College Student Relief Act of 2007

COLLEGE STUDENT RELIEF ACT OF 2007 -- (House of Representatives - January 17, 2007)
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Mr. DOGGETT. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman.

Across America, our Nation's young people are burdened with this President's misplaced priorities. With the debacle in Iraq, many of our young people actually give their life or their limb, and with the soaring national debt combined with the personal debt for the cost of going to college, many of our young people find that their future is already mortgaged.

Escalating costs for tuition, the textbooks, for the cost of gasoline to get to and from school and work, they all impact who can afford the opportunity of higher education.

It was Thomas Jefferson who urged public support of higher education, wanting the youth of all of our States to, ``drink from the cup of knowledge.' But today, those students, thirsty for knowledge, confront too often a parched, unwelcoming desert of financial need and debt; and the last Republican Congress just made matters worse.

This bill represents a constructive step forward in making the dream of attending quality institutions a reality. It is a reality that will be there, now available, for 47,000 students each year in Texas who choose not to get a higher education because of financial barriers.

It lends a hand to working parents who want to earn a degree and provide a better life for their children.

It lends a helping hand to a young person who is the first in her family to see the inside of a college classroom.

And it lends a hand to middle-class Americans who struggle to save for college while their cost of living continues to increase.

A skilled, productive workforce is an investment in our future. We cannot afford to leave higher education unaffordable to so many of our neighbors.

Pass this bill because our youth are worth the investment

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