The Whitworthian

Issue date: 11/13/07

The U.S. House of Representatives recently voted to pass a bill that could increase the amount of federal aid and subsidies for college and university students.

The House voted Nov. 8 to pass the Senate-amended version of the bill, H.R. 3043.

The bill states that college and university graduates who work for 10 years in public service professions such as firefighting and teaching will be offered forgiveness on student loans, according to a New York Times article. 

The bill also limits monthly payments and raises the maximum Pell grant by $1,090 over the next five years, according to the article.

President Bush has threatened to veto the bill, according to the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) Web site.

The bill calls for spending $10 billion more than he recommended for the 2008 budget, according to NASFAA.

So far, the House has considered the bill on three separate occasions, editing it and sending it back to the Senate for similar consideration and editing, according to NASFAA.

“It remains unknown if Democrats will be able to gain the two-thirds majority in the House and Senate needed to overturn the expected veto,” according to NASFAA. 

Assistant Director of Financial Aid Nancy Morlock said students shouldn’t worry about the bill. 

“Even if the bill passed, the financial aid office will require time for training and updates to understand the changes," Morlock said. “This bill will not affect financial aid for the current year. If any big changes come up, they will affect the 2008-2009 year.”

Contact Gabrielle Vaughn at gabrielle.vaughn@whitworthian.com.

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