EXETER, N.H. -- Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton outlined a plan Monday to slash student-loan interest rates while aiming to guarantee students could attend college without needing to take out loans in the first place.
Under Clinton's plan, state governments, higher education institutions and students would play roles alongside the federal government in addressing the affordability of higher education.
"We need to make a quality education affordable and available to everyone willing to work for it without saddling them with decades of debt," she said.
Clinton outlined the $350 billion plan at a New Hampshire event.
States that agree to increase spending on higher education would be eligible for federal grants to help reduce the gap between tuition costs and what families can afford to pay. Families will also be required to meet what the campaign says would be a "realistic contribution" to tuition, and students would be required to work 10 hours a week in return for being freed from borrowing money.
"We can't expect the federal government just to pay the bill for free. That's not how America works," Clinton said.
In addition, students from low-income families would be eligible to use Pell grants to pay for room and board. That option would be available to other students who commit to a form of public service.
The plan aims to give incentives to colleges and universities to control costs and assume a share of the responsibility for rising debt.
A fact sheet points to a proposal co-sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., that would change the formula for determining eligibility for federal funds based on the proportion of students who are paying back loans and require "risk-sharing" payments to the Department of Education for loans not being repaid.
Clinton's plan would also reduce the interest rate that the federal government charges for Stafford loans so the program would break even rather than generate a profit. Students would be able to refinance their outstanding loans at current lower rates, and future graduates would be eligible for an income-based repayment program, capping debt payments at 10 percent of their income.
The campaign said the total cost of Clinton's proposal would be $350 billion over 10 years, with more than half of the cost going to grants for states and colleges to reduce tuition. It would be paid for by closing tax loopholes on high-income taxpayers.
Clinton's leading Democratic rivals have already outlined proposals to make college more affordable.
Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont has called for free tuition at public colleges and universities, at a cost of $70 billion a year.
Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley would provide for refinancing at lower interest rates and an income-based repayment plan, while requiring states to ramp up higher education spending and keep tuition at a percentage of the state's median income.
Republicans criticized Clinton's plan soon after it was announced.
"Clinton's solution to every pressing policy issue is to expand government and raise taxes, and this plan is no different," Republican spokesman Allison Moore said in a statement.
Also on Monday, Clinton submitted a sworn statement to a federal judge that said she has turned over all emails reflecting official government business.
In the statement, which carries her signature and was signed under penalty of perjury, she said she directed that all emails from her personal account "that were or potentially were federal records" be provided to the State Department. She said 55,000 pages of emails were turned over to the department in December.
The declaration was made as part of a lawsuit filed by the conservative group Judicial Watch, which had sued for records related to Clinton's tenure as secretary of state.
Information for this article was contributed by Michael A. Memoli of Tribune News Service and staff members of The Associated Press.
A Section on 08/11/2015