New student loan caps and repayment changes from the law Cindy Hyde-Smith voted for take effect today, July 1

For the first time, Mississippi parents can borrow no more than $20,000 a year to help put a child through college, after decades of being able to borrow what it cost

One year later, this is the receipt Cindy Hyde-Smith sent Mississippi: SEE THE FULL RECEIPT BELOW

District Attorney Colom: “She voted for it. You’re paying for it.”

Columbus, MS — One year ago, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith voted for a permanent tax handout for people making over $600,000 a year and sent Mississippi the bill. Today, July 1, the next charge comes due. The student aid provisions buried in that billionaire tax break take effect, capping how much Mississippi parents can borrow to send their kids to college, ending Graduate PLUS loans for new borrowers, and replacing the repayment plans working families count on with a costlier one.

For a state where 41 percent of undergraduates already depend on Pell grants to get in the door, these changes land hardest exactly where opportunity is already hardest to come by. Parents who once could borrow whatever it took to get a child across the finish line now hit a hard limit, and the students most likely to need the help are the ones most likely to come up short.

“As a father of two young girls and as someone who’s met with college students all over Mississippi, I’ve heard the same worry again and again: these kids are doing everything right and still afraid they can’t afford to finish school,” said District Attorney Scott Colom. “The cost of everything is going up, and a year ago Cindy Hyde-Smith voted for a tax handout for people making over $600,000 a year that only makes it harder and more expensive for these kids to earn a degree and build a life here at home. No young person willing to work for a better future should have the door shut in their face so the wealthiest few can get a bigger tax break. She voted for it. You’re paying for it.”

By the Numbers:

• 41 percent of Mississippi undergraduates rely on Pell grants to afford college
• $20,000 is the new cap on what a parent can borrow each year to help pay for a child’s college, effective today, after decades in which parents could borrow up to the full cost of attendance
• $65,000 is the new lifetime cap per child, less than the full cost of a four-year degree at many Mississippi universities
• $0 in new Graduate PLUS loans are available to new borrowers as of today, closing off a path Mississippi families have used to reach medical school, law school, and graduate degrees
• Under the new Repayment Assistance Plan replacing the plans borrowers use now, an independent analysis found a family of four at the median household income would see payments rise from $36 to $440 a month

Bottom Line: Cindy Hyde-Smith voted for all of it. The caps, the lost loans, and the costlier repayment terms were written into the same billionaire tax break she supported, paid for by cutting the programs Mississippi families depend on so the wealthiest few could keep a permanent tax handout. She voted for it. Mississippi is paying for it.

Sources: Medicaid funding cut, RAND. Medicaid/CHIP and Pell reliance, SPLC Action Fund. Rural hospitals at risk, Clarion Ledger. Average in-state tuition, U.S. Dept. of Education (IPEDS). Parent PLUS cap, NAICU. SNAP figures, Mississippi Today.

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About Scott: Scott Colom is a seventh-generation Mississippian, proud husband and father of two, and district attorney who fights every day to keep Mississippians safe. Guided by his Christian faith, Scott has dedicated his life to serving his neighbors and keeping them safe from violent criminals. Now he’s running to lower costs for families, save our Mississippi hospitals, and bring good jobs home. Scott loves his state and will always put Mississippi first – and he’ll work with anyone, Republican or Democrat, to get things done for us.