You have been working on it all year - and it has finally happened! The College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 is out of Congress and on its way over to the President's desk for approval.

Today, in a ceremony at the US Capitol, Speaker Pelosi officially ordered the Clerk of the House to take this groundbreaking legislation to the White House for his signature.

It was gratifying to be there today as the Speaker, Chairman Miller, and Chairman Kennedy celebrated our collective effort to help college students, parents, recent grads, those of us struggling with debt, and everyone hoping to one day improve their lives through education (yup a lot of people) take advantage of America's great higher education system.

In a nutshell here is what this bill does … and remember every penny of this comes from redirecting overly inflated and corrupt profits the student loan "industry" was raking in:

  • Cut interest rates in half on subsidized student loans over the next four years.
  • Guarantees borrowers will not have to pay more than 15% of their discretionary income in loan repayments.
  • Allows borrowers in economic hardship to have their loans forgiven after 25 years.
  • Increases the max Pell Grant to $5400 by 2012.
  • Allows more students to benefit from Pell Grants by expanding eligibility.
  • Provides upfront tuition assistance to qualified undergrads who commit to teaching in public schools in high poverty areas or in high-need subject areas.
  • Forgives loans after 10 years for borrowers who decide to take careers as public servants after college.
  • Invests $510 million over 5 years in Minority-Serving institutions.

Pretty damn good huh? Rest assured NONE of this would have happened without your hard work lobbying your elected officials. Now, all we need is the President (who recently withdrew his veto threat) to sign it into law.