WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) welcomed the inclusion of his Understanding the True Cost of College Act in a legislative package introduced by Grassley and five Senate colleagues as a responsible alternative to the Biden administration’s student debt transfer proposal. Grassley joined Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, as well as Steve Daines (R-Mont.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) to introduce the Lowering Education Costs and Debt Act, a package of five bills aimed at directly addressing the issues driving the skyrocketing cost of higher education and the increasing amounts of debt students take on to pursue a higher education.
Grassley’s Understanding the True Cost of College Act would create a universal financial aid offer form and standardize terms used to describe financial aid. This change would allow students to compare financial aid packages and prevent troubling findings by the Government Accountability Office that more than 90 percent of college financial aid offer letters currently understate the price students would pay. A summary of the bill is available HERE.
The package also includes Sen. Daines’ Informed Borrowing Act, which closely mirrors an original Grassley bill. This legislative proposal would fully prepare students to take out loans in a responsible manner by strengthening loan counseling requirements and offering clear information about the duration of their loan, their expected monthly payment, as well as how much money the average graduate makes after attending their school and program of choice.
“Iowans understand that when you take out a loan, you have a responsibility to pay it back. The Biden administration’s plan to forgive student debt would only transfer the burden of repayment onto American taxpayers, costing them billions of dollars. That’s an outrageous approach to the student debt crisis. It’s as effective as closing the barn door after the horses have already gotten out,” Grassley said. “Our legislative package takes a proactive approach by informing students and their families of their best options, and I’m proud to see my legislation included in the package.”
The senators will host a press conference at 1:00 PM CT / 2:00 PM ET in the Senate Radio-Television Gallery (S-325) to discuss their legislative package. Click HERE to watch the press conference live.
Specifically, the Lowering Education Costs and Debt Act would:
- Create downward pressure on the cost of colleges and universities that have used the availability of federal loans to artificially increase their prices, leading students to take out rising amounts of debt;
- Provide students and families with better information to choose the right school and program of study to achieve the best return on investment;
- Simplify the student loan borrowing process to prevent students from unintentionally taking out more loans than they can afford or need;
- Ensure borrowers can navigate student loan repayment options without unnecessary confusion; and
- Guide students against taking on debt to attend programs that do not translate to higher-paying job opportunities.
- The College Transparency Act (CTA) – Reforms the college data reporting system to ensure students and families have better information on student success and outcomes as they consider higher education institutions. Cassidy previously introduced this bill.
- The Streamlining Accountability and Value in Education (SAVE) for Students Act – Simplifies repayment options for borrowers from nine options to two to give borrowers clarity after they leave school. Additionally, the bill limits new loans to undergraduate and graduate programs where former students cannot earn more than a high school graduate or a bachelor’s degree recipient, respectively. Sen. Cornyn introduced this bill.
- The Graduate Opportunity and Affordable Loans (GOAL) Act – Ends inflationary Graduate PLUS loans and puts downward pressure on rising tuition costs by limiting graduate school borrowing. Additionally, it allows institutions to set lower loan limits by program to protect students from over-borrowing. Sen. Tuberville introduced this bill.
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