College Cost Reduction Act Of 2007--Continued

Floor Speech

COLLEGE COST REDUCTION ACT OF 2007--Continued -- (Senate - July 19, 2007)

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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, certainly the sentiments of this amendment are absolutely correct. We certainly want to increase deductibility.

As my friend from New Hampshire knows, I have worked long and hard on this and was able to work with some others--the Senator from Maine and some others--to actually get into law and then get extended a $4,000 tuition deductibility for the vast majority of families.

But the trouble with this amendment, of course, is not only is it not paid for, but if it were to be added to this bill, it would rob from Peter to give to Paul because it would undo all of the good things in the underlying bill--not just the Pell grants but the excellent provision that says that no one, even of middle income and higher middle income, should pay more than 15 percent of their adjusted earnings when they pay back their student loans.

So I will be offering a second-degree amendment that says we certainly agree with increasing tuition deductibility but not at the expense of what the Senator from Massachusetts and the Senator from New Hampshire are trying to do.

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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, this second-degree amendment expresses the sense of the Senate that Congress should provide tax relief to help families afford the cost of higher education, including making tuition deductible against taxes and eliminate wasteful spending such as spending on the necessary tax loopholes, in order to fully offset the costs and forcing taxpayers to pay substantially more interest to foreign creditors.

We do believe on this side in pay-go. We are going to pay for the worthy programs we want to enact and put our fiscal house in order. This amendment expresses that. It expresses the view also that we should not jeopardize that, because if this amendment were to be adopted, it being tax legislation, the bill would be blue-slipped by the House and sent back to the Finance Committee, and all of the good work we have done over the last day or two and the great things that would be done to help those who need Pell grants and those middle-class students who will have their loan repayments capped will be gone down the drain. That is what the second-degree amendment does.

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Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, this second-degree amendment expresses the sense of the Senate that Congress should provide tax relief to help families afford the cost of higher education, including making tuition deductible against taxes and eliminate wasteful spending such as spending on the necessary tax loopholes, in order to fully offset the costs and forcing taxpayers to pay substantially more interest to foreign creditors.

We do believe on this side in pay-go. We are going to pay for the worthy programs we want to enact and put our fiscal house in order. This amendment expresses that. It expresses the view also that we should not jeopardize that, because if this amendment were to be adopted, it being tax legislation, the bill would be blue-slipped by the House and sent back to the Finance Committee, and all of the good work we have done over the last day or two and the great things that would be done to help those who need Pell grants and those middle-class students who will have their loan repayments capped will be gone down the drain. That is what the second-degree amendment does.

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