FAP457: Student Debt Relief Act of 2007, Free Stuff Friday, California financial aid, College Goal Sunday, Jen Foster

Student Financial Aid News
+ Thousands of California students in for-profit and vocational schools will keep their financial aid even if state oversight lapses in July, a federal agency has decided.
+ Only a handful of the 400,000 students could be affected by the scheduled closure of the state’s Bureau of Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education, a U.S. Department of Education official said in a letter this week.
+ The statement reversed an assertion by other Education Department officials, who had told state leaders that federal aid could be taken away from tens of thousands of students July 1, when California plans to close the bureau. Federal law requires oversight for a school’s students to receive financial aid.
+ Aside from a few exceptions, “abolition of the bureau will have no effect on (financial aid) eligibility,” wrote James Manning, an assistant secretary with the federal department.
+ Senator Kennedy introduces the Student Debt Relief Act of 2007
+ Need-Based Aid: Immediately increases Pell Grant maximum to $5,100 with mandatory funding; and provides additional Pell Grant increases through enactment of Student Aid Rewards Act (STAR Act), which reforms the student loan programs and generates savings to use for student aid by encouraging schools to use more efficient of the two federal loan programs. Schools would receive payments from the government not to exceed 50% of the total savings to the government. Schools could use such payments to supplement the amount awarded to Pell Grant recipients or could use such payment for grants to low- or middle-income graduate students.
+ Interest Rates:  Cuts interest rates in half (from 6.8 percent to 3.4 percent) for subsidized undergraduate student loans over 5 years.
+ Debt Relief:  Provides borrower option of having federal student loan payments capped at 15% of a monthly discretionary income, and forgives student loans after 25 years.
+ Public Service Loan Forgiveness:  Provides loan forgiveness for public sector employees after 10 years.
+ Consolidation/Reconsolidation:  Allows students to reconsolidate loans, repeals the elimination of in-school consolidation.
+ Origination Fees:  Reduces origination fees in Direct Loan program by 1% to track FFEL program origination fee reduction, and gives Secretary explicit authority to reduce origination fees (as FFEL lenders have).
+ Direct Loan/Student Aid Administrative Funds:  Repeals Reconciliation provision that moved administrative funds to discretionary side of budget to restore funding as mandatory, to ensure continued operation of the student aid programs.
+ College Tuition Tax Deduction/Student Loan Interest Tax Credit:  Extends college tuition tax deduction and increases allowable deduction to $12,000.  Converts existing student loan tax deduction into a tax credit.

Scholarship Update
+ Pell Grants, Perkins Loans, Academic Competitiveness Grants, SMART Grants
+ Everything is part of the FAFSA
+ Have you filed it yet?
+ This Sunday in Massachusetts is College Goal Sunday
+ Come on out and get in person help with the FAFSA
+ Same for Maine
+ New York is February 11
+ Other New England States don’t have them yet
+ What about a virtual College Goal Sunday? Would you participate?

Free Stuff Friday
+ DropCopy for the Mac
+ DIY Oil Lamp
+ What’s happening in your neighborhood with Upcoming.org
+ Hacking Netflix - turn very long wait into shipping
+ Small Business guide for tax stuff via Matthew Ebel
+ Top most overlooked tax deductions guide
+ 3 great video players
+ Democracy
+ FireAnt
+ VLC

Podsafe Music
+ Jen Foster, The Underdogs
+ Music via the Podsafe Music Network
+ Stop by our MySpace page!

Reminders
+ Private student loans available at any time - visit AlternativeStudentLoan.com
+ Stafford federal student loans at StaffordLoan.com
+ Student loan consolidation at StudentLoanConsolidator.com
+ FAFSA form online filing at FAFSAonline.com
+ Financial Aid Podcast Show Notes at FinancialAidPodcast.com.
+ The Financial Aid Podcast is a publication of the Student Loan Network.

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email me at financialaidpodcast {at} gmail {dot} com, visit http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com, or call 877-328-1565 x529 or 206-350-1208. AIM: FinAidPodcast Add me to your iTunes by visiting http://www.FinancialAidPodcast.com/itunes/

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