Student debt is something that every student must contemplate. In choosing whether or not to go to college, the enormous financial hurdle is often one of the greatest barriers. If someone does make the leap, they’re saddling themselves with thousands upon thousands of dollars owed to the bank and university.
This is a problem that’s been gradually getting worse over time. In 1980, it costed about $10,000 per year to go to university. That’s a sizable sum, but is - ideally - relatively manageable. By 2020, that price had doubled nearly threefold, to $28,000 annually (and this doesn’t even count room & board). This is an enormous sum, and it means that college students will be having to pay off over a hundred thousand dollars. Often, parents provide financial assistance, but that’s a significant amount of money that many people can’t lose lightly.
The situation has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Both Trump and Biden have halted student loan repayment, in recognition of all the financial problems - to name one, the shutdown of the US economy - that many Americans continue to face. Trump extended the stoppage thrice, and Biden has done it six more times. However, the President has bigger plans than loan extensions:
He’s hoping to forgive them entirely.
Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan would release $20,000 of debt for most borrowers - relieving much of the financial burden for 26 million people, particularly those in low income families. The extensive act would cost $400 billion for the federal government, but Biden bypassed any Congressional challenge by using the 2003 HEROES act, which allows the education secretary to grant relief in times of national emergency.
Unfortunately, not all politicians are satisfied with the president’s justification. Legal challenges have blocked the plan, and the case has gone to the Supreme Court - the main opposition being six Republican-led states. They argue that this is an abuse of executive authority, one of “breathtaking and transformative power” by relying on “a tenuous and pretextual connection to a national emergency.” The administration has stated that their actions fall clearly within the parameters of the HEROES act, and that a Pandemic counts as a national emergency. The case is still in the works, so whether those billions will go to the college students is up in the air. Thousands of people have turned out in favor of the bill, but it’s also likely that the Supreme Court - which has showed Conservative tendencies as of late - will vote against Biden.
What do you think?