Biden proposes student loan relief plan, 23 million Americans may benefit

President Joe Biden announced plans Monday Reduce student debt, which would benefit at least 23 million Americansaddresses a key issue among young voters whose support he will need as he seeks re-election in November.

The plans, detailed by the Democratic president in Madison, Wisconsin, include eliminating up to $20,000 of accrued and capitalized interest for borrowers regardless of income, which the Biden administration estimates would eliminate all interest for 23 million borrowers.

Biden hopes progressive voters will support him against Republican challenger Donald Trump, who have long urged the White House to address student loan debt. The Biden administration has taken a series of actions despite the U.S. Supreme Court blocking his initial plan last year.

The issue remains high on the agenda of young voters, many of whom are concerned about Biden’s foreign policy on the Gaza war and accuse him of failing to achieve greater debt relief. Republicans say Biden’s approach to student loan relief exceeds his authority and unfairly benefits college-educated borrowers while other borrowers do not receive such relief.

Biden’s new plan includes automatically canceling the debt of borrowers who qualified for certain forgiveness programs, entered repayment plans decades ago, were in low financial value programs or are experiencing hardship.

“This relief can be life-changing,” Biden said in Madison, where a total solar eclipse was unfolding across North America. “Friends, I will never stop providing student loan relief for hard-working Americans… It’s in the interest of our economy.”

He added that if he is re-elected in November’s presidential election, he will work to make community college free.

If the latest plan is finalized after a public comment period, it could take effect as early as this fall, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on a conference call detailing the plan. Combined with the administration’s previous actions, they will benefit more than 30 million Americans, Jean-Pierre added.

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, the top Republican on the Senate Education Committee, said such “loan programs” simply shift the cost of debt onto others.

“This is an unfair tactic to buy votes before an election and does nothing to address the high cost of education that is driving young people back into debt,” Cassidy wrote in a statement.

So far, the government says it has approved $146 billion in student debt relief for 4 million Americans. About 43.4 million student loan recipients had $1.63 trillion in outstanding loans as of June 2023, according to the federal student aid website.

“We are working as quickly as possible to get as much relief as possible to as many borrowers as possible,” U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said.

After the Supreme Court decided to block his previous plan to cancel hundreds of billions of dollars in debt, Biden vowed to continue pushing for student debt relief to as many borrowers as possible, and administration officials said they studied the 6-3 plan as they developed the new plan. ruling.

Other administration officials will promote the new plan at events across the U.S. on Monday, including Vice President Kamala Harris in Philadelphia.