President Joe Biden before embarking on Marine One on the southern lawn of the White House on February 16, 2021.
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A group of attorneys general from several states sent a letter to Congress on Friday urging the passage of two resolutions calling on President Biden to cancel up to $ 50,000 in federal student loan debts.
The letter is signed by attorneys general from Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. It is compatible with Senate Resolution 46 and House Resolution 100, which require Biden to use executive actions to cancel up to $ 50,000 in educational debt per borrower.
“The burden of unsecured student loan debt has paralyzed the finances of families across the country and widened the racial wealth gap,” Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, who led the coalition, said in a statement.
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Support for forgiving a larger amount of debt per borrower comes just days after Biden said he would not cancel up to $ 50,000 in student loan debt, but said he is still considering repaying $ 10,000. Still, debt forgiveness advocates, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., and Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., And the borrowers themselves have continued to pressure Biden to wipe out a larger amount.
Certainly, many argue that canceling student loan debt is unfair to those who have repaid their loans and that canceling a lower amount is a more specific approach.
The letter says many borrowers who have problems with student loan debt are victims of for-profit colleges, have been affected by the pandemic and have few relief options if their debt burden is not controlled. In general, student loan debt cannot be collected in bankruptcy and very few people have been able to get relief through current programs such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness.