The 2020 presidential race is on full steam.

Here’s what applicants are saying about your student loans.

Student loan debt statistics

According to the latest student loan debt statistics, there are over 44 million borrowers who collectively owe $ 1.6 trillion in student debt. Today, according to personal finance site Make Lemonade, student loan debt is now the second highest category of consumer debt – just behind mortgages and higher than credit card debt and auto loans. .

Some applicants looked at the future of higher education, how to deal with growing student debt, and how to pay off student loans faster.

Former Vice President Joe Biden

Joe Biden is the former vice president and a former US Senator from Delaware.

Biden thinks that:

• Simplify income-driven repayment plans so that borrowers pay no more than 5% of income and federal student loans are canceled after 20 years.
• Two years of free community college should be free
• The civil service loan cancellation should be restructured to provide $ 10,000 in student loan debt relief for each year of national or community service, up to five years.
• Student loans should be discharged in the event of bankruptcy.

Pete Buttigieg (D-IN)

Pete Buttigieg is the mayor of South Bend, Indiana.

Buttigieg thinks that:

• The cost of college should be lowered, but he doesn’t believe in free college.
• States should play a more active role in covering student tuition fees.
• There shouldn’t be blanket student loan debt forgiveness, given the cost, but it would extend civil service loan forgiveness.
• There should be more talk about canceling student debt, student loan refinancing and income-based reimbursement.

Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

Bernie Sanders is a United States Senator from Vermont.

Sanders thinks that:

• All $ 1.6 trillion in student loans set to be canceled.
• University should be free for some families earning less than $ 125,000 (University for All Act).
• Community college should be free for all students.
• Federal student loan interest rates should be lower and the federal government should not make a profit on student loans.
• Student loan refinancing should help save money for more borrowers.

Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)

Elizabeth Warren is a United States Senator from Massachusetts.

Warren thinks that:

• Total student loan forgiveness should be implemented for 75% of borrowers, 95% receiving student loan discount.
• The cancellation of public service loans should extend to all federal student loans, not just direct loans.
• The federal government should not be making money on student loans.
• Taxes on the rich could be used to alleviate student loan debt.

Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)

Amy Klobuchar is a United States Senator from Minnesota.

Klobuchar thinks that:

• Pell grants should be extended.
• Community college should be free.
• Borrowers must be able to refinance student loans through the federal government and receive a lower interest rate.
• Students shouldn’t have “free college” for four-year degrees.

Cory Booker (D-NJ)

Cory Booker is a United States Senator from New Jersey.

Booker thinks that:

• A debt-free university degree and better access to university for low-income students are important goals for a revamped higher education system.
• Predatory student loans must stop.
• The Free Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) application form should be simplified.
• Hold student loan managers accountable for unfair practices.

Andrew Yang (D-NY)

Andrew Yang is an entrepreneur from New York.

Yang thinks that:

• A 10×10 student loan emancipation plan should provide student loan forgiveness to anyone who spends 10% of their salary for 10 years on repayment.
• Vocational training must be broadened and de-stigmatized.
• Universities should implement an administrator / student ratio.

President Donald Trump

President Trump is working on a plan to make student loans even more attractive. Education secretary Betsy DeVos also shared her new student loan plan. In his 2020 budget proposal, Trump called for several goals, including:

• strike a balance between the needs of students and the interests of taxpayers
• reduce the role of the federal government in education
• reduce student loan debt
• increase the accountability of higher education institutions

Specifically, Trump proposed that:

• The civil service loan forgiveness program is expected to be phased out, impacting borrowers who borrow a new student loan after July 1, 2020.
• There should only be one income-driven student loan repayment plan, with borrowers paying 12.5% ​​of discretionary income, and student loan forgiveness would be available after 15 to 25 years for undergraduate and graduate student loans, respectively.

Key questions

There are several key questions that candidates, lawmakers, policymakers, voters and political observers should consider as these student loan proposals become more comprehensive:

• Given the amount of overdue student loans, will the federal government start writing federal student loans?
• Should Federal Taxpayers Pay For Federal Student Loan Cancellations Through The Civil Service Loan Cancellation Program, Income-Based Payments And Similar Programs?
• Should state colleges be “tuition-free” and how would the cost be funded?
• What is the right balance between the interests of students and taxpayers when it comes to student loans?