Bipartisan Support for Education Department Funds Biden Administration Effort to Cancel Student Debt
December 15, 2022 | WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the House of Representatives passed a $1.7 trillion omnibus funding package, providing financial support for the federal government, including the U.S. Department of Education and its Office of Federal Student Aid, which administers the student loan system. This legislation, passed 225 to 201 with bipartisan support, will fund the Biden Administration’s effort to cancel student debt for 40 million people. This vote comes one day after the Senate Democrats and Republicans overwhelmingly passed the same measure.
In response to the passage of this legislation, Student Borrower Protection Center executive director Mike Pierce released the following statement:
Today, a bipartisan majority in Congress advanced the first year-long funding bill for the Department of Education since President Joe Biden boldly pledged to cancel student debt for 40 million Americans. Despite claims by some Republican lawmakers, this funding bill is clean and simple– a bipartisan show of financial support for the President’s promise to help all borrowers as they recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and navigate our badly broken student loan system.
Earlier this week, Republican appropriators claimed that this bipartisan funding package would hamstring student debt relief. This week’s votes make clear that lawmakers of both parties remain committed to supporting Education Department operations in 2023 as President Biden advances his historic effort to help American families struggling under the weight of unaffordable student debt. President Biden is expected to sign this legislation in the coming week.
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About Student Borrower Protection Center
The Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) is a nonprofit organization focused on alleviating the burden of student debt for millions of Americans. The SBPC engages in advocacy, policymaking, and litigation strategy to rein in industry abuses, protect borrowers’ rights, and advance economic opportunity for the next generation of students.
Learn more at protectborrowers.org or follow SBPC on Twitter @theSBPC.