A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make technical corrections.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 2371) to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to make technical corrections, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I request 5 legislative days during which Members may insert material relevant to S. 2371 into the Record.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

(Mrs. McCARTHY of New York asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the amendment to S. 2371. This bill makes technical corrections to the College Cost Reduction and Access Act in order to ensure that the Department of Education and other relevant stakeholders reflect congressional intent when implementing the law.

Mr. Speaker, during this Congress we have made significant commitments to our Nation's students and families by putting resources into the hands of those that need it the most.

The College Cost Reduction and Access Act as passed and signed by the President does more to help Americans pay for college than any other effort since the GI Bill, at no new cost to taxpayers.

Specifically, the legislation provided a landmark investment of $20 billion in additional funding for Pell Grants, reductions in the interest rates on student loans, and the creation of programs to help students manage debt, as well as encourage individuals to pursue public service.

Providing this critical funding is a large part of our efforts to increase access and affordability to higher education. Our work on reforming and strengthening higher education is not finished for this Congress.

I look forward to working with Chairman Miller and the rest of the Education and Labor Committee on the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act as it continues through the process. As passed by the Senate and amended in this bill, the technical amendments contained in the bill clarify the definition of untaxed income and benefits to ensure it does not include those items in the calculation that were removed from the list under CCRAA; clarifies that married borrowers' income-based repayment payments shall be determined solely on the individual borrower's loan information and the individual's income without considering the spouse's income or any other loan debt that they may have if the married borrower files taxes separately; conforms language in the TEACH Grant Program to ensure appropriate implementation.

Mr. Speaker, swift passage of S. 2371, as amended, will ensure that students and families will fully benefit from the programs, funding, and intent provided in the College Cost Reduction and Access Act. I urge my colleagues to support this provision.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to thank Chairman Miller for his leadership on this important issue which will keep costs down for our Nation's students, and I urge each Member to support this reauthorization.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 2371, a bill providing for technical changes to the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007. This bill includes two necessary clarifications and corrections to ensure that this act, a series of financial aid changes made through this year's budget reconciliation process, is implemented as Congress intended.

The bill before us today would make some, but not all, of the important technical amendments that are needed to ensure that the Department of Education is able to put this law into place in a manner consistent with congressional intent. The bill clarifies the untaxed income and benefit items that are to be included in the needs analysis formula for purposes of determining what a family can actually pay for their child's education. It also ensures that borrowers selecting the new income-based repayment plan will not face a penalty simply because they are married. Finally, the bill also provides technical amendments to the TEACH Grant program.

There are several other important technical corrections in a bill that the House passed prior to the Thanksgiving Day recess. The changes clarified that members of the Armed Forces Reserves are eligible for student loan deferments when they return home after serving abroad. The House-passed bill also encouraged families to adopt older children by permitting any student that was in foster care through the age of 13 to be treated as an independent student, even if the child was adopted after the age of 13. Unfortunately, most of these changes will not be enacted because our colleagues on the other side of the Capitol eliminated them from the bill, despite the bipartisan support shown for these important reforms here in the House.

These reforms are technical in nature, but their consequences will be far-reaching. Prior to the Thanksgiving Day recess, the Education and Labor Committee unanimously passed a bill to expand college access and affordability. Consistent with that goal, this package of technical corrections will improve our financial aid programs by clarifying the intent of the recently enacted College Cost Reduction and Access Act. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this important measure.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam President, I ask the Chair to lay before the Senate a message from the House of Representatives with respect to S. 2371, Higher Education Technicals.

The Presiding Officer (Ms. Klobuchar) laid before the Senate the following message from the House of Representatives:

Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate concur in the House amendment and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table.

I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 2371, introduced earlier today.

The clerk will report the bill by title.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read a third time, passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.