[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 1446]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          LET'S SUPPORT H.R. 5

  (Mr. COHEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, as a State senator in Tennessee, I worked for 
more than 20 years to pass a State lottery with proceeds benefiting 
education programs. The primary recipients of the proceeds are college 
students. In addition to keeping Tennessee's best and brightest in 
Tennessee, the purpose of the Lottery HOPE scholarship program is to 
provide students with a means to focus on their studies rather than 
having to take a second job to pay their tuition, and also to permit 
them to enter the workforce without the burden of student loans.
  Tuition has risen sharply at both public and private universities, 
particularly at public institutions; interest rates on student loans 
have risen as well. This has been an onerous burden on students and 
their families, and for many Americans it has left them out in the cold 
in terms of pursuing a college education.
  For the U.S. to be able to compete for jobs in the world, we must 
have an educated workforce. We are facing a shortage of up to 12 
million college-educated workers by 2020. We need to remove roadblocks 
to education. There is nothing more important than the education of our 
citizenry, because it impacts every facet of our society.
  I ask my fellow Members of Congress to join the Democratic majority, 
join with me in supporting H.R. 5 as part of the 100 hours. Pass this 
student loan reduction bill.

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