(ConservativeSense.com) – President Joe Biden is trying to circumvent the law after the Supreme Court ruled against his student loan forgiveness plan by creating loopholes for borrowers to skip payments with little to no penalties.
One of the biggest promises Biden made in 2020 was a pledge to forgive student debt across the nation, something many young voters hoped to see happen when they cast their votes. The Biden administration did push for a forgiveness plan, but the Supreme Court ultimately struck it down in June with a 6-3 vote. The plan would have forgiven $10,000–$20,000 for each borrower, impacting over 40 million Americans.
The Biden administration is now trying to avoid following the normal schedule as repayments are set to resume in October by lightening penalties. The Department of Education will grant borrowers a grace period of up to one year. In that period, borrowers won’t be “considered delinquent” for missing payments, nor will they be reported to credit bureaus; their loan won’t default; and debt collectors won’t be contacted. Interest on loans will continue to accrue but won’t capitalize until the grace period ends.
The Education Department described the strategy as a “safety net” for borrowers burdened by student debt, while much of Congress and many taxpayers view it as an insult to force everyone to foot the bill for other people’s college degrees. The pause in repayments and freeze in interest during the pandemic in 2020 was already a generous “safety net,” according to critics, and such a policy, which was only meant to be temporary during an emergency, will have lasted a total of 40 months by October.
Ever since the debt ceiling bill was signed by Biden in June, borrowers should have been preparing to begin repayments by October. The president, perhaps to save face with voters whose promises he could not meet, seems to be throwing every obstacle he can to prevent the debt from being repaid by borrowers themselves, putting the burden on taxpayers.
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