PORTLAND, Ore. — President Joe Biden made a much-anticipated announcement Wednesday morning about the cancellation of $10,000 in debt for most student loan borrowers. For recipients of the Pell Grant, the government is going to cancel $20,000 in federal loan debt.
The forgiveness loans only apply if you make $125,000 a year or less.
While certainly welcome news for many Portlanders, some were critical of the announcement when asked about it on Wednesday — either because it did not apply to them, or because they did not think it was enough.
“I don’t think it scratches the surface that I’ve heard of friends of mine, that they have built up over years and years of work," said Tia Carpenter, who works for the City of Portland.
Many people KGW spoke to didn’t think the $10,000 base goes far enough toward helping people who are struggling to pay off their college debt. Leading up to this announcement, some Democrats wanted President Biden to forgive 25 or even 50,000 dollars in loans.
U.S. Senator Ron Wyden took to Twitter after the President’s announcement saying, “Pursuing an education shouldn't land you in financial handcuffs. This is great news for every American being forced to make hard decisions between paying off their student loans and putting food on the table. I'll continue pushing for student debt relief at every turn.”
While having thousands of dollars wiped out will help some, others said that even though their loans are 10 grand lighter, the loan forgiveness won’t make a big enough difference in what they owe.
43 million borrowers will now be eligible for debit forgiveness, but the announcement didn't come without criticism. Critics said that cancelling that debt could worsen inflation. The decision could also face legal challenges, as some critics also don’t believe that Biden has the authority to forgive college loans.