EDUCATION/GOP/HOUSE OF REPS: “The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives this week will propose sweeping legislation that aims to change where Americans go to college, how they pay for it, what they study, and how their success—or failure—affects the institutions they attend.
The most dramatic and far-reaching element of the plan is a radical revamp of the $1.34 trillion federal student loan program. It would put caps on borrowing and eliminate some loan forgiveness programs.
The ambitious package—a summary of which was reviewed by The Wall Street Journal—would be the biggest overhaul of education policy in decades. The rising expense of higher education is deeply troubling to many Americans and many increasingly question its value. Despite a steady rise in the share of high-school graduates heading to college, a skills gap has left more than 6 million jobs unfilled, a significant drag on the economy…
The opening House GOP gambit will likely take more than a year to wind through Congress and could undergo substantial revisions before passing into law. The Higher Education Act of 1965 was last reauthorized in 2008. It was set to expire in 2013 but was extended to allow legislators more time to work on a new version. The Congressional Budget Office is expected to score the bill this week.”
-Douglas Belkin, Josh Mitchell, and Melissa Korn, “House GOP to Propose Sweeping Changes to Higher Education,” The Wall Street Journal online, Nov. 29, 2017 07:00am