Clearly, I was one of the few people that sat on a hill, with a bill, on Capitol Hill. Since it was just us in the year of 1991, let’s re-visit when Congress tried to address student loan debt.
Welcome back. Did you miss me? I missed you. I didn’t miss a payment on my student loans. Why? Because via executive order, the payment process has been deferred again by the President. If you read my second entry, you would see where I hold President Biden accountable for his statements related to student loan debt. However, he’s not the only person we need to call out. There’s also Congress, the body that is also voted in by the people of the United States. We always see commercials about coming to Washington, D.C., “Call your congressman and let them know how you feel Vote for H.R. 2034”. I personally believe that’s advertised to give us a false sense of hope. When we do call our congressmen, we’re routed to their secretaries that take messages and will ensure the congress person will hear our statement. We go to town halls to voice our opinions, only to be either ignored, dismissed, or unintentionally become part of a show. It’s a shame to say, but if you don’t have the funds to make change, then it’s very rare to see a politician cave unless the pressure is coming from rich families, preferably one that’s not black. I’m here to tell you the truth. The truth is that Congress has tried to address student loan debt. Key word: Tried.
Currently, there is a bill that was introduced into the 117th Congress. This bill is called H.R. 2034: Income-Driven Student Loan Forgiveness Act. What does this require? Please see below:
“This bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to forgive the outstanding balance of principal, interest, and fees due on federal student loans for eligible borrowers who meet certain income requirements.
Eligible borrower refers to an individual who:
(1) has an eligible federal student loan in repayment
(2) filed a federal income tax return for the most recent tax year
(3) is employed or was employed during the three-year period immediately preceding March 1, 2020
(4) meets income requirements (e.g., an adjusted gross income of $100,000 or less for a borrower who is not married). Further, the borrower must submit an application to ED for loan forgiveness.
The bill prohibits borrowers from receiving refunds for any previously made payments.
Further, the bill specifies the notification requirements related to the availability of loan forgiveness.
The bill also excludes discharged student loan debt from an individual's gross income for tax purposes.” (Congress.gov, 2021).
Pretty simple, am I right? Basically, if you make under $100,000.00, file your taxes, can show you were employed for three years before 1 March 2020, and you still have student loan debt, then this bill would allow your balance of principal, interest, and fees to be forgiven. This could help so many individuals, if I do say so myself. So, would you like to know the red tape around these actions? I would refer you to my second post when discussing how the President plays a part in this as well. It's gets really into the corporate greed of this. This is what Congress pushed in March of 2021. It’s July, 2022. Why haven’t we heard anything about this? Why wasn’t this bill immediately passed at the House of Representatives, then within the Senate so the President can write it into law? I mean, that’s how a bill is passed. Sadly, bills sit on Capitol Hill when parties choose to focus on what they want and not what’s healthy for the citizens. To say the least, it was introduced in the House. It was never placed for a vote, nor was it passed by the house, or the senate. Why? I have no clue.
When I did follow the rabbit hole, the answer is meek. It didn’t move because the Speaker didn’t introduce it for debate. One of the most important topics that the current President of the United States campaigned on, won, and it was not considered for a debate. This is when politics become too much for me. We encourage people to become part of the dialogue, under the assumption that dialogue is what’s needed for change. That’s wrong. I was wrong. Change is needed to create change. The research that’s being discussed on this blog post is important because I am creating a change. My goal is to help people pay their student loan debt, so everyone can strive in their education and become successful. I was born in the winter of 1991, and I can promise you that being an adult is so overrated. The only good thing is that I have my own McDonald’s money, and I can dress up as any anime, or cartoon character I want, because I have McDonald’s money. Outside of that, it’s difficult to create a necessary change that will benefit the people who I’ve never met. We were taught about climate change, clear as science itself, but we have politicians who are focused on the green in their pockets instead of the green they feed to their children. I guess that’s what it’s like to be born with entitlement. I’ve never had that luxury.
Now we have come to a close. I hope this exert was informative for information that is available to everyone. We just need to see it, and hold the right people accountable. Based on this action, you could easily state that voting will be the game changer. In my opinion, voting in your local and state elections should always be priority instead of only voting in the Presidential election. Your local and state representatives are the ones who stalled this bill in Congress. Democratic, Republican, Independent, whomever you associate yourself with. Remember, you’re a human first. Vote for what you believe is the right thing, not what someone persuaded you to believe is the best thing for the earth and humanity.