AFT: DeVos moves to reinstate ‘Wild West of student loans’

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 12, 2017) — Statement by American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten on Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ scrapping of the Obama administration’s student loan borrower protections:

“Secretary DeVos — with the stroke of a pen — has reinstated the Wild West of student loans where servicers get to play by their own rules, and borrowers get fleeced. Her decision rescinds the most basic protections student debtors have when dealing with servicers, like expecting their bills to be accurate and their payments to be processed on time. And she’s opened the door for rogue operators such as Navient, which overcharged service members and veterans millions of dollars, to win even more lucrative government contracts.

If Secretary DeVos were serious about curing America’s trillion dollar student loan crisis, she would strengthen, not rescind, these protections. Instead, she is enabling and empowering bad actors. It’s just another clear example of Betsy DeVos and the Trump administration putting the interests of predatory profiteers over the needs of the little guy — in this instance, the millions of people trying to go to college or acquire career skills without being crippled by debt.”

The American Federation of Teachers is a union of 1.6 million professionals that champions fairness; democracy; economic opportunity; and high-quality public education, healthcare and public services for our students, their families and our communities. We are committed to advancing these principles through community engagement, organizing, collective bargaining and political activism, and especially through the work our members do.