FROM THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS

WASHINGTON, DC -- In response to the Student Loan Marketing Association's (Sallie Mae) announcement today that it planned to accelerate its wind-down as a government-sponsored enterprise, Treasury Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Peter R. Fisher made the following statement:

"I am pleased that Sallie Mae has approved a wind-down plan that will result in its complete privatization by September 30, 2006 -- two years earlier than required by Congress. The plan is a prudent one and should provide the basis for a constructive dialogue between Treasury and Sallie Mae over the coming four years."

Sallie Mae was created by Congress to facilitate a nationwide secondary market in guaranteed student loans. In 1996, Congress passed the Student Loan Marketing Association Reorganization Act (Privatization Act), which requires the full dissolution and privatization of Sallie Mae by September 30, 2008. The Treasury Department exercises oversight responsibilities over Sallie Mae, including monitoring its wind-down process, through Treasury's Office of Sallie Mae Oversight.