Although it\u2019s often left off the debate stage, student loan debt is one of America\u2019s most pressing issues. At this point, national student loan debt has reached nearly $1.6 trillion dollars, surpassing both credit card and auto loan debt.
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Roughly 70 percent of students have to take out loans to pay for college. And after graduation, the average borrower owes more than $37,000. But their wallets aren\u2019t the only things to be worried about. Student debt greatly impacts the economy, as it hinders young people\u2019s ability to buy a home, start a business or be an active consumer.
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Here\u2019s a look at how the current 2020 presidential candidates will address this mounting economic problem.
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Sanders is the only candidate who would forgive all $1.6 trillion in student loan debt, including both private and federal student loans.
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To pay for it, Sanders plans to implement a Wall Street tax on stock transactions, bond trades and derivatives transactions. He expects the tax could collect more than $2 trillion over the course of 10 years.
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\u201cUnder our legislation to cancel all $1.6 trillion of student debt, the economy would get a boost of approximately $1 trillion over the next decade and up to 1.6 million new jobs would be created each year,\u201d Sanders wrote in an article published in Fortune<\/a>. \u201cAt the same time, millions of Americans would have the financial resources they need to buy new homes, buy new cars, or open up small businesses.\u201d To read Bernie Sanders\u2019 positions on higher education and other key issues, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Warren has pledged to eliminate up to $50,000 of student loan debt for 95 percent of borrowers on the very first day of her presidency. She could do this, she claims, because she wouldn\u2019t need approval from Congress. In a blog post<\/a>, Warren explained she would cut the debt using the legal authority granted through the Higher Education Act, which gives the Department of Education the power to \u201cmodify, compromise, waive, or release student loans.\u201d The Department of Education, she wrote, \u201calready has broad legal authority to cancel student debt, and we can\u2019t afford to wait for Congress to act. So I will start to use existing laws on day one of my presidency to implement my student loan debt cancellation plan that offers relief to 42 million Americans.\u201d To read Elizabeth Warren\u2019s positions on higher education and other key issues, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n As a borrower himself, Yang understands how student loans can hamper a young person\u2019s ability to finance their adult life. He is in support<\/a> of increasing student loan forgiveness efforts to help those who have already graduated from college. He also wants colleges to be more transparent about their students\u2019 post-graduation debt and salary figures. Specifically, if elected president, Yang has vowed to propose<\/a> a \u201cStudent Loan Emancipation Act,\u201d in which the federal government would buy all student loan debt, and borrowers would then pay the federal government 10 percent of their annual salary until they have paid off their loans. If they still owe money after 10 years, their loans will be forgiven. Additionally, as part of his long list<\/a> of suggestions, Yang has committed to ask colleges and universities to forgive some, or all, of the loans taken out by students who failed to graduate. He also has proposed allowing students to discharge their student loan debt through bankruptcy, which he believes will force lenders to work with students \u201cin good faith.\u201d To read Andrew Yang\u2019s positions on higher education and other key issues, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Compared to Warren and Sanders, the former Vice President takes a more moderate approach<\/a> to solving the student loan crisis. He won\u2019t forgive all student loans, but instead would simplify income-driven repayment plans. Under a Biden presidency, graduates making less than $25,000 won\u2019t have any student loan payments and won\u2019t accrue any interest on their loans. Everyone else will pay no more than 5 percent of their discretionary income towards loans. And after 20 years, those who\u2019ve \u201cresponsibly made payments,\u201d will see the remainder of their loans forgiven. To read Joe Biden\u2019s positions on higher education and other key issues, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n If elected, Buttigieg would become the first U.S. president<\/a> to owe student loan debt. So, this issue is personal to him, he often explains. However, Buttigieg does not seem to believe there should be widespread student debt cancellation, largely due to the cost. He does have some ideas, though, to help out borrowers, including allowing students to refinance their loans, expanding public service loan forgiveness, pausing student loan repayments for some military spouses<\/a>, and making it easier for teachers and public servants to have their loans forgiven. To read Pete Buttigieg\u2019s positions on higher education and other key issues, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Like her more moderate colleagues, Klobuchar is not a proponent of eliminating all student loan debt. Instead, she supports steps<\/a> like student loan refinancing that would allow student loan borrowers to lower their rates to about 3 percent. Klobuchar has also suggested<\/a> expanding the public service loan forgiveness program to those working in \u201cin-demand\u201d occupations. Currently, it’s only available to those working at nonprofit organizations and other public service jobs. To read Amy Klobuchar\u2019s positions on higher education and other key issues, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Although Bloomberg hasn\u2019t yet announced a definitive stance on student loans, he\u2019s been quite outspoken in the past about the costs of college and how it favors affluent students. In 2018, Bloomberg gave $1.8 billion to his alma mater Johns Hopkins and devoted it exclusively to financial aid. It is the largest-ever contribution to an academic institution in American history. Bloomberg\u2019s foundation, titled Bloomberg Philanthropies, has already counseled close to 50,000 low- and middle-income students about their college options and helped them with the financial aid process through an initiative called CollegePoint<\/a>. And by way of the American Talent Initiative<\/a>, which Bloomberg Philanthropies founded several years ago, more than 100 colleges — both private and public — have begun admitting and graduating more low- and middle-income students. \u201cTogether, the federal and state governments should make a new commitment to improving access to college and reducing the often prohibitive burdens debt places on so many students and families,\u201d Bloomberg wrote in an op-ed published in the New York Times<\/a>. To read more about Michael Bloomberg\u2019s positions on higher education, click <\/em>here<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Steyer does not yet have a definitive plan to solve student loan debt. However, he has made statements in the past that shed light to his philosophy on the issue. \u201cStudent loans are crushing over 44 million Americans with $1.5 TRILLION in debt,\u201d Steyer tweeted<\/a> in 2019. \u201cNot only is this harming a whole generation, it’s dragging down our economy. Borrowers deserve protections against abusive practices \u2014 a borrower’s bill of rights.\u201d Steyer has also gone after Secretary of Education Betsy Devos for failing to forgive disabled veterans their student loan debts, which he claims the Department of Education is required to do. \u201cSecretary Betsy DeVos has resisted enforcing this law and instead is making veterans undergo a difficult process to get relief,\u201d he states on his website<\/a>. \u201cGetting a quality education shouldn\u2019t be a burden, especially for the veterans who have sacrificed so much. Add your name if you think education is a right.\u201d
<\/p>\n\n\n\nSen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) <\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nAndrew Yang, NY Entrepreneur<\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nJoe Biden, Former U.S. Vice President <\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nPete Buttigieg, Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana <\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nSen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) <\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nMichael Bloomberg, Former NYC Mayor<\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nTom Steyer, Former Hedge Fund Manager<\/strong>
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<\/p>\n\n\n\nPresident Donald Trump<\/strong>
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