United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee 2 R cosponsors

S 308 — Graduate Opportunity and Affordable Loans Act

Last action — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced January 29, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Stalled 18% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 2 sponsors

    1 primary, 1 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (2 R).

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

Graduate Opportunity and Affordable Loans ActThis bill limits federal student loan borrowing for graduate and professional students.Specifically, the bill terminates the ability of a graduate or professional student to receive a Direct PLUS Loan. Institutions of higher education (IHEs) must notify their prospective and enrolled graduate and professional students that Direct PLUS Loans terminate on June 30, 2025.Additionally, the bill establishes the aggregate loan limit for Direct Unsubsidized Loans as $65,000 for a graduate student (in addition to the amount borrowed for undergraduate education) and $130,000 for a professional student (in addition to the amount borrowed for undergraduate education).The bill allows IHEs to set lower loan limits.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

10 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill modifies the annual and aggregate limits for Federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loans and terminates Federal Direct PLUS Loans for graduate and professional students.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e

    part B → part B--

    The bill updates a reference to the structure of the law.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)(3)(A)

    for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2012, a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct Stafford loan under this part; and → (i) for any period of instruction beginning on or after July 1, 2012, a graduate or professional student

    The eligibility statement is modified to follow a new format.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(a)(3)(A)(ii)

    the maximum annual amount of Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford loans such a student may borrow in any academic year (as defined in section 1088(a)(2) of this title) or its equivalent shall be the maximum annual amount for such student determined under section 1078–8 of this title, plus an amount equal to the amount of Federal Direct Stafford loans the student would have received in the absence of this subparagraph. → for any period of instruction beginning on July 1, 2012 and ending on June 30, 2025 (subject to paragraph (4)(C)), the maximum annual

    The bill adds a specific end date to the maximum amount students can borrow.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e

    (4) Graduate and professional annual and aggregate limits for unsubsidized Stafford loans beginning July 1, 2025.--

    New provisions for annual and aggregate loan limits for graduate and professional students are added.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(4)(A)(i)

    $20,500; → $20,500;

    The annual limit for graduate students remains the same.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(4)(A)(ii)

    $50,000; → $40,500;

    The annual limit for professional students is reduced.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(4)(B)(i)

    $100,000; → $65,000;

    The aggregate limit for graduate students is reduced.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(4)(B)(ii)

    $200,000; → $130,000;

    The aggregate limit for professional students is reduced.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(5)

    a graduate or professional student shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct PLUS Loan under this part. → a graduate student (including a professional student) shall not be eligible to receive a Federal Direct PLUS Loan under this part for enrollment in a program of graduate or doctor's degree professional-practice education.

    Federal Direct PLUS Loans for graduate and professional students are terminated.

  • 20 U.S.C. 1087e(5)(B)

    Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of the Graduate Opportunity and Affordable Loans Act, each institution of higher education that enrolls graduate students or professional students shall notify prospective and enrolled graduate students and professional students that the Federal Direct PLUS Loan program will end for graduate students and professional students on June 30, 2025.

    Institutions are required to notify students about the termination of PLUS Loans.

Action History

  1. Introduced in Senate

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 1 co-sponsors · 545 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (1)

Not signed on (545)

545 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

finance education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 308 do?
Graduate Opportunity and Affordable Loans ActThis bill limits federal student loan borrowing for graduate and professional students.Specifically, the bill terminates the ability of a graduate or professional student to receive a Direct PLUS Loan. Institutions of higher education (IHEs) must notify their prospective and enrolled graduate and professional students that Direct PLUS Loans terminate on June 30, 2025.Additionally, the bill establishes the aggregate loan limit for Direct Unsubsidized Loans as $65,000 for a graduate student (in addition to the amount borrowed for undergraduate education) and $130,000 for a professional student (in addition to the amount borrowed for undergraduate education).The bill allows IHEs to set lower loan limits.
Who sponsors S 308?
S 308 is sponsored by Tuberville, Tommy (Republican) and Cassidy, Bill (Republican).
What is the current status of S 308?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced January 29, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 308?
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