[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8247-8248]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            VOTE EXPLANATION

 Mrs. McCASKILL. Madam President, on Thursday morning, the 
Senate took cloture votes in relation to motions to proceed to S. 953 
and S. 1003, which represent a Democratic and Republican proposal, 
respectively, to address the interest rate offered on subsidized 
Federal Stafford loans, a form of Federal student loan available to 
many who are pursuing a postsecondary education. I was unable to be 
present for these votes, due to a prescheduled commitment; before the 
timing of these votes

[[Page 8248]]

was envisioned, my attendance was confirmed at a women's conference. 
Because my presence would not have changed the outcome of either vote, 
I honored my previous commitment. Had I been present I would have voted 
in support of S. 953 and opposed S. 1003.
  In my State, over 150,000 students will borrow subsidized Stafford 
loans next school year. These are need-based loans given to kids who 
have studied hard and families who have made financial sacrifices and 
plan to borrow what they need to cover the rising costs of higher 
education. Rather than reward their efforts, the government plans to 
add to their burden unless action is taken. On July 1, the interest 
rate on new subsidized Stafford student loans is scheduled to double 
from 3.4 to 6.8 percent.
  We are facing a crisis. Already, officials at the Federal Reserve, 
the Department of the Treasury, and the Consumer Financial Protection 
Bureau have all warned that student borrowing threatens to dampen 
consumption, depress the economy, limit credit creation, and pose a 
threat to our Nation's financial stability. Students and graduates in 
my State are already heavily in student loan debt. Two out of every 
three Missouri students will leave college with student loan debt. If 
we fail to take action, students with subsidized Stafford loans will 
have to pay over $1,000 more than they would under current interest 
rates on their loans. At a time when a higher education is vital to 
expanded opportunity for so many young people and with a 21st century 
economy that increasingly demands workers with the skills learned as 
part of a college education, we cannot be making it even more difficult 
for young people to financially achieve a college education. We need to 
act.
  There are several proposals to address this impending crisis. I am a 
proud cosponsor of two bills that would provide needed relief and give 
Congress the opportunity to address a long-term solution to exploding 
student loan debt when it reauthorizes the Higher Education Act.
  The first, S. 953, the Student Loan Affordability Act, introduced by 
Senator Reed of Rhode Island, would lock in the current 3.4% rate for 
subsidized Stafford loans for 2 years while Congress works on a long-
term solution to slow the rapid accumulation of student loan debt. This 
bill would be fully paid for by closing tax loopholes enjoyed by 
companies that move American jobs offshore, big oil companies, and the 
wealthiest Americans.
  I am also a cosponsor of Senator Warren's Bank on Students Loan 
Fairness Act which would give students the same deal we give to the big 
banks by allowing those who are eligible for subsidized Stafford loans 
to borrow at the same rate offered to banks through the Federal Reserve 
discount window. This is commonsense, and it is fair.
  Unfortunately, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle believe 
the solution to this current uncertainty is even more uncertainty. 
Their solution, S. 1003, would produce variable, uncapped interest 
rates that would hit low-income students the hardest.
  Today's votes leave us in the same situation we were in: we need to 
act to prevent student loan interest rate increases that would 
additionally burden our students. I will continue to work with my 
colleagues on both sides of the aisle to achieve meaningful legislation 
that preserves the availability of student loans and the economic 
opportunities they afford as an option for future generations of 
Americans.

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