An estimated 37 million student loan borrowers have been at a dead end for several months as to whether the arrears will be extended. For many of them, it would be the first time they would have to start repaying student loans since the cessation of the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020. The Biden government has already extended the suspension of the federal student loan several times. Most recently, in December, it pushed the 90-day deadline back from late January to May, although it had earlier claimed when it extended the summer that it would be the “final” extension. This comes as a group of Democrats in late March, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Whip Majority Leader Jim Clyburn, wrote a letter to the president urging him to delay the re-election until at least year-end, noting that it saved borrowers an average of $ 393 a month during the pandemic. The same group of Democrats also called on the president to cancel the student loan debt. Earlier this month, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klein said the decision on whether student debt forgiveness could be enforced would be made before resumption of payments or the president would extend the moratorium. “We recognize that extending deferrals is important for borrowers struggling to bear the damage caused by pandemics, financial shocks and inflation. However, President Biden’s fragmentary, short-term approach is not enough to meet them. “difficult times,” said Natalia Abrams. president and founder of the Student Debt Crisis Center. “The president has the opportunity to pass a bold, substantial relief instead of the Band-Aid measures. We urge the president to consider the transformative effect that permanent student debt write-offs would have on individuals, their families and the economy.” The suspension of federal student loan payments has already led to a waiver of $ 195 billion in payments by April, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York recently found. The Commission on a Responsible Federal Budget, which had called for the resumption of student loan payments, estimated that extending the break would cost an additional $ 50 billion a year. While the Biden government plans to extend the default on federal student loans, first reported by Politico, no decision has been made to cancel the student loan debt. The president has previously said he would like Congress to get involved and proposed canceling the $ 10,000 student loan debt. But tackling student loan write-offs in Congress will face a tough battle with Republicans opposed to the move. Where deeply divided Congress may not have the support needed to pass student loan legislation and an executive order could face legal challenges, student financial aid expert Mark Kantrowitz has suggested the Biden government could pass the regulatory process. “Income-based repayment plans are essentially debt write-off plans,” Kantrowitz said. “They forgive the rest of the debt after several years of repayment.” Kantrowitz argued that one of these repayment plans has very broad regulatory power, so management could create a new loan write-off plan and reduce eligibility thresholds. Although there has been no widespread write-off of student debt since taking office, the Biden government has canceled $ 17 billion in student loan debt, including debt to borrowers who were found to have service and debt cancellation for borrowers who are permanently disabled. According to the Ministry of Education, more than 43 million borrowers owe more than $ 1.6 trillion in student loans. Student loan debt is the second largest amount of debt for U.S. consumers after home loans.

Sarah Ewall-Wice

CBS News reporter covering economic policy.