Higher Edcuation Amendments of 2007

Floor Speech

HIGHER EDUCATION AMENDMENTS OF 2007 -- (Senate - July 24, 2007)

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Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, paying for college is harder than it used to be. Over the last 5 years, the combined cost of tuition, fees, room and board at 4-year public colleges and universities increased by 42 percent, and more students are leaving college saddled with debt. More than two-thirds of 4-year college students now borrow to pay for school, and their average debt more than doubled between 1993 and 2004.

Unfortunately, we have learned that some lenders and some universities are engaging in practices that are not always based on what is in the best interests of the students. The New York Times revealed that some lenders have offered schools incentives to be placed on a college's ``preferred lender'' list. One example was an all-expense paid trip to the Caribbean for school officials and their spouses to attend an education ``summit'' held at a luxury five-star beachfront resort. Between symposiums and discussions on how important it is to address the cost of higher education, guests could enjoy complimentary water and beach sports, volleyball, and access to an 18-hole championship golf course, a 10-court tennis complex, two beachfront pools, and a luxury spa. News of the trip drew such a negative response that the sponsor of the trip, Loan to Learn, ultimately cancelled it. Other examples of incentives to schools include iPods given away at a financial aid administrators meeting and bonuses based on how much students borrow. Nothing about these incentives ensure that the lenders or the schools are looking to provide the best loan available for students.

The bill we are considering on the floor today, the renewal of the Higher Education Act, includes major provisions from a bill Senator Kennedy and I introduced earlier this year, the Student Loan Sunshine Act. The Student Loan Sunshine Act reforms the student loan system so that it works for students, not lenders. The bill we are considering today ensures that colleges are recommending lenders to students based on the best interest of students, not the self-interest of financial aid officers. We protect students and parents from exploitation by lenders. Lenders are prohibited from providing inducements to colleges and financial aid administrators that create conflicts of interest. It also ensures that students and their families have only the facts and can feel confident that they are receiving the best deal on their college loan.

I am also pleased that this bill includes key provisions from legislation I introduced earlier this year, the Campus Law Enforcement Emergency Response Act. Shortly after the Virginia Tech shootings, I introduced legislation to ensure that all colleges and universities develop emergency response procedures and campus notification systems, and test them at least annually.

The Higher Education Amendments Act before us today includes key elements of that bill. For example, the bill requires colleges and universities to develop procedures for responding to large-scale emergencies on campus and to test those procedures at least annually. This includes procedures for promptly notifying the campus community in case of such emergencies, a new competitive grant program to improve emergency response, and a new role for the Departments of Education, Justice, and Homeland Security to advise colleges and universities on model emergency response procedures and best practices. The language added to this bill will ensure that our colleges and universities are better prepared for emergency situations, and it will better protect those who live and work on college campuses from threats to their security.

This bill also simplifies the financial aid process, creates a pilot program to allow students to receive a financial aid estimate in their junior year of high school so they can make more informed choices when selecting which college to apply to.

The bill makes an important attempt to provide students and parents with more information on the cost of higher education. As I mentioned earlier, the cost of higher education has gone through the roof. Every time I meet with the presidents of colleges and universities from Illinois I ask them: What can we do to control the skyrocketing cost of higher education? This bill will create a Higher Education Price Increase Watch List, which will include a ranking of each institution of higher education whose tuition and fees are rising faster than the average. It directs the Secretary of Education to develop model price calculators to help students and families determine the net price of an institution of higher education. Universities will be required to publish this information in their application materials so it is easily accessible to prospective students. If we want to take a serious look at the rising cost of higher education, we have to make more information available to students and families about the real cost of attending college.

The Higher Education Amendments Act we are considering on the floor today strengthens many of the successful provisions of the Higher Education Act. It also addresses some of the new problems and issues that have emerged in the area of higher education, including unethical practices in the student loan system, threats to the safety of our students on campuses, and the rising cost of college.

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