Freshman Congressman Thomas Garrett (R-VA) has introduced legislation to tackle entitlement reform and the student loan bubble. By expanding freedom of choice and increasing flexibility in how government can help citizens, Rep. Garrett is aiming to maintain the viability of Social Security while simultaneously easing pressure on millennials with student loan debt. Congress should pass this much-needed legislative fix.
The Student Security Act, H.R. 1937, would allow individuals with federal loan debt to delay their retirement age and receive government aid in paying off their loans based on the length of time they delay collecting Social Security. In short: retire later, pay off loans now, save the government money and jumpstart your financial future.
On average, Social Security pays out about $16,000 per year. Citizens born after 1960 are eligible to collect at age 67 and up. Under Rep. Garrett’s legislation, a graduate with loan debt would be eligible for $550 each month they decide to delay retirement, up to $6,600 a year, and capped at a 15-year deferral for a total of $99,000. The average Social Security recipient would have received $240,000 over that 15-year timespan.
Student loan debt in the U.S. tops 1.3 trillion dollars and Social Security is set to go belly-up by the year 2034. 41 percent of millennials gave President Trump an “F” rating on his first 100 days, according to a Harvard study. The remedy for all these woes can be found in this one piece of legislation, as the positive media coverage around successful implementation of debt relief would be a huge win for the Trump administration and Republicans as a whole.
Changes proposed in Rep. Garrett’s legislation will not adversely affect citizens currently collecting Social Security, as potential losses are offset by a delay in retirement age. The elderly are sustained, government saves money, and recent college graduates could have some help keeping their heads above water during these trying financial times.
Unfortunately for the American people and Rep. Garrett, Govtrack.us and Skopos Labs give the legislation just a one percent chance of being enacted.
The Student Security Act is backed by the conservative group FreedomWorks, but since being introduced in April, it hasn’t received the buzz it deserves. This solution to both out-of-control government growth and the astronomic student loan debt bubble is conservative and pragmatic.
The President of FreedomWorks, Adam Brandon, said in a blog post, “The Student Security Act provides a sound financial solution and gives opportunity to young working Americans to invest in their futures, all the while not terminating a promise made to Americans nearing retirement.”
With backing from a large conservative grassroots organization, and the collapse of Social Security less than two decades away, The Student Security Act should be a no-brainer. Not only would it be a win on the policy front, but it could serve as a selling point for what the Grand Old Party can do for millennials when the holding the majority. Congress, get to work.
