In a press release, the Biden-Harris administration cited the “unprecedented economic disruption” caused by the coronavirus pandemic as reason to extend the repayment moratorium, which was scheduled to expire on Sunday, May 1, 2022. Furthermore, the administration also recognized the need for the Department of Education to continue to improve its student loan programs. In its press release, the Department of Education announced that it would allow all federal borrowers “with paused [federal student] loans to receive a fresh start on repayment by eliminating the impact of delinquency and default and allowing them to reenter repayment in good standing.”
Despite praising the Biden-Harris administration for extending the federal student loan repayment moratorium, lawmakers are still calling for more action. For example, the Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), urged the administration to enact “long-lasting change and a student loan system that actually works for students and borrowers [such as] forgiv[ing] some debt for all borrowers and fix[ing] [the] student loan system once and for all … by fixing [the] badly broken income-driven repayment system and creating a new Public Service Loan Forgiveness program that works for public servants.” Sen. Murray also underscored the need to extend the moratorium until 2023.
Sen. Murray is not alone with her call to action. Lawmakers have introduced a slew of bills relating to federal student loan forgiveness, including:
- Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) introduced the Affordable Loans for Any Student Act (H.R. 7288 and S. 3953). This bill, if passed and enacted, would overhaul the existing federal student system and provide federal borrowers with a choice between two plans: a fixed repayment plan with equal monthly payments sufficient to repay the loan and accrued interest over ten years, or an income-based repayment plan with borrowers paying ten percent of their income above the poverty level that is capped at 20 years of payment according to its press release.
- Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) introduced the Student Loan Forgiveness for Frontline Health Workers Act (H.R. 2418 and S. 3828). This bill, if passed and enacted, would establish a federal and private loan forgiveness program for health care workers who made significant contributions during the coronavirus pandemic according its summary on congress.gov.
- Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal introduced the Strengthening Loan Forgiveness for Public Servants Act (H.R. 4724 and S. 2478). This bill, if passed and enacted, would modify the public service loan forgiveness program to provide for partial loan cancellation based on the length of public service employment according its summary on congress.gov.
- Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX) and Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) introduced the Defense Community Teacher Support Act (H.R. 4053 and S. 2399). This bill, if passed and enacted, would make teachers employed for five consecutive years in schools located in military-impacted communities eligible for student loan forgiveness according its summary on congress.gov.
- Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) introduced the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act (H.R. 2447 and S. 2215). This bill, if passed and enacted, would modify the requirements for calculating taxable income to exclude from gross income payments under the federal veterinary medicine loan repayment program, or any state loan repayment or forgiveness program that is intended to provide increased access to veterinary services in such state according its summary on congress.gov.
- Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) and Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) introduced the Recognizing Military Service in PSLF Act (H.R. 3486 and S. 1480). This bill, if passed and enacted, would count military student loan deferment or forbearance as qualifying payments to the public service loan forgiveness program according its summary on congress.gov.
- Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) and Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) introduced the Retaining Educators Takes Added Investment Now (RETAIN) Act (H.R. 1732 and S. 686). This bill, if passed and enacted, would provide a refundable tax credit for early childhood educators, teachers, early childhood education program directors, school leaders and school-based mental health services providers based upon the number of school years for which such individuals have been continuously employed according its summary on congress.gov.
- Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-CA) and Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) introduced the Student Loan Tax Relief Act (H.R. 1564 and S. 496). This bill, if passed and enacted, would modify the tax treatment of income attributable to the forgiveness of certain student loan indebtedness incurred between 2021 and 2026 according its summary on congress.gov.
- Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced the Leveraging Opportunities for Americans Now Act (S. 2596). This bill, if passed and enacted, would reform the federal student loan system by eliminating interest and replacing it with a one-time, non-compounding origination fee that borrowers would pay over the life of their loan according to its press release.
- Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) introduced the Zero-Percent Student Loan Refinancing Act (H.R. 3024). This bill, if passed and enacted, would allow federal student loan borrowers to refinance their loans to an interest rate of zero percent until December 31, 2024 according to its press release.
Nonetheless, it is important to note that it is improbable that legislation relating to widespread federal student loan forgiveness will pass during the 117th Congress, and even more unlikely that it will pass the 118th Congress if Republicans gain back control of the House of Representatives.
