House Votes 368-4 To Extend Dept. of Education Liquidity Plan

In the face of a mounting crisis on Wall Street and fears that it will spread to Main Street, the House of Representatives voted today by an overwhelming margin to extend the Dept. of Education liquidity plan until July 1, 2010, according to Reuters.  This issue of an extension had been discussed recently by Sallie Mae at an investor conference.  It was also mentioned in a recent post as a critical factor in determining when lenders would be comfortable responding to RFIs for the 2009-10 academic year.  

Here are some highlights from the article:

• Measure will now go to the Senate for further review
• There is a related measure in the House "that allows the department [of Education] to provide funds to state guaranty agencies for making loans to students and colleges in case they are unable to get loans elsewhere." 
• "To date, $3.4 billion has been distributed under the trusts part of the program, while no student loans have yet been purchased outright, said a department official."