Higher Education Opportunity Act - Conference Report
Floor Speech
HIGHER EDUCATION OPPORTUNITY ACT--CONFERENCE REPORT -- (Senate - July 31, 2008)
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Mr. DURBIN. I thank the Senator from Maryland. What a great job she did pinch hitting for our friend TED KENNEDY, with Senator Enzi, bringing this bill to the floor tonight and the conference report. There are three or four provisions in here I worked hard to include, and I think they are going to help provide an affordable college education.
You would be surprised to know that about one-fourth of the expense that college students face when they go to college is for textbooks. Textbooks cost twice as much as ordinary books. Until we put this provision in, students couldn't go on Amazon and other places to find discounts. Now they will be able to. They will have the information so they can search for the most affordable books. We make the publisher split up the books into pocket parts and CDs so they don't bundle them together, and students can buy only what they really need.
Secondly, I have been working for years with my friends who are prosecutors and public defenders. Kids graduating from law school today have a mountain of debt. They can't afford, usually, to take a job as a young prosecutor or public defender. We have a student loan forgiveness program in here. It went through the Judiciary Committee, now through the HELP Committee. It will provide up to $10,000 a year in student loan forgiveness for those who will work a minimum of 3 years. That is the way to build the professionals we need as both prosecutors and defenders. It is the John R. Justice Act. It is one that will help our Nation and help the enforcement of law all across the country.
I also have a provision to help campuses deal with insecurity and terrorism. We have seen too many instances of violence on campus. This will provide for coordination on campuses to develop plans to keep their students safe. That is something every parent wants to feel when they leave their kids at school.
These are all steps in the right direction. I thank all those who worked on this bill. Most of us in the Senate would say flat-out we wouldn't be here today were it not for higher education. It has become a more difficult challenge for today's students. This bill is going to give those students a helping hand. I will be happy to cast my vote in favor of it.
I yield the floor.
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