New York officials react to Biden's limited student loan forgiveness plan

Aug. 26—WASHINGTON — President Joseph R. Biden announced a plan Wednesday to forgive student loan debt for millions of Americans and make changes to the student loan system.

The move was met with immediate backlash from north country Republicans like Congresswomen Elise M. Stefanik and Claudia L. Tenney, while Democratic Sen. Charles E. Schumer, the Senate Majority Leader and senior U.S. senator for New York, said he was more than pleased to see the president's announcement.

President Biden announced a plan that will forgive $20,000 in debt for those who have federal student loans and used a federal Pell Grant to cover tuition costs, and up to $10,000 in debt for those who did not receive a Pell Grant. Only those who make $125,000 or less per year, or $250,000 in joint annual income for married people, will be eligible for the loan forgiveness.

The pause on student loan repayments has been extended for the final time, according to the Biden administration, to Dec. 31 of this year, meaning payments will resume in January 2023.

In a tweet shared Wednesday, Sen. Schumer said he had been among those urging the president to take action on student loan debts.

"I urged President Biden to cancel student debt and provide much needed relief for student loan borrowers — particularly for those with the greatest needs," he said.

Republicans, on the other hand, are dissatisfied with the forgiveness plan.

Congresswoman Stefanik, R-Schulyerville, who is in charge of House Republican messaging, said the plan will force American taxpayers to foot the bill for people she described as "wealthy."

"This massive student loan bailout does nothing to rein in the cost of higher education or hold colleges accountable for saddling students with huge debt for degrees with little value in the workforce," she said. "House Republicans have introduced real solutions to fix the broken student loan system and protect taxpayers while expanding pathways to achieve the American dream."

Rep. Stefanik is a cosponsor of the Responsible Education Assistance through Loan, or REAL, Reforms Act that would dramatically restructure the federal student loan system, remove federal supports for most graduate students, give colleges the ability to cap total loan debts their students can carry and end some forgiveness programs for civil servants.

House Republicans have long criticized debt forgiveness programs, pointing out that less than 20% of Americans carry student loan debt and most debt holders make significantly more than the U.S median annual income of about $52,000 per year.

Congresswoman Tenney, R-Utica, who is running to represent the city of Watertown and western Jefferson County in Congress, said canceling this student debt is an obvious attempt to win support from voters in the face of low approval ratings.

"Canceling debt that individuals willingly chose to take on sets a terrible precedent for our country," she said. "Those who paid off their college or who simply chose not to attend will now be stuck footing the bill for the 10% of Americans who still have debt outstanding."

Those who carry loan debt through the federal government will be able to keep track of the forgiveness process at StudentAid.gov/DebtRelief.