introduced the Lowering Student Loans Act, legislation to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 and set a fixed 2 percent interest rate for all Federal Direct student loans.
Support legislation to cap federal student loan interest rates at 2 percent for all Federal Direct student loans, including reducing existing loans above that rate.
Occurrences
Mr. Thompson of California (for himself and Mr. Moylan) introduced the following bill... To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to set interest rates for Federal student loans made on or after July 1, 2026, at 2 percent, and for other purposes.
Evidence
unverified · Source version 21058 · locator unknown
Mr. Thompson of California (for himself and Mr. Moylan) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce. Full title: "To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to set interest rates for Federal student loans made on or after July 1, 2026, at 2 percent, and for other purposes."
unverified · Source version 21059 · locator unknown
The bill text states it would amend the Higher Education Act to set interest rates for Federal student loans made on or after July 1, 2026, at 2 percent.
unverified · Source version 21060 · locator unknown
H.R. 2003 was introduced to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to lower the interest rate on Federal student loans to 2 percent; it was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce. Congressional Record history also shows cosponsors added in 2026.
unverified · Source version 21061 · locator unknown
The resolution concerns "the bill (H.R. 2003) to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to lower the interest rate on Federal student loans to 2 percent."
unverified · Source version 52241 · locator unknown
H.R. 7810, introduced by Mike Thompson, would set new Federal Direct Stafford, Unsubsidized Stafford, and PLUS loans first disbursed on or after July 1, 2026 at 2 percent, and would also reduce covered existing Federal Direct loans with rates above 2 percent to 2 percent beginning July 1, 2026.
unverified · Source version 52241 · locator unknown
For Federal Direct Consolidation Loans, H.R. 7810 would set new consolidation loans at 2 percent and reduce existing Federal Direct Consolidation Loans above 2 percent to 2 percent beginning July 1, 2026; it also lets FFEL consolidation borrowers consolidate into Direct loans for eligibility.
unverified · Source version 21058 · locator unknown
GovInfo lists H.R. 7810 as introduced by Mr. Thompson of California for himself and Mr. Moylan, referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce, with the full title setting interest rates for Federal student loans at 2 percent.
unverified · Source version 44476 · locator unknown
The enacted 2025 reconciliation bill's higher-education loan provisions taking effect July 1, 2026 establish loan limits for graduate, professional, and parent borrowers and terminate graduate/professional PLUS loans; the cited sections set borrowing caps, not a 2 percent federal student-loan interest-rate cap.
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AP reported that July 1, 2026 federal student-loan changes include the end of the SAVE plan, new graduate and Parent PLUS loan caps, and a temporary 1 percent auto-pay rate reduction, rather than a broad 2 percent statutory cap for all Federal Direct loans.
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WSJ reported that federal student-loan rates for July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027 are still set by the congressional formula by loan type, and that the One Big Beautiful Bill Act does not change the federal student-loan interest-rate formula.
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07/01/2026 | 07/01/2027 | 6.52 | 8.07 | 9.07 | N/A
verified · Source version 52240 · locator 9534
The rate is equal to the high yield of the 10-year Treasury notes auctioned at the final auction held before June 1 of that 12-month period, plus a statutory add-on percentage that varies depending on the loan type and, for Direct Unsubsidized Loans, whether the loan was made to an undergraduate or graduate student.
verified · Source version 52241 · locator 439
Mr. Thompson of California (for himself and Mr. Moylan) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce
verified · Source version 52241 · locator 1782
for Federal Direct Stafford Loans, Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans, and Federal Direct PLUS Loans (including such a loan made to a parent on behalf of a dependent student) for which the first disbursement is made on or after July 1, 2026, the applicable rate of interest shall be 2 percent on the unpaid principal balance of the loan.
verified · Source version 52241 · locator 2254
with respect to a loan described in clause (i) for which the first disbursement was made before July 1, 2026, and for which the applicable rate of interest is greater than 2 percent, beginning on July 1, 2026, the applicable rate of interest for such loan shall be 2 percent on the unpaid principal balance of such loan.
unverified · Source version 52243 · locator unknown
any Federal Direct Consolidation Loan for which the application is received on or after July 1, 2013, shall bear interest at an annual rate on the unpaid principal balance of the loan that is equal to the weighted average of the interest rates on the loans consolidated, rounded to the nearest higher one-eighth of one percent.
Assessments
Thompson materially supported the promised policy by introducing H.R. 7810 in March 2026, which would cap new covered Federal Direct loans at 2 percent and reduce covered existing Direct loans above 2 percent to 2 percent. However, the evidence shows the bill was only introduced and referred to committee, while current federal student-loan law and July 2026 changes did not enact a broad 2 percent interest-rate cap or reduce existing loans to that rate. This is a serious same-term legislative attempt, but the promised policy outcome was not delivered.
Thompson took concrete legislative action in office by introducing H.R. 7810 to set federal student loan interest rates at 2 percent, but the bill covered loans made on or after July 1, 2026 and there is no evidence it became law or reduced existing loans above that rate. That matches support for the idea, but not full delivery of the broader promise to cap all Federal Direct student loans and lower existing balances.
The promise was to support legislation capping federal student loan interest rates at 2 percent for all Federal Direct loans, including reducing existing loans above that rate. Evidence shows Thompson did take concrete legislative action by introducing H.R. 7810 in March 2026 to set rates at 2 percent for federal student loans made on or after July 1, 2026. That demonstrates meaningful support for the core policy goal. However, the available evidence does not show enactment, and the cited Thompson bill appears limited to future loans rather than clearly delivering the promised reduction for existing loans above 2 percent. Other cited 2 percent legislation was introduced by another member, and the record here does not establish Thompson materially advanced it to passage. So he partially fulfilled the promise through substantive legislative support, but did not deliver the full promised outcome.