Word on the Street: Biden has offered Alternative Student Loan Relief plan
Do you feel relief from the new Action plan?
yes, I’m confident
no, I need more
President Joe Biden has released new information regarding his efforts to relieving lower and middle class of student loan debt. On Friday June 30th, Biden vowed to continue to fight for student loan relief plan after being struck down by Supreme Court. The new plan, Revised Pay as You Earn, (REPAYE) Plan. The income driven repayment plan ties the amount borrowers owe each month to the amount they make in income. Biden states the new program will take longer than intended. Wisdom Cole who is the National director of NAACP Youth and College Division, said “Black Americans helped elect Biden to the White House so there’s an obligation for him to “finish the job “with his pledges to provide relief for borrowers. Moreover, “If we don’t do this, we continue the cycle of seeing our elected leaders make promises and not follow through,” Cole said.
Image of Joe Biden Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)
What has changed?
Under the new plan, the lowest income borrowers would see their payments fall by $0.83 per each dollar owed, the Department of Education estimated due to borrowers having the ability to pay smaller minimum payments. The changes would also stop unpaid monthly interest from accruing. The REPAYE Plan would prevent single low-income Americans on making monthly payments to student loan who make less than or equal to $15 per hour.
How Should you prepare?
Student loan payments that have been frozen for the last three years because of the pandemic are set to restart in October. If the Supreme Court has not made a final decision by then it is likely the payment will continue to resume as normal.