Congress had to act by Sunday to keep the interest rates on any new federal-subsidized Stafford loans granted after July 1 from doubling from 3.4% to 6.8%. Projections were that the average student would have had to pay $1,000 more a year. A measure capping rates for another year cleared the House on a 373-52 vote.
“Making college more affordable and accessible for all of our children is one of my top priorities, that’s why I spent months leading the fight to stop Republicans from letting student loan interest rates double on July 1st,” said U.S. Rep Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Twp., one of co-sponsors of the Courtney-Peters bill that capped the interest rate. “I’m proud to help announce that by building a strong grassroots coalition, we were successfully able to pass an agreement. While there is still a lot of work left to do to make college more affordable, this deal is a step in the right direction.”