Grothman Looks To Minimize Student Debt

The current student loan debt in the US now tops $1.6 trillion. Congressman Glenn Grothman is looking to take a bit out of that number, with the Responsible Borrowing Act that he has officially introduced. The bill would help alleviate excessive student loan debt, by allowing colleges and universities to put measures in place limiting how much money students can and should borrow. 

Under current law, schools are not able to provide that help. Grothman says “This bill will help in teaching students the importance of responsible borrowing and planning for the future, while protecting them from learning this lesson the hard way.”

The Responsible Borrowing Act of 2020 would help reduce the risk of over-borrowing by allowing institutions of higher education to limit the amount of a federal loan that a student enrolled at their institution can borrow. The bill would only allow institutions to limit loans under certain conditions relating to average salaries for typical occupations pursued by graduates of a program, enrollment status of the student (i.e., full- or part-time), credential level of the program and the year of the program. 

Under the bill, if the institution limited the amount a student could borrow, the institution would be able to increase that amount if the student demonstrates special circumstances or exceptional need.