Congresswoman Bush Statement on Biden Student Loan Debt Plan
Plan provides up to $20K in relief, pauses extension until January 2023
Washington DC – Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01) released the following statement after President Biden announced his plan today to cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt, and extend the current pause on payments through December 31, 2022.
“Since coming to Congress, I have pushed alongside my colleagues and advocacy organizations for action to address the student debt crisis. I am elated that President Biden has heeded our calls and will cancel up to $20k in federal student loan debt, and extend the payment pause on federal student loans through the end of the year. With the stroke of his pen, the President has taken historic and unprecedented action. This will provide meaningful relief to millions of people who struggle to make ends meet, delay retirement, start a business, or buy a home because of crushing student loan debt. This action will change lives for many people across this country, and brings us closer to further closing the racial wealth gap.
“This decision is undoubtedly the result of years-long organizing by advocates, activists, impacted borrowers, young people, voters who took to the polls in 2020, and progressive lawmakers, who have all called for executive action to address the nearly $2 trillion student loan debt crisis. I offer particular gratitude to the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Progressive Caucus who have kept up the pressure to ensure the needs of our most impacted borrowers are at the forefront.
“Of course, we know that our work does not stop here. All of our economic policy decisions must be universal and rooted in racial, gender, and economic justice at their core. Black borrowers are the only people who have student debt higher than their median annual income and women, particularly Black women, are uniquely and disproportionately burdened by student debt. While up to $20k in cancellation brings us a step closer, we must continue to act boldly by canceling more debt for current borrowers and future generations at levels that reduce racial and gender wealth inequality. Congress must also urgently work to prevent a rise in future debt by enacting policies that transform lives and make college affordable, accessible, and equitable for people at all income levels. Access to education is a fundamental human right. Through the continued pressure and coordination of our progressive movement, we can ensure that education leads to prosperity and opportunity, rather than debt.”
During her time in Congress, Congresswoman Bush has been leading the charge in calling for President Biden to address the student loan debt crisis. This past May, she joined the Congressional Black Caucus in calling on President Biden to take action on canceling student debt.
Specifically, the Biden-Harris Administration’s Student Loan Debt Plan will cancel up to $20,000 for people who went to college on Pell Grants and up to $10,000 for non-Pell Grant recipients who earn less than $125,000 ($250,000 for married couples). Borrowers with undergraduate loans, even if they did not graduate, can cap repayment at 5% of their monthly income.
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Congresswoman Cori Bush sits on the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees, serves as the Progressive Caucus Deputy Whip, and proudly represents St. Louis as a politivist in the halls of the United States Congress