Concurrent Resolution on the Budget, Fiscal Year 2016 -- Continued

Floor Speech

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Ms. WARREN. Mr. President, I rise to urge my colleagues to support
amendment No. 652, to refinance existing student loans and bring down
the high interest rates that are dragging down millions of Americans.

When rates are low, people refinance their mortgages. When rates are
low, businesses refinance their debt. Well, rates are low, and we want
to give the 40 million Americans who are dealing with student loans the
same chance to refinance their loans.

Last year, Republicans blocked our efforts to lower student loan
interest rates. They said there were other, better ways to deal with
student loan debt, but they did nothing. So tens of millions of
borrowers got nothing, and millions of borrowers are still stuck paying
interest rates at 6 percent, 8 percent, 10 percent, and even higher.

While Republicans were busy blocking student loan refinancing, our
country's student debt problem got worse--much worse. In the last year,
outstanding student debt has increased by $100 billion dollars. Nearly
1 million more borrowers have fallen behind on their student loans. The
interest rate on new student loans only got higher.

This amendment offers us a chance to actually do something for the
millions of Americans who are dealing with student loan debt. The idea
is simple: Refinance outstanding student loans down to 3.9 percent for
undergraduates, a little higher for graduate students. The amendment
would save borrowers hundreds and in some cases thousands of dollars a
year, all without adding a dime to our deficit. It is fully paid for by
closing a tax loophole that allows millionaires and billionaires to pay
a lower tax rate than middle-class families.

We have a choice--protect a tax loophole for billionaires or give
tens of millions of people a chance to refinance their student loans. A
choice--protect a tax loophole for billionaires or give millions of
middle-class people a chance to build some real economic security.

Congress has worked far too long for the billionaires. Now it is time
for Congress to work for hard-working people.

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