58°F
weather icon Clear
Las Vegas, NV
Nation and World

Senate fails to keep student loan rates low

In this July 8, 2013, photo, with a backdrop of college students on the step of the House of Representatives, Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, center, and GOP leaders talk about the politics of federal student loan rates which doubled on July 1, at the Capitol in Washington.
Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md. rides an escalator on Capitol in Washington, Wednesday as senators rushed to the floor for a vote to end debate on the Democrats' plan to restore lower interest rates on student loans one week after Congress' inaction caused those rates to double.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., left, and Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., right, join other senators in the rush to the Senate floor on Capitol in Washington, Wednesday for a vote to end debate on the Democrats' plan to restore lower interest rates on student loans.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. right, accompanied by Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., gestures as he speaks with reporters on Capitol in Washington, Tuesday about student loan rates.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., speaks with reporters about student loan rates following a Democratic strategy session at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday.
More Stories
A tsunami warning is displayed on a television in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, a ...
Magnitude 7.5 quake in northern Japan injures 23, triggers a tsunami
Waymo driverless vehicle. (AMG-TheStreet)
Waymo issuing recall over safety concerns involving school buses
Dog food recall: Check your freezer
A visitor walks past portraits of DC Comics superheroes as she enters the "Action and Magic Mad ...
Netflix to acquire Warner Bros. studio and streaming business for $72B
By PHILIP ELLIOTT THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
July 10, 2013 - 1:19 pm
 

WASHINGTON — An effort to restore lower interest rates on student loans has failed in the Senate.

The White House and most Senate Democrats favored restoring interest rates on subsidized Stafford loans to 3.4 percent for another year. But lawmakers on Wednesday were unable to muster the necessary 60 votes to overcome a procedural hurdle.

That left interest rates at 6.8 percent — a rate that leaders from both parties called unacceptable.

Interest rates doubled on July 1 because Congress was unable to send a bill to President Barack Obama for his signature.

Few students so far have been affected because few sign their loans during the summer. But roughly a quarter of all federal lending is through the program and the new rates could affect millions of students.

MOST READ
Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.
THE LATEST
Waymo driverless vehicle. (AMG-TheStreet)
Waymo issuing recall over safety concerns involving school buses
Tony Owusu, AMG-TheStreet

Waymo has been under some scrutiny this week after a school district publicized videos of the company’s robotaxis driving past school buses with their stop signs and crossing bars deployed.

 
Dog food recall: Check your freezer
Dana Sullivan Kilroy, AMG-TheStreet

Dog owners across 14 states are being urged to stop feeding a popular frozen food immediately after customers found plastic pieces mixed into the product.

MORE STORIES