WASHINGTON – Several Senators sent a letter to Congressional negotiators to urge them to cancel student loan payments and debt in the COVID-19 response package.
U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) all say in a news release that students and families should not have to worry that they will go into default on their student loans during or immediately after this emergency.
The news release says this third stimulus package calls for congress to authorize the U.S. Department of Education to make monthly student loan payments on behalf of borrowers equaling the amount due for all federal student loan borrowers for the rest of the national emergency declarations.
The law makers say these provisions would provide much-needed relief to federal student loan borrowers in this crisis and provide a long-term economic stimulus
The lawmakers asked negotiators the following:
- Immediate monthly payment relief for student loan borrowers: Authorize the Department of Education to immediately take over the monthly payments of federal student loan borrowers during this public health emergency.
- Across the board student loan debt cancellation: Cancel at least $10,000 of student debt for all borrowers to help jump start our economy and make a significant difference for American families.
- Shield borrowers from involuntary collections and offsets during this public health crisis: Shield all student loan borrowers from any federal offsets that can prevent them from receiving critical benefits and supports, such as the seizure or garnishment of wages, federal salaries, Social Security Benefits, and federal income tax returns like the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Child Tax Credit.
Joining Durbin, Duckworth, Warren, and Brown on the letter include Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Kamala D. Harris (D-CA), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Bob Menendez (D-NJ).
Full text of the letter is available here.
