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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Ben Lien (DFL)

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Rep. Lien supports proposal to freeze tuition until 2017, reduce student debt

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Moorhead, MN – Today at MSU Moorhead, State Representative Ben Lien (DFL – Moorhead) and Speaker Paul Thissen announced a proposal to make college more affordable and reduce student debt. The proposal calls for a tuition freeze through 2017, ensuring an unprecedented four years of flat tuition for Minnesota students after a decade of steep increases, while expanding opportunities to reduce student debt.  

“All Minnesota students deserve the opportunity to go to college and receive a degree – without finding themselves under a mountain of debt,” said Speaker Paul Thissen. “We made positive strides over the past two years, but there is more work to be done. A DFL majority will make college affordability a priority and we have good ideas that we are ready to move forward with in 2015.”

“Reducing student debt means college graduates will have more money in their pockets to spend at small businesses and save for major purchases like a new car or home,” said Lien. “With more and more jobs requiring a two or four-year degree, making college more affordable is more important than ever. Moving forward with this proposal is a big priority for me because it will benefit countless students and families living in Greater Minnesota.”

Investments in tuition and student debt relief were signature accomplishments from the 2013-2014 legislative session. Lien worked with state lawmakers to freeze tuition for both 2014 and 2015, increase financial aid through the state grant program and allow the Office of Higher Education to refinance student loans.

Tuition for Minnesota undergraduate students at public colleges and universities is frozen for two years, saving students at MnSCU universities an average of $2,089 over four years and students at MnSCU community & technical colleges an average of $1,044 over two years. 

An additional $75 million investment in financial aid was made through the Minnesota State Grant Program to help relieve the burden of student debt. Over 100,000 Minnesota students are projected to receive a state grant this year, including 1,409 students at Minnesota State University Moorhead.

Still, after the previous decade of steep tuition increases, many students face high costs and mounting debt. Lien announced his support of the following priorities for the 2015 session:

Keep Tuition Freeze “On Ice” until 2017

After freezing tuition in 2013, the legislature would work with the University of Minnesota and MnSCU to freeze tuition until 2017. Along with a greater statewide investment, the legislature will work closely with the U of MN and MnSCU to ensure each system is adopting efficiencies in order to better direct state dollars toward tuition stabilization and reduction.

Providing Debt Relief to Students

In 2014, the legislature approved student loan refinancing reforms that will help students receive lower interest rates and lower payments on student loans. House DFLers will be looking at additional opportunities to reduce student debt in 2015 such as:

1) Expanding the state’s loan forgiveness assistance to college graduates that fill jobs in vital fields in Greater Minnesota. This initiative would target areas of Minnesota that are experiencing “brain drain” by helping students pay off debt that return to their communities in high demand jobs. Students would receive 20% of outstanding student loan repaid up to $3,000 per year if they are working in a qualifying job in Greater Minnesota. This program would serve to reduce debt and also help communities in Greater Minnesota fill high-skilled jobs.

2) Providing debt relief to Minnesota graduates that fill jobs in critical areas as part of ServeMinnesota, the state’s administrator for AmeriCorps. This program would expand opportunities within the ServeMinnesota program so that eligible graduates could have debt forgiven even faster.

Rep. Lien encourages his constituents to contact him with any questions about college affordability and student debt relief. He can be reached by phone at (651) 296-5515, by email at rep.ben.lien@house.mn or by postal mail at 525 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155.