Thursday, August 25, 2022
Political Mayhem Thursday: Loan Forgiveness
Yesterday, the Biden Administration announced a program of forgiveness for federal student loans. The offer could take $20,000 from the debt of people who had Pell Grants in college, and $10,000 to those who did not have Pell Grants. The program will not apply to those who make over $125,000 a year.
It's already controversial. Some on the left wanted a far broader plan. Others don't think it is fair to pay some people's loans off with tax money.
It will help a lot of people. A surprising amount of financial trouble can be caused by even small debts, especially by those who did not finish a degree. The critique that the break will help some people but not everyone who pays taxes could be applied to nearly every federal program, of course-- including the many that help corporations and the wealthy. ("Why is the hard-working pipefitter's tax money being used to subsidize Exxon!!?!?!).
I left law school with some debt, but not a lot. I went to school, of course, at a time that tuition was much lower-- and went for undergrad to a state college that was heavily subsidized by the taxpayers of the state. I already got my share of other people's taxes!
It will be interesting to see the effect this has over time...
