Interest rate on government-backed student loans will jump from 3.4 to 6.8 percent Monday because of federal government impasse; increase will affect new loans
(SALEM) – Assembly Higher Education Committee Chair Celeste M. Riley (D-Cumberland/Gloucester/Salem) issued the following statement on Friday following news that the interest rate on new government-backed student loans will double on July 1 after federal lawmakers were unable to reach a compromise to prevent the increase:
“College students are already piling up more debt as tuition rates and cost of living expenses continue to increase. According to a news report, if an agreement is not reached, 7 million students expected to take out new Stafford loans could end paying much higher bills when the times comes to repay these loans. These students are graduating in a tough job market. To saddle them with even more student debt before they have secured work to help pay these bills does not help them or the economy. I urge Congress to take the necessary action to avoid burdening students fresh out of college and looking for work with these higher rates, and creating unwanted economic repercussions.”