# Student Loan Accountability Act: What It Actually Does

This bill would prevent the federal government from canceling or forgiving student loans on a large scale. Specifically, it blocks the Secretary of Education, Secretary of the Treasury, and Attorney General from wiping away student loan debt unless Congress passes a new law explicitly allowing it. The bill applies to federal student loans made under most education programs, as well as health education loans.

The core idea behind the bill is that the executive branch (the President and their agencies) shouldn't have the power to forgive student loans without Congress voting on it first. The bill's supporters argue that canceling loans without Congressional approval is unfair to people who already paid off their loans or never went to college, since taxpayers would ultimately cover the cost. The bill does include one exception: it allows existing targeted forgiveness programs that were already in place as of March 2020 to continue operating—these are programs that forgive loans for specific groups like teachers or public service workers.

If this bill became law, it would essentially freeze any new broad student loan forgiveness programs. The President couldn't use executive authority to cancel debt for millions of borrowers at once. Any major loan forgiveness would require Congress to pass a new law first. This matters because there's been ongoing debate about whether the President has the power to forgive student loans without Congress, and this bill would settle that question by saying no—at least for any large-scale cancellation efforts.

Student Loan Accountability Act

DesJarlais, Scott

Student Loan Accountability Act This bill generally prohibits the Departments of Education, Justice, or the Treasury from taking any action to cancel or forgive the outstanding balances, or portion of balances, of covered loans. Covered loans refer to Federal Family Education Loans, Federal Direct Loans, Federal Perkins Loans, and loans under the Health Education Assistance Loan Program. The prohibition does not apply to targeted federal student loan forgiveness, cancellation, or repayment programs that are in effect by final regulation on March 12, 2020, and carried out under the Higher Education Act of 1965.