Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa College Access Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. SABLAN. Madam Speaker, today, I introduce the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa College Access Act, which would authorize tuition assistance grants to cover the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition costs for Northern Marianas and American Samoa community college graduates seeking to attend a four-year public university.

The importance of having an educated citizenry is a bedrock principle of our nation and has been since our founding. And in today's competitive job market, a postsecondary education is increasingly becoming a critical necessity for obtaining a decent job with a decent wage.

The Northern Mariana Islands has only been part of America for forty years. We understand well that education is key to our continued growth, but the reality is that household incomes in the Northern Marianas are less than half the national median. The U.S. territory of American Samoa is in similar economic straits. Poverty and unemployment rates there are among the highest in the country.

I believe the best way to improve economic conditions in these territories is to improve the educational opportunities of our residents. Unfortunately, however, neither the Northern Marianas nor American Samoa has a four-year institution of higher education. In fact, they are the only two congressional districts in the country without a public four-year college or university. Each has an accredited community college, but academic offerings are substantially limited.

Students from these U.S. territories wanting the advantages of a four-year university in another state or territory face significant financial difficulty. Nonresident students spend an average of $16,380 in out-of state tuition and fees more per year than their resident peers at public four-year colleges, according to College Board. And many students in the Marianas and American Samoa wanting to attend a four-year university not only face the cost-of-nonresident-tuition, but also the significant expense of travel. The Marianas are over 3,700 miles from the nearest state, Hawaii--a $1,100 one-way trip by plane. American Samoa to Hawaii is over 2,500 miles, over $800 one-way.

The bill follows the model of P.L. 106-98, the D.C. College Access Act, which allows students residing in the District of Columbia to apply for grants to help pay the cost of attending colleges outside D.C., but much smaller in scope and cost. It creates a program through which public four-year schools in the 50 states, D.C., and other U.S. territories may be reimbursed for offering in-state tuition to undergraduate students from the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa.

The gentlewoman from American Samoa, Mrs. Radewagen, is an original cosponsor of the bill. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation and help give students from the Northern Marianas and American Samoa the means needed to make their educational dreams a reality.

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