(Editor’s note: Last week Westfair Communications Inc. published a take on the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) by occasional contributors Ben Soccodato and Chris Kampitsis of the Barnum Financial Group. This week we offer another take from United States Representative Rosa DeLaura. As per her congressional website, she is the congresswoman from Connecticut’s Third Congressional District, stretching from the Long Island Sound and New Haven to the Naugatuck Valley and Waterbury. She serves as the ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee and sits on the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee. DeLauro is also the ranking member of the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, overseeing the nation’s investments in education, health and employment.
Her response is in the form of an open letter to the press and her constituents.)
Dear Friend,
The Big, Ugly Law enacted by President Trump and Congressional Republicans drives up your cost of living. I have analyzed the impacts of this new law for you and your loved ones. Americans are living paycheck to paycheck and facing a rising cost of living. Over the last few years, food prices have risen by nearly 25%. Just this week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that vegetables prices have risen a whopping 38.9%. This bill is the last thing Americans need. This edition touches upon changes in student loans that are in the foreseeable future for all Americans.
Our nation is facing a student debt crisis with nearly 43 million people – one in six adult Americans – owing more than $1.6 trillion in federal student loans. Connecticut is one of the states with the highest average student loan debt – $36,837 per borrower on average. We must make education and loan repayment more affordable for all Americans. The average annual cost of tuition at a public four-year college is 40 times higher than tuition costs were in 1963.
According to an analysis by State Comptroller Sean Scanlon and my office, the Big, Ugly Bill:
- Cuts federal spending on student loans by roughly $300 billion over the next decade.
- Caps ParentPlus loans at $20,000 per year and $65,000 in total. ParentPlus loans are offered to eligible parents of dependent undergraduate students to help cover the costs of higher education.
- Caps graduate loans at $20,500 per year and $100,000 in total.
- Eliminates the Grad Plus loans, which are federal student loans to help graduate and professional students pay for their educational expenses.
- Caps federal loans for students in law or medical school at $50,000 per year and $200,000 in total.
- Caps the student borrowing limit at $257,500 for all students beginning July 1, 2026.
- Adds new student loan repayment plans harmful to borrowers’ ability to repay loans. The only two options after July 1 are:
1. A new standard loan repayment program with fixed payments from 10 to 25 years, based on the total amount borrowed.
2. A new income-based Repayment Assistance Program with a sliding scale of 1% to 10% of adjusted gross income and a $10 minimum monthly payment.
- Restricts Pell Grant eligibility for students receiving other forms of financial aid for low-income individuals.
- Loosens oversight over Pell Grants by expanding some eligibility without any data reporting requirements.
To read the full analysis published by State Comptroller Sean Scanlon, click here.
Throughout my time in Congress, I have fought to make education more accessible for students and families across the United States. I will continue to support legislative efforts to streamline and simplify student loan repayments and make education more affordable.
I will not stop fighting to protect vital services, to bring down the cost of living, to ensure people have quality, affordable health care and to bring back the expanded monthly Child Tax Credit, which delivered the largest middle class tax cut in a generation. Americans deserve a budget and a Congress that works for them.
I will continue to use my voice as your representative to speak against these devastating cuts. For a more detailed look at what the “Big, Ugly Bill” becoming law means for you or your loved ones, please subscribe to our e-newsletter here. My office will continue to send out the most updated information.
Sincerely,
Rosa DeLauro
Member of Congress
