Student Loan Sunshine Act

Floor Speech

STUDENT LOAN SUNSHINE ACT -- (House of Representatives - May 09, 2007)

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Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Student Loan Sunshine Act, and I congratulate Chairman Miller for bringing the principles of honest leadership to higher education financing.

The cost of higher education has increased dramatically over the past few years, making college less affordable for many families. Financial aid is an important tool in helping make the cost of college more affordable. The people and institutions that administer these loans must be held to the highest ethical standards. For most students, their college loan will be their first form of major debt after their graduation.

As we encourage financial literacy and responsibility among this generation of young people, we must ensure that students are protected. They need to understand and know that their lenders and their financial aid administrators are in their corner and that they don't have individuals that are trying to undermine them or make money on the backs of these students.

Financing a college education is dependent on industry and institutional accountability. Strict codes of conduct will ensure this accountability.

Additionally, I am also supportive of the Department of Education's efforts to install new safeguards to protect students' privacy. We need to make sure that our students can have the utmost confidence in the system that is designed to provide them the opportunity to pay off their loans after their education and go on to become productive members of our society.

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