Republicans foiled a bid led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) to attach student debt relief to a budget resolution, in a Wednesday vote that was split strictly along party lines.
The amendment would have permitted students who opened lines of credits backed by the Treasury Department to refinance debt at lower interest rates.
It would have also been paid for by raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans.
“The cost of the amendment is fully offset by requiring millionaires to pay at least a 30 percent effective Federal tax rate,” Warren’s office noted in a Wednesday morning press release endorsed by 19 other senate Democrats.
Warren said her legislation would allow undergraduates to borrow at 2013-2014 academic year rates, according to The Hill—a change that would see students able to access credit with 3.9 percent interest.
In a fundraising email sent last Friday, Warren said her amendment would save borrowers hundreds of dollars every year, and that “Congress should have done this a year ago, but Republicans said no.”
According to research firm Experian, last year 40 million Americans owed almost $1.2 trillion in student debt–up from 2008, when 29 million Americans owed more than $600 billion in aggregate student debt. The average last year was in arrears to the tune of $29,000—up from $23,000.
“The Republicans can’t just close their eyes and pretend this isn’t happening,” Warren also charged in her letter.“By refusing to act, they are sinking the hopes of an entire generation.”
Senate Budget Committee Chair Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) called on his colleagues to shoot down the proposal, arguing that the budget resolution wasn’t the proper venue through which to legislate the issue.
Last year, Warren’s legislation was blocked by then-Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas.). The second highest ranking Republican in the Senate demanded that Warren accept unlimited amendments in exchange for consideration of her initiative, The Hill also noted.
