By Matt Sepic, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – House Democrats are fighting what they say are major cuts to federal student aid.
Democratic Rep. Russ Carnahan of St. Louis says funding for student loans will take a nearly $13 billion hit if the bill passes.
"The overall impact of the bill is to make student loans more difficult and more expensive on students and families, and raise their debt burden when they're done," Carnahan said.
Carnahan adds the proposal would raise interest rates on some loans and temporarily raise the fee for direct loans.
But Steve Taylor, a spokesman for St. Louis County Republican Todd Akin, says the plan is not to eliminate student loans, just to reduce the amount the government spends on them.
"It allows the federal government to have payback rates which are reflective of the current market rates," Taylor said.
Taylor says Akin plans to vote for the bill because he believes it to be fiscally responsible.