Sen. Franken Disappointed by Senate's Failure to Extend Critical Loan Program That Helps 10,000 Minnesota Students Afford College

Statement

Today, U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) expressed his disappointment after an attempt to renew the Perkins Loan program--which helps 10,000 Minnesota college students afford school each year--failed in the Senate.

The Perkins Loans program, which expired on October 1, is an important resource for low-income students to pay for college, and it provides support for students who have already reached their limit on other federal loans and still need help paying for things like textbooks and materials. A one-year extension to the program was passed overwhelmingly in the House of Representatives earlier this month, but failed today in the Senate.

"For students and families in Minnesota and around the country, college is getting more and more unaffordable, and students are taking on more and more debt," said Sen. Franken, a member of the Senate Education Committee. "In Minnesota alone, over 10,000 students receive Perkins loans for an average of $2000 a year each. But now, since the program has expired, colleges cannot make new loans to new students. We need to help more students afford college-not fewer students-and that means we shouldn't take away this important support. I'm disappointed we weren't able extend this important program, but I'm going to continue working hard to renew it."

Sen. Franken has long been a champion of making the cost of college more affordable. Earlier this month, he reintroduced two bipartisan college affordability bills that would give students and families better information about the costs of college. You can read about them here and here. Also this month, Sen. Franken reintroduced his measure to help college students manage costs by expanding access to free online textbooks.

Source