An overwhelming majority of Americans believe first priority in federal higher education aid increases should be given to low and middle-income students striving for college, rather than to college graduates who have already received an education, according to survey results released by the U.S. House Committee on Education & the Workforce. The finding is based on more than 600 responses collected over the last six months through the committee’s College Cost Central website, launched in September 2003 to gather input from parents, students, school officials, and the general public as Congress prepares to reauthorize the Higher Education Act.
"These results give additional momentum to the growing bipartisan consensus on our committee among legislators concerned that the ballooning cost of fixed-rate consolidation loans is a direct threat to college access for low and middle-income students, who are facing an uphill fight against soaring tuition costs," said Rep. John Boehner (R-OH), the committee’s chairman.
Survey respondents were asked: "When Congress decides to increase federal higher education aid, where should it direct its attention -- toward financial aid for needy, incoming college students or for continued subsidies to college graduates in the workforce, such as those borrowers who are repaying their student loans?" A whopping 69 percent of the survey’s 635 respondents indicated they believe federal higher education aid ought to be directed toward incoming students, with only 31% indicating graduates should be the priority [435, or 69%, said incoming students: 200, or 31%, said graduates]. Responses were collected between September 2003 and April 2004. The College Cost Central Website, including the survey, can be accessed online here.
The independent General Accounting Office (GAO) recently recommended Congress switch to variable-rate consolidation loans to rein in the costs of subsidies to college graduates. If GAO’s recommendation is not heeded, experts say, graduate subsidies are likely to consume an additional $21 billion over the next seven years that could instead be used to expand college access for incoming, low and middle-income students.
Three bills (H.R. 4102, H.R. 2711, and H.R. 2504) have been introduced by committee Democrats that would make all future consolidation loans variable-rate, and more than half of the committee’s Democratic members (13 out of 22) have introduced or co-sponsored bills in the current Congress to make the shift, despite attempts by Democratic Party leaders to portray GAO’s variable-rate recommendation as a "Republican" idea.
"The results of this survey reinforce our strong belief that current and future students must be priority one in our federal student aid programs," said Education & the Workforce Committee Chairman John Boehner (R-OH). "Those who participated in this survey overwhelmingly agree federal resources should be directed to low and middle-income students – the very students the Higher Education Act was created to serve."
