Rep Zinke Votes to Make College More Affordable, Expand Opportunities for Montana

Press Release

Today, Congressman Ryan Zinke voted to expand opportunities for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) students and make it easier for Montana families to save for college. Zinke voted yea for H.R. 529, which modernizes 529 savings plans and reduces taxes and costly regulations imposed by the federal government, and H.R. 1020 -- STEM Education Act, which expands opportunities for students of STEM and those who want to study computer science. By contrast, President Obama proposed taxing college savings plans.

"Education is one of the most important and effective tools in climbing the ladder of opportunity, and I am proud to support legislation that makes saving for college easier and more affordable for Montana by reducing costly regulations and taxes associated with 529 savings plans," said Zinke. "There is much more we can do to stop the rising costs of higher education. The federal government is making a $127 billion profit off of student loans at a time when our graduates are going bankrupt because they are unable to find jobs in their fields. We need to get the federal government out of the loan shark businesses and instead refocused on building a strong economy with ample jobs for our graduates."

In addition, Rep. Zinke also supports abolishing excess regulations that cause students of the skilled trades to shoulder more debt than their cohorts at other colleges. Because regulations punish some schools for not offering certain degrees, students at these schools--often trade schools for welding, HVAC and similar professions--are not given access to grants and loans that traditional students receive. He believes students in skilled trades deserve the same access to loan and grant opportunities that traditional two and four year students have.

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