House Committee on Education and Labor
U.S. House of Representatives

I thank the Chair for yielding and I want to begin by thanking every member of this conference committee for their tireless efforts to get us here today.  In particular, I’d like to acknowledge Senator Ted Kennedy, a legislative giant whose imprint is deeply visible even when he’s not able to be here in D.C. with us.  We all wish him the best as he tends to his health and family. 

The road to higher education reform has been a long one.  For me, it dates back to 2001 when I joined with the late Representative Patsy Mink of Hawaii on an initiative we called the FED UP project.  That set the stage for a bipartisan reform process, and I’m pleased to be here – far too many years later – on the cusp of a bipartisan reauthorization. 

Each of us came to this legislation with our own priorities.  For me, the most pressing challenge facing our higher education system was, and is, the threat of high college costs.  Tuition has been spiraling out of control, leaving families unable to keep pace. 

Rising tuition doesn’t just cost families.  It costs society.  When tuition goes too high, too quickly, it prevents students from lower and middle-income families from attending college at all.  And when students miss out on a postsecondary education, our nation misses out on the benefits of an educated workforce. 

Five years ago, I proposed that we begin to hold colleges and universities accountable for consuming billions in federal resources while failing to prioritize access and affordability.  At the time it was a revolutionary idea, and one that met with fierce resistance.  But today, thanks to the support and leadership of those in this room, we are poised to enact legislation that would do exactly that. 

Of course, many institutions do recognize the need to make college more affordable, and this bill includes important steps to recognize those schools that are doing a good job in holding costs down and extending financial aid to those in need. 

With this bill, we will begin to finally solve the college cost crisis – and we will do so through the power of sunshine and transparency. 

In fact, sunshine and transparency are the defining characteristics of this entire piece of legislation.  This conference report will provide consumers with a whole host of new information about our nation’s colleges and universities, from information about academic offerings and institutional characteristics to student outcomes and institutional quality. 

We have worked in good faith to resolve our differences and produce a bill that will achieve the goals we set forth at the outset of this process – to make American higher education more accessible, affordable, and accountable. 

I want to recognize the staff members in particular for their work over these last several months to negotiate this agreement.  The value of their contributions cannot be overstated.

And with that, I will say that we have waited five long years for this reauthorization, and I don’t plan to make anyone wait any longer on my account.  I yield back.