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Rep. Omar Leads Letter Requesting Information on President Biden's Executive Order to Cancel Student Debt

June 15, 2022

WASHINGTON—Today, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) led a letter to Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona requesting information and a timeline on how the Department of Education will carry out President Biden's executive order to cancel student debt.

"President Biden has publicly stated that he plans to cancel student debt," the members wrote. "He has reiterated this intention in private meetings with members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Under the expected executive order by President Biden, millions of student loan borrowers will be eligible to receive the benefit of loan cancellation. It is important that borrowers get relief quickly and aren't hampered by unnecessary roadblocks and obligations. The American public will depend on your agency's ability to deliver debt cancellation quickly and efficiently, no matter the effort and resources required."

The White House has signaled President Biden will cancel federal student loan debt through executive action in the coming months. So far, the Department of Education has canceled a total of $18.5 billion in student loan debt to more than 750,000 students in an effort to remedy years of administrative failures made worse under the previous administration.

Rep. Omar has been a leading advocate for student loan forgiveness since she began serving in Congress. In 2019, she introduced the Student Debt Cancellation Act, to cancel all public and private student debt, alongside Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT). At the beginning of the pandemic, she and Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) introduced legislation that provides immediate monthly payment relief for federal student loan borrowers, cancels at least $30,000 in outstanding student loan debt per borrower, and shields borrowers from any involuntary payments and garnishment during the public health crisis. In May of 2020, she led a letter calling for student loan debt cancellation of at least $30,000 per borrower in the next round of COVID-19 relief legislation. Last February, she joined United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and Rep. Ayanna Pressley in calling on the President to cancel up to $50,000 in student loan debt for Federal student loan borrowers. Last fall, she led a letter to President Biden and Secretary of Education Miguel Cardon calling on the Administration to release the memo on student debt cancellation.

The letter is also signed by Reps. Adams, Barragán, Bass, Blumenauer, Bonamici, Bowman, Boyle, Brown, Bush, Cárdenas, Carson, Carter, Castor, Cherfilus-McCormick, Chu, Cicilline, Clarke, Clyburn, Davis, Espaillat, García(IL), Gomez, Green (TX), Grijalva, Jayapal, Johnson (GA), Jones (NY), Kirkpatrick, Lawson, Lee (CA), Levin, Lieu, Lowenthal, Maloney, Meng, Nadler, Napolitano, Newman, Holmes Norton, Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Payne, Pocan, Porter, Pressley, Schakowsky, Schiff, Scott (VA), Sewell, Sires, Thompson (MS), Tlaib, Velázquez, Watson Coleman, Williams, and Wilson.

You can find the full letter here and below.

Issues:Education