Social Security

As the federal government withdraws from its role as a student loan watchdog, advocates and state-level politicians are trying to pick up the slack and rein in predatory practices by loan servicing companies.

Rhode Island’s treasurer and attorney general want a “student loan bill of rights” to protect borrowers from deceptive lending practices.

A bill has been introduced in the Legislature that would establish a system for the state to oversee student loan servicers who do business in Maine.

Mainers have more than $6 billion in student debt, exacerbated by predatory practices of the student loan industry.

The average student debt in Maine is more than $30,000.

Lawmakers in Augusta are discussing a bill to create a “Student Loan Bill of Rights.”

The difficulty of finding adequately paying jobs as well as the explosive cost of obtaining a college education have created a whole class of people who work hard but spend a large proportion of their lives repaying old college debts.

If the federal government is going to fall down in its response and ignore reality, then the state of Maryland must rise up to protect borrowers — a generation depends on it.

In Massachusetts, where graduates of both public and private colleges carry more than $30,000 in average debt, a bill sponsored by state Sen. Eric Lesser aims to combat one aspect of this growing problem — the questionable conduct of student-loan servicers.

Under a proposal woven into the governor’s budget proposal, the state’s Department of Financial Services would be empowered to license some student-loan servicers—and revoke licenses for illegal behavior.

The attorney general’s office says that at least 58 percent of students in Oregon graduate with debt. Outstanding student loan debt in the state has surpassed $18 billion, with borrowers taking out an average of $27,000 in loans.

The New Mexico House Commerce and Economic Development Committee passed a bill to enact a “Student Loan Bill of Rights” to protect student loan borrowers from exploitation.