President Bush's budget request for fiscal year 2004 "provides more than $62.3 billion in new grants, loans and work-study opportunities, an increase of $2.7 billion or five percent to serve 9.2 million students," according to U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige.

In addition, Bush's budget proposal could benefit students in several specific ways:

• a $1.35 billion increase in the Federal Pell Grant program (for an all-time high of $12.7 billion), which is projected to benefit nearly 4.9 million middle-income and low-income students.
  
  
• nearly $10 billion in tax relief through a new above-the-line tax deduction of up to $4,000 annually for higher education expenses, ongoing student loan interest deductions, Hope tax credits, and the Lifetime Learning tax credit.
  
  
• a $11.3 million increase to institutions of higher education that serve high proportions of minority and disadvantaged students.
  
  
• an expansion in loan forgiveness from $5,000 to $17,500 offered to mathematics, science, and special education teachers serving in low-income schools.
  
  

Need more information on upcoming federal student aid? Go to www.studentaid.ed.gov or call (800) 433-3243.

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