The Peru Gazette

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik introduced a bipartisan bill to provide temporary relief for Perkins loan borrowers along with Congresswoman Katie Porter (CA-45), Congresswoman Susie Lee (NV-03), Congresswoman Lori Trahan (MA-03), and Congresswoman Alma Adams (NC-12). This bipartisan legislation would expand the reach of the student borrower protections included in the CARES Act. The COVID–19 Perkins Loan Relief Act would allow the nearly 2 million borrowers with Perkins loans to forgo making payments on those loans until October.

In April of this year, Congresswoman Stefanik introduced similar legislation – the Equity in Student Loan Relief Act, a bipartisan bill to extend the temporary relief from student loan payments to Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) borrowers who have been left out of the relief provided in the CARES Act. Together, these proposals will ensure all federal student loan borrowers have equal access to the relief provided by Congress.

“COVID-19 presented significant challenges and uncertainty to North Country residents with student loan payments,” said Congresswoman Stefanik. “This bipartisan legislation closes a gap in the CARES Act and allows those with Perkins loans to defer payments until October as we recover from the COVID-19 crisis. Along with the Equity in Student Loan Relief Act, this critical legislation will reduce significant financial stress for the borrowers who have been left behind, and I’m proud to be an advocate for all of our hardworking North Country students and their families.”