Written by: Michelle Cormier
Published: 09/24/2009

Sallie Mae Rewards House Members Opposed to Student Loan Overhaul

Last week, the House passed a bill that would end the bank-based guaranteed student loan program and direct all student loans into the direct federal loan program.

Fearful of its impact on the private loan industry, loan providers lobbied against the student loan overhaul legislation. Sallie Mae, in particular, spent more than $2.1 million on lobbying during the first half of this year and has distributed $2.9 million to current legislators since 1989, reports the Center for Responsive Politics.

SLM Corp., the parent company of Sallie Mae, directed a disproportionate share of those funds to lawmakers who voted against the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (H.R. 3221). The 171 lawmakers who voted against the bill received an average of $2,986 more from SLM Corp. over the past 20 years than the 253 members who approved the bill.

The most notable discrepancy in campaign contributions from SLM Corp. is to House Democrats. The company directed an average of $36,650 to the four Democrats who opposed the student loan overhaul compared to the $3,929 that went to the pockets of the 247 members who helped pass the legislation.

SLM Corp. has largely divided its contributions between the two parties, though, giving 52 percent of its total payouts since 1989 to current House Democrats.

Related Links:

OpenSecrets.org – Center for Responsive Politics
http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2009/09/sallie-mae-finds-friends-as-ma.html