Cross posted at Future Majority and MyDD.
Another update on Nelson-Burr (aka the corporate lender welfare amendment). Word is that the vote is going to be around noon today and it is going to be tight. Yesterday, Rick Enzi, ranking Republican on the Senate Education committee declared that he would vote against the amendment, potentially bringing a number of Republicans over with him. A number of Senators s are on the fence - particularly Tester on the Democratic side and Smith on the Republican side - but many of the Senators listed below don't really know anything about the amendment or how it would impact students.
Give them a call before noon today. Tell them why they should vote yes on the bill and no on the Nelson-Burr amendment. The Capitol Switchboard can be reached at (202) 224-3121.
Democrats | Republicans |
Landrieu | Collins |
Bayh | Coleman |
Tom Carper | Gordon Smith |
Bill Nelson | Specter |
Mark Pryor | Snowe |
Salazar | Sununu |
Tester | |
Webb | |
US PIRG has a new analysis of the amendment and why this is important:
The Nelson-Burr Amendment cuts $4.2 billion from need-based aid to low-income students over the next five years and gives the bulk of it to for-profit student lenders.
The Nelson-Burr amendment reduces aid for the neediest students by $290 per year, or nearly $1200 over their 4-year college career.
The amendment lowers the subsidy reduction for-profit lenders from .5 percent to .35 percent and pays for it by cutting $4.2 billion from the Promise Grant program.
The Nelson-Burr amendment takes grants away from low-income students and gives it back to banks including:
- $800 million to Sallie Mae over the next 5 years.
- $160 million to Nelnet over the next 5 years.
The Senate bill reduces less from private student lenders than both the President’s Fiscal Year 2008 budget and the House reconciliation bill. The Nelson-Burr amendment would cut back on subsidies even further, at the expense of the more than five million students who receive Pell Grants every year.
U.S. PIRG urges Senators to vote against the Nelson-Burr Amendment to S. 1762
$800 million to Sallie Mae, $160 million to NelNet. Meanwhile we're getting saddled with even more debt. This aggression will not stand. Call your Senator.