Update: Putting Student Debt Reform on the Map

For years, student loan borrowers have raised concerns about high interest rates, unwieldy debt loads, and unfair practices from servicers. This year, there are more than 44 million Americans struggling with student debt — $1.5 trillion worth of debt nationwide, to be exact. And while Congress has proved unable to take any kind of meaningful action to help borrowers, the crisis has only worsened: each year, the average graduate leaves college with higher and higher amounts of debt.

In January 2016, Generation Progress released a report detailing the ways that states and municipalities — in the face of Congressional inaction — could help relieve the student debt burden. In the months since, states and municipalities have taken action on behalf of borrowers, introducing and passing many of the policies suggested in the report. As state and local governments continue to put student debt reform on the map, we will too: below is a map of legislative action, sortable by issue area, taken on the state and local level. And as other states and localities follow their lead, we’ll continue to update the map.

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