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(77WABC) — The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget says President Joe Biden’s federal student loan forgiveness plan will cost U.S. taxpayers between $440 billion and $600 billion over the next 10 years.
According to the report, the committee settled on a central estimate of approximately $500 billion.
Biden announced up to $20,000 in federal student loan forgiveness on Wednesday. Students who attended college using federal Pell Grants qualify for the $20,000, but those who did not use the program qualify for $10,000 in forgiveness — and only applies to borrowers making less than $125,000 per year.
According to the latest federal data, more than 43 million Americans have federal student debt, amounting to a total of more than $1.6 trillion. Nearly one third of those owe less than $10,000 and more than half owe less than $20,000.
Critics have argued Biden’s program will contribute to already record-high levels of inflation in the U.S.
