Swalwell, Courtney Lead Colleagues in Urging Biden Administration to Address Student Loan Debt

WASHINGTON, DC - Today Representatives Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Joe Courtney (D-CT) led 27 House Democrats in sending a letter to President Joe Biden urging his administration to take action to extend the student loan payment pause – including zero percent interest – through the end of the public health emergency and to work with Congress to continue providing zero percent interest on student loans indefinitely.

"Congress can no longer ignore the growing student loan debt crisis we have in this country," said Rep. Eric Swalwell. "Over 40 million Americans, including myself, are impacted by student debt, causing many to delay major life decisions, such as starting a family, buying a house or launching a business. The student loan payment pause has been critical for borrowers and permanently eliminating federal interest would grant them desperately needed relief as we continue to face flat wages and record inflation."

Today's letter comes as all student loan borrowers will have to begin repaying their loans and interest beginning May 1. The Department of Education found that nation-wide federal borrowers have saved $5 billion each month since they stopped accruing interest on their federal student loans since the federal student loan payment pause began two years ago.

"The Biden administration's interest-free pause for federal student loan repayments has been a critical relief for middle-class borrowers and families. Student loan debt lingers over millions of Americans, especially during our continued recovery from the economic fallout of the pandemic. I've long worked in Congress and with the Biden administration to reduce student debt and fix underlying problems within federal loan programs," said Rep. Joe Courtney. "Today, I'm joining Congressman Eric Swalwell in calling for President Biden to extend the pause on federal student loan repayments. The President must act to avoid an abrupt ‘snapping back' of monthly student loan repayments, which would be devastating for borrowers and cause an unnecessary drag on the growing U.S. economy."

Today Swalwell and Courtney are holding a press call with the Student Debt Crisis Center to call for action on student loan interest.

"Thousands of people contacted us throughout the pandemic saying the pause on student loan payments and interest is a critical lifeline for them and their families. As the pandemic wreaked havoc on the economy, the pause allowed borrowers to put food on the table, afford rent, cover medical expenses, and invest in their futures," said Cody Hounanian, executive director of the Student Debt Crisis Center. "If we don't continue this relief, Americans will be pushed back into a broken system that traps them in a never-ending cycle of debt. We call on the President to act now to extend the payment pause and deliver on his promise to broadly cancel student debt."

The current interest rates for Direct Subsidized and Direct Unsubsidized Loans are 3.73 percent for undergraduate students and the average student loan debt for undergraduate students is $28,950. Maintaining the interest rate at zero percent would save the average borrower $576 a year.

To read a copy of the letter, click here.

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