A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

   FOR RELEASE                              Contact:  Kathryn Kahler    September 29, 1995                                 (202) 401-3026

Statement by U. S. Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley Regarding the College Board Report on Rise in College Costs and Student Borrowing

This report, which highlights a 50 percent increase in student borrowing from 1992 to 1994, is important reading for a Congress now debating student aid budget issues.

Direct lending, which offers repayment plans based on earnings, can help ease the financial burden of borrowers struggling to meet monthly payments. Yet a House committee has voted to kill direct lending, and a Senate committee has voted to cap it far below its present level.

In addition, both committee bills would eliminate the interest- free grace period for all new borrowers. Undergraduates would pay as much as $700 more and graduates would pay $2,500 more.

Students already in debt for their education shouldn't be asked to foot the bill for a tax cut for wealthy Americans.

[Go Home]