House approves update of higher ed law

WASHINGTON --The House on Thursday approved a bill aimed at making college decisions more clear and affordable for families.

How much the measure would help, though, remains in dispute.

Republicans renewed the Higher Education Act with resistance, which is not typical when it comes to the law governing college programs.

Most Democrats objected after failing with their own version, which would have cut in half the interest rate on student loans this July.

The House approved the bill, 221-199, in a near party-line vote.

It would order simplified steps for people seeking federal aid, and it would place pressure on colleges to refrain from steep tuition increases.

It also would require schools to provide clear information about their costs to the Education Department, to be posted on its Web site as a tool for families.

But Democrats and Republicans could not agree on the core point -- how the federal government should help people deal with rising tuition.

Republican leaders said forcing colleges to be more accountable for costs will help families. They also touted an increase in the maximum Pell Grant, although Congress rarely approaches that limit when it appropriates money for the grants.

Rep. Ric Keller, R-Fla., said the Democrats offered no way to pay for their proposal to cut interest rates significantly.

"Why not interest-free loans?" he asked rhetorically. "It's crazy."

Democrats spent much of their time discussing a bill that Congress passed two months ago -- a deficit-cutting measure that slashed almost $13 billion in student loan aid. Democrats say GOP leaders only want to pay for tax cuts, at the expense of critical student aid.

"This is a down payment on reversing the raid on student aid," Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Mich., said about the Democrats' version of the bill before it was rejected.

The education law is getting its first update since 1998. It hasn't been easy. The House bill took three years to reach the floor, and the Senate must pass its own version.

The law governs the relationship between the government and the huge range of colleges and universities that receive federal aid.

After the vote, the election-year sniping continued.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called the bill a "sham that does not help American students and families." House Majority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Democrats helped shape the bill and then walked away from it, which he called "reprehensible."

Under the House bill, colleges that increase tuition more than twice the rate of inflation over three years would have to explain why. The House softened parts of the requirement to get the bill passed.

The House also pulled back on telling colleges when they can deny academic credit for transfer students. The bill now would require colleges to have transfer policies that are publicly disclosed.

Lawmakers rejected an amendment by Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, to make colleges report how race is considered in their student admissions.

As the debate unfolded, the major lobbying voice for private colleges withdrew its opposition to the bill.

The National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities said the bill was changed enough to remove its two big concerns -- federal government control over how much a private college can charge, and potential state control over a school's curriculum.

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On the Net:

Information on the bill, H.R. 609, can be found at Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov/

Education Department: http://www.ed.gov