WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 (UPI) — Lawmakers from 10 states announced a new push for legislation that will create debt-free options for college degrees from public institutions, joining nearly 100 members of Congress and several presidential contenders seeking the same thing.
Legislators from states that include Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Ohio announced this week bills and resolutions were being forwarded in the coming months in political battleground states to make staggering student debt a priority.
“From New Hampshire to Iowa, and all across the nation, voters want students to be able to graduate from college without debt,” said Kayla Wingbermuehle, campaign director of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which is organizing the effort.
The three leading Democratic presidential candidates have called for reforms to the student loan system amid the more than $1.2 trillion in outstanding student debt. In addition, nearly 100 members of Congress backed a bill pushing for debt-free college. Economists have said heavy debt loads have burdened college graduates, deterring them from life events that include buying a home and having a baby and
Iowa state Rep. Chris Hall, a Democrat, said student debt is stopping graduates from entering the middle class. He plans to push the conversation into the Iowa Legislature when it convenes in January.
“If you form it as a resolution, it initially brings more people into the conversation, and from there we can get into the details of how a split Republican-Democratic legislature wants to look at the issue,” Hall, 30, said.
