[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 107 (Thursday, June 23, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3150-S3151]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE PELL GRANT PROGRAM

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, today marks the 50th anniversary of the 
Pell Grant Program, a program that has been the bedrock of our Nation's 
investment in higher education.
  This bipartisan program has provided direct financial aid to low-
income students since 1972, and there currently are 7 million students 
receiving a Pell grant. In my home State of Illinois, more than 208,000 
Pell grants totaling nearly $860 million were awarded in the 2020-2021 
academic year. These Federal dollars help provide students and families 
access to higher education, well-paying jobs, and economic mobility.

[[Page S3151]]

  But Pell grants have failed to keep up with the times. When it was 
created, the Pell grant covered more than 75 percent of the average 
cost of attendance at a 4-year public college. Today, Pell grants cover 
less than 30 percent of these expenses. This means that students are 
forced to take on student loans, exacerbating the student loan debt 
crisis. Fourty-five million Americans owe $1.7 trillion in student loan 
debt, which is second only to mortgages as the largest category of 
consumer debt.
  Doubling the Pell grant would be an investment in our Nation's future 
and would help ensure students can access higher education. At the same 
time, the for-profit college industry--an industry with a track record 
of preying on low-income students--must continue to be held accountable 
so students and taxpayers are not being ripped off. The for-profit 
college industry enrolls only 8 percent of all postsecondary students 
in America, but accounts for 30 percent of all Federal student loan 
defaults. Too often, students and taxpayers are left holding the bag.
  As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Pell grants, I urge my 
colleagues to support low-income students by increasing these grants to 
cover a greater amount of college expenses and ensuring the most 
vulnerable students are protected from fraudulent for-profit colleges.

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