Higher Ed Policy Roundup: Vol. 5 - Issue 52

In an interview on the podcast Pod Save America this week, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain addressed student loan debt and the payment pause. Klain said that the White House would decide whether to use executive action to cancel student loan debt before payments resume. “The president is going to look at what we should do on student debt before the pause expires, or he'll extend the pause,” Klain said. The student loan payment pause is currently set to expire on May 1.

On Wednesday, Democratic members of Congress sent a letter to Education Department (ED) Secretary Miguel Cardona asking for information on ED’s plan to transition borrowers back into repayment when the federal student loan pause ends on May 1. Chief among their concerns was a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report which identified 50 percent of student loan borrowers as being at-risk for becoming delinquent when payments resume. The members of Congress also expressed concerns about the recent transitions in federal student loan servicing and the impact this could have on borrowers going into repayment.

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden held his first State of the Union Address where he touted his administration’s successes and outlined his domestic economic agenda. On education, the president expressed his support for an increase in Pell Grant funding and support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He also asked Congress to reduce the cost of childcare so that families do not pay more than 7 percent of their income on care. The State of the Union Address can be viewed here.

The issue of student loans was one of a few topics that didn’t receive much attention during President Joe Biden’s recent State of the Union address.

Law School Admissions Council acquires Law School Transparency. 

Does the Bankruptcy Code allow for partial discharge of student loans?

Millions of student loan borrowers are being driven toward 'dangerous' debt at for-profit schools, a new report by the Student Borrower Protection Center finds.

There were no relevant student-aid related bills recently introduced for consideration by the 117th Congress (2021-2022).