The state House on Tuesday approved a bill giving North Carolina's community colleges the option of not participating in a federal loan program for low-income students. The bill, which was debated at length Monday night, now goes to the state Senate. It passed on a 69-47 vote.
On Tuesday, Rep. Deborah Ross, a Raleigh Democrat, said the bill would hurt young people whose parents can't afford four-year colleges, those seeking job training, employers who won't benefit from an educated work force, and small businesses whose customers with lower-paying jobs will have less cash on hand. Whom would it benefit? Loan sharks and payday lenders, Ross said.
The House defeated a last-minute amendment by Rep. Jennifer Weiss, a Cary Democrat, that would prevent colleges that opt out of the loan program from offering loans with higher interest rates.
Rep. Nelson Dollar, a Cary Republican, made the point that the bill wouldn't prevent local boards of trustees from participating in the loan program if they wanted.
The GOP-sponsored bill allows the college boards not to offer the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program from the U.S. Department of Education. The provision rolls back a 2010 measure that requires the schools to offer the loans starting this summer. Across the state, 34 community colleges do not offer the loans.
George Cleveland, a Republican from Jacksonville and a primary sponsor of the bill, said participation in the federal loan program puts campuses at risk of losing a host of federal funding if too many students fail to pay back the money. Some campus leaders are against the loan program because the colleges have no authority to deny the loans to students they consider to be at a high risk of default.
Democrats accused Republicans of creating a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. No North Carolina community colleges have lost federal funding because of defaults through the loan program.
Wind energy boost sought
Dozens of environmental groups in Atlantic Coast states are asking President Barack Obama for a series of efforts to increase offshore wind energy.
The groups are asking for a federal policy that encourages wind development with a strong plan and financial incentives. But they also want assurances that offshore wind farms won't harm delicate ocean ecosystems and that they can co-exist with the fishing industry.
The organizations sent Obama a letter Tuesday outlining their wish list.
"For the sake of our environment and the hope of building a truly clean-energy economy in America, we must see numerous wind farms spinning off our shores within the next few years - and we need your help to make that a reality," the letter reads.
In North Carolina, the letter's signers include the Albemarle Environmental Association, Carteret County Crossroads, Environment North Carolina, the N.C. Conservation Network, N.C. Interfaith Power and Light, the N.C. League of Conservation Voters, the N.C. Wildlife Federation, the Pamlico-Tar River Foundation, Surfrider Foundation Outer Banks Chapter, and state Reps. Pricey Harrison, Rick Glazier and Susan Fisher.
Invited to the White House
N.C. Association of Educators President Sheri Strickland is invited to the White House today to watch a game of hoops with President Barack Obama.
Strickland will take NCAE Vice President Rodney Ellis as her guest to the viewing party tonight when the Chicago Bulls play the Charlotte Bobcats. She announced the White House visit on Twitter.
Compiled by staff writers Craig Jarvis, Barbara Barrett and Jane Stancill
