Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) released the following statement after voting in favor of the bipartisan student loan bill, which passed the Senate by a vote of 81-18:

“The bipartisan student loan compromise the Senate passed today will lower interest
rates for all students and help middle class families afford a college education. Tying interest rates to the market will protect taxpayers and lock-in longterm, historically low rates for all loans. Rather than another temporary fix that benefits a portion of students, this solution implements lasting reforms that provide certainty for all students in a fiscally responsible manner, and I was very pleased to support it.

“I also appreciate the President's role in securing this proposal’s passage through his
leadership of Congressional Democrats, which is imperative for similar bipartisan solutions on upcoming challenges.” 

Specifically, the bipartisan student loan bill:

• Lowers interest rates for all students and parents for the 2013-2014 school year.
• Ties all undergraduate loans to the same rate, unlike in the past when subsidized loans carried one rate while unsubsidized loans carried another.
• Moves from arbitrary rates set by statute to market-based rates, which are more reflective of the government’s borrowing costs.
• Includes caps which protect borrowers from market fluctuations, but are high enough that taxpayers will not unnecessarily subsidize artificially low rates.
• Saves the federal government $715 million over the next 10 years, according to
  Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projections.
• Is endorsed by President Obama and is similar to a plan passed by the House of
  Representatives.

Last month, Fischer voted in favor of a similar, permanent fix that would have also instituted market-based rates for all student loans, but was defeated in the
Senate.