Another Obama priority—loan repayment based on income—would be part of the new package. The White House plan for income-based repayment would allow borrowers to pay only a small portion of their discretionary income to pay back student loans. By 2014, students enrolled in this option would have their student loan repayments capped at 10 percent of their income after necessities. This initiative would carry a cost, included in the bill, of $1.5 billion.
The bill also would provide $750 million in formula grants to states to improve college access and completion rates.
Higher education advocates have been calling on Congress to approve the SAFRA bill for months, but the measure did not come up for a vote in the Senate. Now, however, Democrats plan to attach this scaled-back version to a bill known as “budget reconciliation” that lawmakers use to meet budget targets. Democrats also plan to add comprehensive health care reform to the reconciliation bill.
One advantage of using this process is that reconciliation bills require only a simple majority vote for approval in the Senate, instead of a filibuster-proof majority of at least 60 votes. Floor votes on the measure are expected this weekend.
