Last night the U.S. House of Representatives passed the tax and unemployment benefit package – The Middle Class Tax Relief Act of 2010.  The U.S. Senate passed the bill earlier this week.

The Act includes several financial aid provisions for higher education.

• An extension of the American Opportunity Tax Credit
• An extension of the above-the-line tax deduction for qualified education expenses
• An extension of the expanded Coverdell Education Savings Accounts
• An extension of the expanded student loan interest deduction
• An extension of the expanded exclusion for employer-provided educational assistance
• An extension of the exclusion from income of amounts received under certain scholarship programs.

The Act now goes to the President for his signature.