youth center modeled after Boys & Girls Clubs across the country. But 
Deshay is worried that he may not be able to successfully apply for the 
loan that he will need to start his business, in large part because of 
the student loan debt he carries.
  College students who have fought to pursue an education, who work 
tirelessly toward their dreams, are being forced to put these dreams on 
hold. Why? Because the education necessary to achieve their dreams has 
left them buried in debt.
  This Congress, as we work on the reauthorization of key legislation 
for students across this country, we need to ensure that students 
graduating this weekend and in coming weeks don't have to choose 
between a job serving their communities or financial security or choose 
between putting food on the table and attending classes.
  That is why I will be introducing the Consumer Financial Protection 
Bureau Student Loan Integrity and Transparency Act, along with Senators 
Warren, Brown, and Udall. The bill does just what it says. It mandates 
that the Department of Education and student loan servicers share 
information and cooperate with the Consumer Financial Protection 
Bureau's student loan education ombudsman. That ombudsman is the number 
one Federal official tasked with advocating for our students who are 
struggling to repay loans.
  It also requires the ombudsman's office be fully staffed at all times 
so the office can conduct the level of oversight necessary to protect 
student borrowers.
  This is just the first step of many needed to improve student loan 
oversight and improve college affordability. I look forward to 
opportunities to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
ensure that our students have the opportunity to access an affordable 
college education.
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Minnesota 
(Ms. Omar).
  Ms. OMAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the student debt 
crisis that is holding back our students, our families, and our 
economy.
  Last year, American's collective student loan debt surpassed $1.5 
trillion. The shackles of debt keep former students and their families 
from seeing the economic prosperity promised to them by their 
education.
  More than 40 million Americans now have student debt, and the amount 
of debt that the average student carries is rising. Student loan 
balances have more than doubled real terms since 2005. Average real 
student loan debt per capita for individuals between the ages of 24 to 
32 has risen from $5,000 in 2005 to $10,000 in 2014.
  It is driving down home ownership rates, especially for young people. 
One study found that a $1,000 increase in student loan debt causes a 1-
to-2 percent drop in home ownership rates for borrowers in their late 
twenties and early thirties, threatening to undermine the long-term 
financial stability of an entire generation.
  Young adults who graduate college with a student debt now have 
negative net worth with a median net worth of $1,900, down from $9,000 
in 2013.

  Student loan debt does not only impact young people. The number of 
people over 60 with student loan debt has quadrupled in the last four 
decades. Parents are increasingly jeopardizing their retirement to pay 
off loans they took out to pay for their kids' education.
  The source of student debt does not affect all Americans equally. 
Students

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of color face a higher risk of defaulting on their student loans and 
struggle to find jobs to pay off these loans due to discrimination in 
hiring practices.
  First generation and immigrant college students face much higher 
default rates, and women own two-thirds of the $1.4 trillion total of 
student debt.
  The burden of this debt will be intensified postgraduation by the 
gender gap. It is time we started treating student debt like the 
national crisis it is. We need urgent action to address it. That is why 
I support debt free and tuition-free college and will be introducing a 
bill to cancel all student debt.
  Our Debt-Free College Act would make debt-free college a reality for 
students within 5 years. We can ensure that students graduate debt free 
and are not at a competitive disadvantage as a result of the burden of 
student loan debt.
  Making public 2-year and 4-year colleges free and accessible to all 
is essential in investing in an equitable future. It would also provide 
an enormous middle class stimulus that would boost economic growth, 
increase home purchases, and fuel a new wave of small business 
formation.
  Student debt is not the result of bad choices or behaviors. It is the 
result of a system that tells the students to get an education, go to 
college in order to have a stable life, but then does not provide the 
resources so that they can afford that education.
  But I believe together we can reform that system.
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, we talk about opportunity a lot in this 
Chamber. The opportunity to thrive, the access to get ahead in life if 
you worked hard. We tell our kids every day that opportunity is 
abundant. It is everywhere, in every corner. If you just work hard, you 
can have access to a tremendous amount of opportunity.

                              {time}  1900

  Yet we know now that many roadblocks exist through no fault of their 
own. This is why it is so critically important to talk about the 
college affordability issue and crisis in our country.
  There are many motivations to go to school. For many first-generation 
college students like me, it is to help their families. Many want to 
give back to their community, yet many are not able to fulfill this 
dream because of affordability.
  In fact, Mr. Speaker, Michigan ranks among States in the bottom half 
in college attainment. Fewer than 30 percent of Michigan adults hold at 
least a bachelor's degree. We are closing the door on those who want to 
help others, whether it is their family or their broader community.
  Studies show that first-generation college students go to college in 
order to help their families. Sixty-nine percent of them say they want 
to help their families compared to 39 percent of students whose parents 
have earned a degree. This desire also extends to the community with 61 
percent of first-generation college students wanting to give back to 
their communities compared to 43 percent of their non-first-generation 
peers.
  Regarding college school loan debt, students used to think about 
getting good enough grades when we go to college. That is what we were 
focused on. Not anymore, Mr. Speaker. Students today are forced to make 
a decision between a degree and access to that opportunity or debt.
  In 2016, 64 percent of Michigan college graduates left school with 
debt, an average of over $30,000 a year, the 11th highest in the 
Nation. Even after factoring in grant programs, low-income families 
have to pay more than 70 percent of their income to cover college 
costs.
  I want to share a story of my friend in college. It took him close to 
a decade because he was serving our country. He came back after serving 
not only as a U.S. marine but also doing civil service work for the 
United States Army. He came back, and all he wanted to do was become a 
schoolteacher, a public educator. He loves it. It is his passion.
  As he sits in his classroom every single day educating our children, 
he has to also deal with the increase in debt, with the high cost of 
interest, and with all those things that now put him in a financial 
crisis.
  The bottom line, Mr. Speaker, is that low- and middle-income 
households already face higher burdens. They are less likely to have 
family assistance and more likely to have other pressures such as a 
part-time job or family caretaking roles in addition to their 
schoolwork.
  As many low-income students avoid applying to college altogether due 
to costs, borrowers who are tens of thousands of dollars in debt aren't 
able to purchase homes, start their families, obtain employment in 
certain fields, and save for retirement.
  Student loan debt is further putting low- and middle-income students 
and their families into a downward spiral that leaves many worse off 
than they were when they started school.
  This is not how it has to be. Student debt has a greater impact on 
low-income borrowers, as many of us know. In fact, borrowers in low- 
and moderate-income households face education debt that has averaged 24 
percent of their income in 2010 alone. The average for all households 
was 6 percent.
  Looking at that more deeply and really unpacking that, we also have 
to look at food insecurity and housing insecurity when it comes to 
college affordability. The current state of college affordability 
leaves so many students in housing insecurity as well as food 
insecurity.
  Most college students, Mr. Speaker, attending at least half-time are 
not eligible for SNAP assistance unless they work at least 20 hours per 
week or they work part-time in a work-study program, have young 
children, or meet certain other requirements. Again, they are stuck in 
a spiral of insecurity. However, working 20 hours a week has been shown 
to lengthen the time it takes to graduate, just like for one of my best 
friends.
  Increased college costs lead to a heightened risk of dropping out as 
well. I have seen many, many of my friends who started with me who 
could not finish because they couldn't afford it.
  On-campus housing comprises anywhere from 24 to 42 percent of 
students' total budgets. Meanwhile, the cost of off-campus housing 
surrounding universities tends to be higher than the standard market 
rate. We see that in all our districts across the Nation.
  These steep costs have consequences. One survey alone found that 42 
percent of their undergraduate students had experienced housing 
insecurity within the past year.
  In many cases, housing insecurity is coupled with food insecurity. In 
one study, 59 percent of students at a 4-year university experienced 
food insecurity. What that means is not having enough to eat, just like 
my colleague from California talked about for a specific resident in 
her community who only could afford to eat once a day.
  The bottom line, Mr. Speaker, is that the more college becomes 
unaffordable and out of reach for working- and middle-class families, 
the more we subject students to poverty as they try to obtain higher 
education.
  As income inequality increases and as we see it across our Nation 
every single day, and college tuition and living expenses go up as 
well, we are creating an environment where fewer people have an 
opportunity to thrive, fewer people can help their families, and fewer 
people have the means to help their community. This should not happen 
in our country, and we should be working day in and day out to correct 
this.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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