A group of prominent Democrats announced a law on Thursday asking President Joe Biden to cancel some student loan debts using his executive power.
Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., joined Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. And Reps. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., Alma Adams, DN.C., Mondaire Jones, DN.Y., and Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., At a news conference to announce the measure.
The resolution, which is not binding, calls on Biden to use executive action to eliminate up to $ 50,000 in federal student loan debt for all borrowers and ensure that there is zero tax liability for borrowers after canceling any administrative debt. He also suspends student loan and interest payments during the pandemic and says the Secretary of Education has broad administrative authority to cancel the debt.
Urging him to “be receptive to the movement that elected him,” Pressley said the resolution has more than 50 co-sponsors in the House, the support of both chambers of Congress and the support of hundreds of grassroots organizations.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki appeared to pour cold water on the effort on Thursday, telling reporters that although “the president has supported and continues to support the $ 10,000 cancellation of the federal student loan debt for person in response to the Covid crisis, “any further action would need to come from Congress.
“He is asking Congress to draft the proposal,” she said, although she did not say what specific measures he would support. “And if it’s approved and sent to your desk, he’ll be eager to sign it.”
Later she tweeted that the White House would also be “analyzing whether there is any action it can take through executive action”.
Democrats and supporters have been lobbying Biden for months to tackle the student loan crisis through executive action. Warren and Schumer presented a resolution in September that outlined how the president could use the existing authority under the Higher Education Act to cancel the debt.
“Canceling student loan debt is good for you, whether you have student loan debt or not, because it is good for our economy,” Warren said on Thursday. She said that canceling this debt for the 45 million debtors would increase ownership, credit scores and eligibility for jobs, among other things.
The resolution calls for a more aggressive approach to student loan forgiveness than what Biden’s team previously proposed. Biden’s Education Beyond High School plan launched during his presidential campaign was more focused on easing the burden for future borrowers, although it proposed some debt relief for public officials, as well as an income-based payment plan allowing some borrowers to low income to give up payments without incurring interest.
On his first day in office, Biden also signed an executive order extending the pause in paying federal loans to students owed to Covid-19 until October. He also asked Congress last month to cancel $ 10,000 of federal student loan debt per person as an additional measure of coronavirus relief.
According to Biden’s campaign plan, borrowers earning more than $ 25,000 would have to make their monthly payment for 20 years to be considered for total forgiveness of their remaining balance. Schumer said that this approach could lead to larger gaps in racial inequality.
“After 20 years, only 5% of whites are in student debt, but 95% of African Americans are in debt,” said Schumer. “The difference in wealth in America between blacks and whites is one of our biggest problems. One of the best ways, the quickest way to cure a good part of it, is to get rid of the $ 50,000 in debt.”
