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  3. Laura Strong, a 29-year-old in suburban Chicago, owes $245,000 on student loans for the psychology Ph. D. she finished in 2013.

Laura Strong, a 29-year-old in suburban Chicago, owes $245,000 on student loans for the psychology Ph. D. she finished in 2013.

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问题     Laura Strong, a 29-year-old in suburban Chicago, owes $245,000 on student loans for the psychology Ph. D. she finished in 2013. This year, she says she hopes to earn $ 35 ,000 working part-time jobs as a therapist and yoga teacher—not enough to manage a loan payment of about $ 2,000 a month. But Strong isn’t paying anything close to that. She’s one of at least 3. 8 million Americans who’ve qualified for federal programs that tie payments to income and eventually forgive debt for some struggling borrowers , leaving taxpayers to pick up the tab.
    President Obama has praised the programs for offering a lifeline to borrowers who’d otherwise default, scarring their credit. Strong pays about $ 100 a month on her federal loans, which she used to finance her graduate studies at Argosy University. " I wouldn’t know how I would pay it back otherwise, she says.
    Income-based repayment was introduced under President Clinton, but the programs weren’t heavily promoted until late 2013, when the Obama administration began sending e-mails to borrowers, telling them, " Your initial payment could be as low as $ 0 a month. " The number of people using these plans has quadrupled since 2012. About half of outstanding balances in the Department of Education’s Grad Plus loans, which finance advanced-degree studies, are in income-driven plans. Most borrowers in the programs have payments capped at 15 percent of income, with allowances for housing and other expenses. In December the Obama administration is expected to expand the number of borrowers eligible for a payment cap of 10 percent. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said the plans protect people going into socially valuable but low-paying lines of work from crushing debt. " That’s good for them. That’s good for our economy. It’s good for our society," he said.
    Critics say the plans are a hidden subsidy to well-off students and colleges, which can justify tuition increases by reassuring students that they may not have to repay their debt. In a seminar at Georgetown Law, Charles Pruett, assistant dean for financial aid, was captured on video telling alumni they could "ignore" debt balances if they spent 10 years in government or nonprofit jobs, which would qualify them for early loan forgiveness. Pruett says Georgetown promotes the programs to encourage graduates to take public-service jobs. "It’s an earned benefit, not a giveaway," he says.
    Borrowers hold $1.2 trillion in federal student loans, the second-biggest category of consumer debt, after mortgages. For taxpayers the loans are " a slow-ticking time bomb," says Stephen Stanley, a former Federal Reserve economist.
Which of the following is true about income-driven plans?
选项 A、It was introduced and favored by President Clinton.
B、It gives support to those who go for advanced studies.
C、It offers basic guarantee to low-income borrowers.
D、It benefits those borrowers with socially valuable jobs most.
答案B
解析 细节题。根据题干定位到第三段。关键句：About half of outstanding balances in the De—partment of Education’s Grad Plus loans，which finance advanced-degree studies，are in income-driven plans．“为高级学位学习提供资助的教育部联邦贷款中大概半数未付贷款都是与收入相挂钩的偿还计划。”由此可知，与收入挂钩的偿还计划是教育部联邦贷款的一部分，而后者又是资助学生完成高级学位的学习，所以与收入挂钩的偿还计划也为进行高级学位深造的人提供支持，因此[B]选项正确。根据原文Income—based repayment was introduced under PresidentClinton，无法判断克林顿总统对该计划是否持支持态度，所以[A]选项错误，可排除。[C]选项在原文中并未提及，可排除。[D]选项benefit言过其实，可排除。
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