WASHINGTON, D.C. – A federal appeals court last week temporarily stopped the Biden administration’s student debt cancellation plan, which is set to provide up to $20,000 in relief to eligible graduates from the nation’s more than 44 million student loan borrowers.
In response, Jaylon Herbin, outreach and policy manager for the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), made the following statement:
Opponents of student debt relief are trying to prevent millions of Americans, including Black women and low-wealth borrowers disproportionately burdened by student debt, from enjoying wealth-building opportunities and bridging the racial wealth gap created by longstanding systemic racism.
Student debt burdens families for generations— including older Americans who have their Social Security garnished for being unable to repay their debts. It prevents millions of American taxpayers from meeting day-to-day family needs and blocks families from buying a home or starting businesses.
Cancellation will increase the wealth of millions of working Americans who need it the most, stabilize the middle class, boost the national economy and promote racial equity without increasing inflation. We urge the court to acknowledge the legality of Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan as we work to ensure relief is brought to borrowers.
The Department of Education continues to accept and review applications and has confirmed that borrowers will not need to reapply. Roughly 22 million borrowers already have applied to receive relief.
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Press Contact: Vincenza Previte vincenza.previte@responsiblelending.org