More government, more bureaucracy.House college aid bill would boost Pell Grants, kill subsidized student loans
WASHINGTON (AP) - The House voted Thursday in favor of the biggest overhaul of college aid programs since their creation in the 1960s - a bill to oust private lenders from the student loan business and put the government in charge.
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Yet the money also would be spent on things that don't help pay for college, such as construction at K-12 schools and new preschool programs.
And while the measure would increase Pell Grants, it would do nothing to curb college costs, which rise much faster than Pell Grants do.
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Republicans argued it is wrong to put the government in near-total control of student lending.
Many also worry about job losses in their districts. Private lenders employ more than 30,000 people whose jobs depend on the subsidized loan program, and the industry says many would be laid off.
Sallie Mae, the biggest student lender, has about 8,500 employees in the program and probably would lay off about 30 percent of those workers. It still will have contracts to service federal loans.
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