Student Grant Hurricane and Disaster Relief Act

Floor Speech

STUDENT GRANT HURRICANE AND DISASTER RELIEF ACT -- (House of Representatives - September 08, 2005)

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Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee) for yielding me time. I also want to commend the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Jindal) for his introduction of this bill, which allows the Secretary of Education to waive grant and scholarships awarded under title IV of the Higher Education Act for students forced to withdraw from classes due to a natural disaster.

By applying to title IV, the bill grants relief to students in the greatest need of financial support in assessing higher education. It also covers students receiving Pell grants, TRIO scholarships, Supplemental Educational Opportunities grants, GEAR UP grants, Byrd scholarships and LEAP funds.

Without action, these students would face incredible financial hardship because they would be responsible for repaying funds at a time of incredible economic and personal difficulty. Without action, we would be erecting barriers in their pursuit of their education.

We need to promote education in every way that we can. And I also support this bill as a first step to helping students overcome the barriers to education imposed by the horrific storm.

In addition, I strongly encourage my colleagues to take additional steps to ease the educational burdens of Katrina. The Miller/Kildee Katrina College Relief Act also grants, and I think it gives us an opportunity to go even further, 6-month deferments to students, and directs the Secretary to recalculate the expected family income that they could contribute to college in light of the catastrophe. These are excellent provisions that would greatly assist the hundreds of thousands of students and families struggling after Katrina.

Again, I want to commend the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Boustany) for his introduction of this legislation. I also want to commend the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner), the chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the ranking member, the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller), for the expeditious manner in which the Committee on Education and the Workforce has addressed the educational needs of students who have been affected by Katrina.

It is a good bill. I support it.

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