[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9593]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      STUDENT LOAN INTEREST RATES

  (Mr. CICILLINE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, unless Congress acts, in less than 2 
weeks, the interest rates on federally subsidized Stafford loans will 
double from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent for more than 7 million 
students.
  In my home State of Rhode Island, which is home to more than 40,000 
borrowers of federally subsidized Stafford loans, this means that 
higher education will become less attainable for more and more young 
people who depend on financial aid. As we work to get our economy back 
on track, we should be making it easier, not more difficult, for young 
people to access higher education.
  Once again, the House Republican leadership is failing to act in the 
best interest of the American people. Rather than working towards a 
commonsense solution on student loan interest rates, we are spending 
this week voting on a $20 billion cut to children's nutrition programs 
and a bill that would severely restrict reproductive health care for 
women.
  This has gone on long enough. In the interests of our constituents, 
Republicans and Democrats should set aside our differences and get back 
to solving the problems that our country faces. The Republican leaders 
in the House should bring bills to the floor for a vote that focus on 
protecting students from interest rate increases and getting Americans 
back to work.

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