LETTER: Canceling student loan interest is not really ‘free’

The cost still falls on taxpayers.

In reply to Christopher Owens’ letter about student loans, the writer argues that eliminating interest retroactively would not be cost-free.

According to the letter, Mr. Owens wants the government to erase the existing interest on student loans and substitute a 1 percent rate until the debt is repaid. He says that rate would cover the loan administration fee, though the writer calls that claim questionable given payroll and benefit expenses.

The writer contends that student loan debt is tied to the national debt because the government borrowed the money and interest continues to build each day. In that view, wiping out past interest would simply shift those costs onto taxpayers. The writer adds that taxpayers would also bear the interest above 1 percent until the loans are paid off.

The letter says many taxpayers already absorb some economic consequences, including the loss of purchasing power in the dollar, and that student debt is part of that broader burden. The writer says personal debts were paid without government assistance and argues that student loan borrowers should do the same, without asking for additional taxpayer support beyond what they already receive through compounded interest.

Finally, the writer offers a personal account, saying that after more than 2½ decades of work involving eight-, 10-, 12- and 16-hour shifts, there was no sign of Mr. Owens earning alongside them or of students sharing that labor. The writer says every dollar was earned and should not be taken from a taxpayer’s pocket. The letter ends by noting that taxpayers already covered education through 12th grade and that this should be sufficient.