Econintersect: Last summer legislation was signed into law that lowered the interest rates for new student loans to current market rates. For the school year just ended rates for undergraduate loans were 3.86%, for graduate students 5.41% and for loans to parents (PLUS loans) 6.41%. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D, MA) has submitted legislation to extend the lower rates to allow refinancing of all existing student loans to the same rates. The bill, S. 2292: Bank on Students Emergency Loan Refinancing Act, is still in committee.
Sen. Warren is taking to the public her campaign to get the bill out of committee and presented for House and Senate votes. Having obtained President Obama’s support Warren is appealing for petition signatures to put additional pressure on the Senate Finance Committee and ultimately the full Senate and House to take affirmative action. The same bill has been introduced in the House by Rep. John Tierney (D, MA) and has been referred to the House Committee of Education and the Workforce and theHouse Ways and Means Committeee.
Warren’s bill has 35 senate co-sponsors.
Here is a link to the petition:
