New Duckworth Bill Would Protect Working Students, Help Make College More Affordable

Press Release

Seeking to curb the rising cost of higher education and limit the burden student loans place on young Americans, Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth (IL-08) today introduced legislation to protect working students from unfair and unnecessary cuts to their financial aid. Under current federal law, students who choose to work their way through college are often penalized with reduced financial aid, meaning that they must work even more or take on additional student loan debt in order to finish school. The Congresswoman's Working Student Act, which was introduced by Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) in the Senate, would update the current statute to reflect modern costs of living as well as costs associated with attending college to help struggling students graduate without being forced further into debt.

"I put myself through college with student loans, Pell Grants, and a heck of a lot of waitressing,"said Congresswoman Duckworth, who is still paying off her student loans even today. "With college costs skyrocketing, punishing students who have to work in order to afford school by cutting their financial assistance is the last thing we should be doing. My Working Student Act will protect these students from having their financial aid slashed and I'll continue working in Congress to help young Americans graduate with less debt."

The rising cost of higher education has made it almost impossible for the average student to afford college without a combination of student loans, federal student aid and a part-time job. Sixty-six percent of college students work either full-time or part-time while enrolled in school to make up the difference between financial aid assistance and the cost of college. To help these students afford higher education, federal law allows them to earn a certain amount of income, known as the Income Protection Allowance (IPA), without it affecting eligibility for need-based student financial aid like Pell Grants. But current IPA levels are set at unrealistically low levels and do not reflect a student's actual living expenses. For hard-working students that earn more than the IPA threshold, their financial aid is reduced by half of any income that remains after subtracting the allowed amount. This work penalty causes an endless cycle of needing to work more in order to cover the ever decreasing amounts of available financial aid.

Duckworth's Working Student Act would increase the amount of outside income students can earn without reducing their federal aid eligibility by 35 percent. Under the bill, a working single parent with two children could work to earn approximately $10,000 more each year without endangering their financial aid, an independent student could earn an additional $3,400 each year and a dependent student could earn $2,200 more before their income impacts their financial aid award.

"Many students today work and support families while in college. This is especially true of community college students, the majority of whom are women," said Dr. Catherine Hill, Vice President of Research at the American Association of University Women (AAUW)."AAUW's report, Women in Community Colleges, found that these students have serious financial barriers to accessing higher education. Representative Duckworth's Working Student Act would ensure that self-supporting and parenting students are able to qualify for financial aid and still use their modest incomes to support their families."

The Duckworth-Baldwin Working Student Act is endorsed by the American Association of University Women, United States Student Association, National Skills Coalition, American Federation of Teachers, Opportunity Nation, Association for Career and Technical Education, Third Way and Young Invincibles. A fact-sheet about the legislation is available here.

Source