Press Releases

Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) today stood up for low-income students and their access to federal financial aid, such as Pell Grants and student loans. DelBene offered an amendment to H.R. 3438 to ensure the bill doesn’t disrupt the administration of student financial aid programs, but Republicans blocked it in a House Judiciary Committee markup.

“Growing up, my parents struggled financially. But with student loans and financial aid, I was able to go to college and get a great education. We need to make sure today’s students have the same opportunities that were available to us,” DelBene said. “That starts by protecting the Department of Education’s ability to administer vital financial aid programs, like Pell Grants and Federal Student Loans. These programs have enabled millions of low-income students to attend college and help create access to opportunity for all.”

This year alone, more than 8.4 million low-income students will benefit from Pell Grants, and 20 million student loans will be issued to help students and parents afford the cost of college. DelBene’s amendment simply protects the Department of Education’s ability to administer these programs, which is threatened by the underlying bill. H.R. 3438 would allow any legal challenge to a rule, including frivolous lawsuits, to halt an agency’s administration of important aid programs.

DelBene has made college affordability a top priority during her time in Congress. She introduced the E-BOOK Act (H.R. 2089) to help college students save money on textbooks by encouraging the use of low-cost or free digital course materials. She also helped roll back the doubling of student loan interest rates in 2013, which had hiked from 3.4 to 6.8 percent in July of that year.

Video of DelBene at the markup can be found HERE.

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