It was not immediately clear if Trump was referring to the executive action he would take or if he would ask Congress to extend relief on the CARES Act student loan, which expires on September 30.
Key context: A White House spokesman said last week that Trump is focused on working with Congress on the issue of student loans. A spokesman for the Department of Education said at the time that the agency was considering its options in this regard.
Congress has been debating how to address maturing benefits as part of the next coronavirus financial aid package. Both Republicans and Democrats have touted student loan relief to their constituents in recent months. But it is not yet clear whether lawmakers will reach a bipartisan agreement on the issue.
The Republican stimulus plan introduced by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell earlier this week would allow benefits to expire. Instead, Senate Republicans proposed a review of existing student loan repayment options for federal borrowers.
Democrats have been pushing for an extension, for at least another year, of the radical postponement for student loan borrowers.
The $ 3 trillion stimulus package passed by the House in May would extend the default for another year while expanding relief to millions of federally-backed but privately owned loans. The Democrats Stimulus Bill It also requires keeping the student loan interest rate at 0 percent for at least another year, with a built-in trigger to automatically continue that benefit until unemployment improves.
Some Democrats are also proposing a more ambitious plan to pay off up to $ 10,000 of student loan debt per borrower, a policy that has increasingly become a rallying cry in the progressive wing of the party, but it is not a start for the majority of republican legislators.
Trump in March took executive action to suspend interest on federal student loans. The CARES Act then codified that policy into law and took it one step further, automatically suspending monthly payments.
Whats Next: Without further action by Congress or the Trump administration, tens of millions of Americans will have to resume monthly payments on their student loans beginning in October. The Department of Education is already preparing to send warnings to borrowers about the expiration of emergency aid. Those notices are expected to begin posting as soon as August 15.
