The Michigan Daily

Vol. XCII, No. 18-S

Ann Arbor, Michigan-Friday, May 28, 1982

Ten Cents

Twenty Pages

U.S. to follow
SALT treaty,
officials say

WASHINGTON (AP) - President
Reagan will announce this weekend
that the United States intends to obser-
ve the 1979 strategic arms limitation
agreement with the Soviet Union -
which he has blasted as "fatally
flawed" - provided the Soviets also live
up to the accord, administration and
other sources said yesterday.
However, in the statement being
drafted by William Clark, his national
security assistant, Reagan also is ex-
pected to leave some weapons options
open, the sources said.
WHILE administration officials are
prepared to describe that qualification
as technical, arms control proponents
are likely to jump on it as clearing the
way for a possible preach of the 1972
and 1979 SALT treaties.
Reagan wants to issue the statement
before leaving Tuesday for economic
and military summit talks with
European leaders to counter concern
among some that he is abandoning the
restraints imposed by the treaties on
U.S. and Soviet nuclear weapons.
David Gergen, White House director
of communications, said national
security officials had been discussing
the possibility of the president making
such an arms control statement before
leaving for Europe and that it is likely

he will.
THE 1972 agreement, which limited
same offensive weapons as well as
missile defenses, has expired. The 1979
accord sets ceilings on U.S. and Soviet
long-range bombers, intercontinental
ballistic missiles and multiple
warheads. It has never been ratifieid
by the Senate.
Campaigning against President Car-
ter, who signed the treaty, Reagan don-
demned it as "fatally flawed" and not
conducive to arms control. He said it
permits the Soviets to add at least 3,000
nuclear warheads to their inventory
while the United States tried to catch
up.
Reagan proposed this month a new
treaty that would sharply reduce U.S.
and Soviet missile arsenals, beginning
with a cutback of one-third in missile
warheads to equal levels of 5,000
apiece.
Soviet President Leonid Brezhnev
has replied to Reagan's call for
negotiations to begin next month, but no
date has been set.
The idea behind the forthcoming
statement is to continue the U.S. and
Soviet informal commitment to live up to
the 1979 treaty - and also its 1972
predecessor - while the new
negotiations get underway.

Officials defend
By FANNIE WEINSTEIN Figures released in June, 1981, for the
Student losn default rates often are $180 million NDSL program list the
misunderstood, misrepresented, and default rate for schools roughly 11 per-
thus unfairly place student loan cent and the potential loss rate for the
programs in a poor light; according to government at a little more than 15
University officials. percent, according to Butts.
"It (the default rate) is byno means THESE FIGURES show a significant
as bad as it's been reported "said decrease from the 17.4 percent rate
Thomas Butts, assistant to the Univer- recorded for both schools and the
sity's vice president for academic af- government in 1978.
fairs. "I think it's very important to tr Butts said that default figures
and counter the attempts to discredit frequently have been misrepresented
these programs." by the Reagan administration. Default
IN FACT, according to Butts, the rates released by the administration
latest government figures on the last year did not present a complete
National Direct Student Loan (NDSL) picture, he said, because they were
Program show that the rate of defaults, calculated on a cumulative basis over
or failure to pay back loans, has shar- enty years, which inflates the
ply declined since 1978. resultingfigures.
Two rates are computed by the The University's NDSL default 'rate
government, a default rate for schools was almost seven percent for the 1980-
and a potential loss rate for the federal 81 loan year, according to Richard
government, Butts explained. The Taepke, collection supervisor for the
government rate usually turns out to be University's Student Loan Office. The
slightly less, Butts said, because the University's current NDSL program
government usually collects at least involves roughly $2.2 million.
some of the funds. IN THE Guaranteed Student Loan

Protesting
A member of the Moslem Students Society protests executions carried out by
the Khomeini regime in Iran. Seven students participated in the demon-
stration on State Street yesterday.
student defaults
(GSL) Program, bank default claims student loan default rates in recent
averaged about 10 percent nationwide years, according to Butts. "The trend
and 8.4 percent for the state of has been down," he said. "We began an
Michigan, according to figures released initiative in 1979to crack down on loans
by the University earlier this year. . . . It's been getting better. I hope it
A loan is considered defaulted when stays that way."
any one payment is 120 days overdue. "SCHOOLS ARE doing a better job of
There has been a sharp decline in
See 'U' OFFICIALS, Page 2
Govern-ment cracks
do wn on doctors
WASHINGTON (UPI) - The gover- percent delinquency rate. Doctors, the
nment says some promising steps are focus of the audit, owe about $5.2
under way to collect delinquent student million according to the audit which
loan debts from doctors who owe an criticized lax collection measures.
estimated $5.2 million. HHS Secretary Richard Schweiker,
An audit by Health and Human Ser- who released the audit last week, said
vices (HHS) Inspector General Richard his department will take several steps
Kusserow, prompted by congressional to improve loan collection, because
hearings, said 63,000 nurses and doctors failure to repay "is unfair to new health
owe $30.6 million in overdue loans, a 20 See GOVERNMENT, Page 2