A Case For (and Against) Automated Income Driven Repayments for Student Loans

Much of the discussion about college has focused on how expensive it has become. While important, lowering college costs will not affect the millions of borrowers currently in repayment. Put simply, if we take as a starting point that borrowers are struggling to make payments in the current system, and that the government will neither forgive all student loan debt, nor will make college “free” to all students any time soon, it behooves us to find a practical solution for the more than 40 million Americans who hold student loan debt today, and the many who will do so in the future.

In this piece, the author makes a case that an Automated Income Driven Repayment plan, in which every federal borrower is automatically enrolled and where payments are automatically made through withholding, is the most meaningful change we can make to aid borrowers, and is the best option for those borrowers and the taxpayer alike. The piece aims to show that while no plan is perfect, a single, automated, income driven repayment plan is not only feasible, but will also benefit borrowers and better support the sustainability of the student loan program.