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The proposal creates a student loan forgiveness program for Connecticut residents who attended a Connecticut state college or university. It would pay $5,000 of a participating borrower's loan each year they are in the program for up to 5 years for a total of $25,000. Payments would be made directly to the Connecticut Higher Education Supplemental Loan Authority (CHESLA) for loan forgiveness. Borrowers must meet the following eligibility requirements:
- Must be a Connecticut resident for five consecutive years
- Must have graduated from a public institution; CSU’s and UConn
- Must have been a working professional for at least two years
- Must complete at 100 hours of service each year to get your loan forgiven
Student loan debt relief is a matter of economic and racial justice as student debt has the most impact on low-income borrowers, first-generation borrowers, and borrowers of color.
You can learn more about this proposal here.
In January, I chaired a meeting of the Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected student loan debt. You can click here to watch that meeting and hear some powerful testimony.
If you have a student loan debt story, I encourage you to share it with the committee. There will be a public hearing on SB 250 and several other bills on Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. You can register to testify before the committee via Zoom using the Online Testimony Registration Form. If you do not have internet access, you may provide testimony via telephone. To register to testify by phone, call the Phone Registrant Line at (860) 240-0344 to leave your contact information.
Registration closes TODAY at 3 p.m. You may also email written testimony in Word or PDF format to HEDtestimony@cga.ct.gov. |
