When President Obama signed the Budget Control Act of 2011, he committed our nation to a budget-cutting process that may well be cumbersome. If Congress does not pass the Supercommittee proposals, then an automatic trigger will cut the budget across the board by about 9 percent.
I suppose the thinking behind creating the Supercommittee, composed of six Democrats and six Republicans, is that 12 minds are better than 535. The size of the committee may also make it easier for lobbyists. According to Politico, more than 200 lobbyists are pressuring Supercommittee members to protect their interests.
Who will protect the interests of young people, especially those who attend HBCUs?
Already, students have been hard hit by budget machinations. Beginning July 1, 2012, students will no longer receive an interest subsidy on their undergraduate and graduate student loans. Before now, while studying, student loans were interest-free, with interest kicking in only when they began repayment. No more. That will save about $18 billion in the nest decade, but at what cost?
For now, it appears that the Pell grant of $5500 for low income students remains intact. But the Supercommittee is looking for places to cut, and they are looking everywhere. Absent lobbyists, we will all have to lobby to protect the students who do not have the resources of the health care industry, legal associations, and those other 200 crowding Capital Hill.
South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn (D) is the only Congressional Black Caucus member on the Supercommittee. He has long been a friend of HBCUs. He is likely to find allies among other Democrats on the Supercommittee. But will they be able to withstand both the Republican zeal to reduce the size of government or the automatic triggers that will take place if the Supercommittee can’t find compromise?
It is also likely that Title III funding, the funding that is specifically targeted to HBCUs, will be on the chopping block. Those who care about HBCUs must lobby not only CBC members and Congressional Representatives in areas where HBCUs are located, but also any and every voter, especially those on the Supercommittee. The Committee is cochaired by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Congressman Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), and includes Senators Max Baucus (D-MT), John Kerry (D-MA), John Kyle (R-AZ), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Pat Toomey (R-PA). Congressional representatives
Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Jim Clyburn (DSC) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Fred Upton (R-MI) and David Camp (R-MI).
Julianne Malveaux is president of Bennett College for Women.
