NCL applauds President Biden for protecting student borrowers and vetoing attempt to end critical programs

June 8, 2023

Media contact: National Consumers League – Melody Merin, melodym@nclnet.org, 202-207-2831

Washington, D.C. – The National Consumers League (NCL) today applauded President Biden for vetoing Congress’s attempt to roll back critical programs and protections for student loan borrowers. If the bill had become law, President Biden’s one-time debt cancellation would have been nullified, denying over 25 million borrowers critical relief. Additionally, the ongoing payment pause would have been abruptly ended and beneficiaries would have received surprise bills for the past few months of loan interest—interest that has been waived by bipartisan administrations. Lastly, borrowers who saw their loans discharged under longstanding debt cancellation programs, such as Public Service Loan Forgiveness, would have had their debts reinstated.

The following statement is attributable to NCL Public Policy Manager Eden Iscil:

“With today’s veto, President Biden averted disaster for student borrowers nationwide. While the president’s action was important to prevent harm, we must do more to protect individuals with student debt before repayment begins later this summer. Millions of borrowers are currently in limbo as the Supreme Court decides whether they will side with the people and allow debt cancellation to go into effect, or if they will protect loan servicers’ interests and block relief. Repayment should not happen until we address the educational debt crisis.”