WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Representative Raúl M. Grijalva (AZ-07) blasted House Republicans for their latest efforts to roll back emergency student debt relief:

“This vote is an extreme attempt to overturn the Biden administration’s plan to provide student debt relief for nearly half a million Arizonans, tens of millions of Americans and puts Republican’s hypocrisy on full display. A number of Republican lawmakers had no issue in having their COVID-19 relief loans forgiven, but feel no shame in shaking down low-income and working-class Americans for their student loans,” said Rep. Grijalva. “The proposed legislation would repeal the student loan payment pause that has helped federal student loan borrowers during the pandemic and force them to unexpectedly confront months of accumulated payments and interest. Public servants, including teachers and first responders, would be compelled to pay for loans that were already discharged. I’m proud to join my colleagues in voting against this heartless and cruel policy.”

Background

Last August, President Biden announced the administration’s plan to forgive up to $20,000 in outstanding federal student loan debt for borrowers. Under the President’s plan, 90 percent of the relief would go to borrowers earning less than $75,000 a year. The administration also extended the pause on student loan payments and accrual of interest on student loans from September to December 2022.

Overall, more than 40 million borrowers would qualify for the Biden Administration’s debt relief program including, 496,000 individuals in Arizona, who applied to President Biden’s student loan relief and were deemed automatically eligible for relief.

Three in five Americans support President Biden’s debt relief plan, and a majority of voters support the pause in student loan payments.

Extreme MAGA Republicans, led by Rep. Bob Good, want to use the Congressional Review Act to:

• Deny student debt relief for 43 million student loan borrowers debt relief, including more than 20.6 million of their own constituents.
• Collect interest that accrued on student loans from September to December 2022. That is about $233 (in interest and principle combined) per month for every month they did not make a payment.
• Force public servants, like firefighters and teachers, who participate in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).
• Program to make additional payments towards their loan. Borrowers were previously promised they would still receive credits towards the PSLF program during the pause, and H.J. Res. 45 could force them to make additional payments.

Meanwhile, the same MAGA Republicans who oppose relief for student loan borrowers, have had millions of dollars’ of their own loans forgiven through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

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