House Backs Bill to Steady Student-Lending Market

The House of Representatives this week approved a bill aimed at making sure student loans remain available, despite a shaky credit market.

The measure, sponsored by Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, would raise borrowing limits on some federally backed loans so that students wouldn’t have to turn to private lenders, some of whom have tightened their requirements for borrowers recently. And it would make sure a system of safeguards for the federal student-loan program would operate smoothly, in the event it was needed.

The House approved the bill by a vote of...