U-M officials address higher ed legislation

Updated 11:00 AM November 10, 2003

U-M officials address higher ed legislation

By Cindy Bank
U-M Washington Office

With the recent introduction of legislation that would limit tuition increases and the ongoing work in Congress toward reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA), U-M continues to play an active role in Washington.

Rep. Howard McKeon (R-Calif.), chairman of a House higher education subcommittee, introduced legislation in October aimed at reducing tuition increases. The Affordability in Higher Education Act would impose sanctions on institutions whose tuitions rise over a two-year period by more than twice the rate of the Consumer Price Index. The bill also would encourage greater transparency in college cost and related information; create a College Affordability Demonstration Program to enable institutions to test innovative cost-saving measures; and address barriers to student credit transfers.

In anticipation of McKeon's legislation, U-M President Mary Sue Coleman and the other presidents and chancellors of the Big Ten recently wrote to the chairman to express concerns about the penalties imposed.

"Be assured, we are all concerned about tuition increases and the factors that make them necessary," the presidents and chancellors wrote. "We are concerned that your proposal includes enforcement provisions that will harm low-income and minority students by removing the federal aid that provides them access to higher education. At the same time, universities will be penalized for some cost increases over which we have no control. We continually work at mitigating increases, but we cannot avoid them entirely."

The House of Representatives continues to work on the reauthorization of the HEA. With four Michigan congressmen on the Education and Workforce Committee—Dale Kildee, Fred Upton, Vern Ehlers and Pete Hoekstra—U-M has been working on this process with higher education associations.

The House recently passed two bills that would renew existing graduate and international education programs. U-M worked on both pieces of legislation that were authored by Hoekstra (R-Mich.). Rackham Dean Earl Lewis testified on behalf of the higher education community regarding graduate education programs, and Michael Kennedy, director of the International Institute, met with Hoekstra on the international education bill.

Each bill, however, still contains provisions considered problematic by U-M officials. The graduate education bill would change current policy and direct the secretary of education to give priority status in awarding Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need fellowship awards to a few fields of study among the many fields that are deemed critical to the nation. The international education bill creates an advisory board that has received much attention. The higher education community is working with Congress to clarify the legislative language to ensure that the board truly is advisory and not investigative or supervisory.

The Senate, meanwhile, only now has begun to take up reauthorization, and most of its work will occur next year. Senate Democrats have introduced a bill that includes helpful and problematic provisions for institutions and students.

Among other things, the legislation would increase maximum Pell Grants; require states to maintain a "fiscal effort" for higher education; address early decision and legacy admissions; enhance aid programs; and improve terms for student borrowing and educational tax incentives.

The reauthorization process is expected to continue through 2004. As additional bills are introduced in the House and Senate, the U-M Washington office will continue to work with campus leaders and the national higher education associations on this legislation.

For more details about HEA, contact Cindy Bank at (202) 554-0578 or bankc@umich.edu.

U-M officials address higher ed legislation

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