SSN Commentary

If Biden Won’t Cancel Student Loan Debt, Congress Should Cancel the Interest

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University of North Carolina
Rutgers University-Camden
New Jersey-Philadelphia SSN

Originally published in the Hill on July 29, 2022.

Will he or won’t he? And how much? That’s what everyone has been asking about President Biden and student debt forgiveness. When news leaked that the Biden administration was planning $10,000 of loan forgiveness, many argued it wouldn’t go far enough. Yet Biden has said he is not considering canceling it all and wants Congress to address student debt through legislation.

legislative proposal would temporarily allow those with student loans to refinance them at 0 percent interest. Congress should not only pass this, they should expand it and make it a permanent policy.

To make a difference in the college debt crisis, Congress should apply all interest payments already made towards the principal for each borrower, set public loans at a permanent interest rate of 0 percent going forward, and allow those with private loans to convert their debt to public loans, also at a 0 percent interest rate.