Cuts to the federally funded direct student loan program are expected to be approved by a U.S. Senate committee this morning, a congressional spokesman says.

The program, which is used at 40 percent of universities nation-wide including SIUC, allows students to receive loans directly through the mail rather than through banks and college bursar offices.

David Carle, spokesman for Sen. Paul Simon, DIll., the senator who created the program, said Republicans are proposing to make cuts in the programs funding by about 10 percent. He said if the plan is approved by the Senate, one out of every three students now participating in the program will no longer be able to receive direct student loans.

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Carle said the vote on cuts, to take place at about 8:30 a.m., is within the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources and is part of the Republican budget process. He said the final vote on cutting funds for the program by the entire Senate will probably take place within the next several weeks.

Carle said there is a good chance the committee will decide to approve the cuts which are being proposed by Republicans including the committee chair, Sen. Nancy Kassebaum, RKansas.

The odds are that she (Kassebaum) would not be moving towards the vote unless she thought she had enough Republican votes to pass it, Carle said.

A spokesperson for Kassebaum could not be reached for comment Thursday.