Republican Representative Glenn Grothman is set to introduce a bill that could thwart any future attempts to reduce student loan burdens for borrowers in the United States.
Newsweek reached out to Grothman's office for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Efforts to reduce the amount of student debt by the Biden administration have faced several hurdles from Republicans. As Republicans take control of the House and Senate and the White House under President-elect Donald Trump this month, the state of President Joe Biden's efforts to reduce student debt hangs in the balance.
What To Know
A spokesperson for Wisconsin Representative Glenn Grothman told The New York Sun that he plans to introduce the Protecting Taxpayers from Student Loan Bailouts Act. This legislation aims to prevent the Education Department from enacting regulations imposing costs exceeding $100 million per year on taxpayers.
Grothman introduced a similar bill in the previous Congress, but it was incorporated into the College Cost Reduction Act, which did not reach a vote on the House floor. The bill's enactment would effectively curtail any mass cancellations a president might seek to implement.
Student debt cancellation has been a key issue for the Biden administration in the past four years. During this time, approximately $180 billion in student loan debt was canceled for nearly five million Americans, according to the Department of Education.
In June 2024, the Supreme Court ruled against Biden's $430 billion student debt forgiveness program in a 6-3 ruling. Lawsuits filed in several states have sought to stop Biden's Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE), which calculates a debtor's monthly payment amount based on their income and family size and reduces interest charged.
The move has placed borrowers in forbearance, meaning they do not need to make repayments and will not be charged interest until the litigation is complete.
What People Are Saying
American Enterprise Institute senior fellow Preston Cooper, in an article published on January 6: "Congress could block the Education Department from issuing new regulations or executive actions related to the student loan program that increase costs to taxpayers. Had it been in effect during the last four years, such a law would have killed all of President Biden's attempts at loan cancellation in the cradle.
"Even though President-elect Trump is weeks from inauguration, and is unlikely to cancel student loans on a large scale, Congress might still consider taking action to block future administrations from forgiving debts. After all, the next Democratic president may decide to finish what President Biden started."
Glenn Grothman, in 2023, introduced the bill: "The amount of student loan debt in this country is an embarrassment to our entire educational system. My bills help shield Americans' pocketbooks against debt forgiveness schemes like those of President Biden that will spark inflation, add to our national debt, and tank our economy, all without Congressional approval.
"Legal questions aside, the pattern of encouraging student debt cancellation is insulting to every American who paid their loans or never attended college."
What's Next
For now, some of Biden's debt cancellation moves are going ahead. In December, the White House announced $4.28 billion in relief for 55,000 public service workers. The Office of Management and Budget must formally review the plans before going into effect.
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