Adams Addresses Student Loan Debt at Press Conference

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Alma Adams (NC-12) joined Congresswomen Nikema Williams (GA-05), Deborah Ross (NC-02), and Haley Stevens (MI-11) at a press conference in support of their Clean Slate Legislative series to deliver student debt relief. Student loan debt payments are scheduled to resume May 1, 2022.

Video of Rep. Adams' remarks is available here.

The Clean Slate Series for Student Debt Relief includes three bills led by the four Congresswomen: the Clean Slate Through Consolidation Act; the Clean Slate Through Repayment Act; and the Student Loan Rehabilitation and Credit Score Improvement Act.

Pictures and video from the press conference are available here, as well as shareable graphics for social media. Additional assets will be added as they become available.

Rep. Adams' remarks as prepared for delivery are below:

Thank you, Congresswoman Williams, for your introduction and for bringing us together today, and thank you to my colleagues Deborah Ross and Haley Stevens for being our co-leads on three transformative bills to address the student debt crisis.

I'm Congresswoman Alma Adams, and as a proud double Aggie from North Carolina A&T State University, a proud Buckeye with a doctorate from The Ohio State University, and as a caring professor who taught Bennett Belles for 40 years, higher education – from our institutions to the students they serve – will always be a priority for me.

And from that experience, I can tell you this with certainty: THE DEBT IS TOO DAMN HIGH!

Student debt is crippling generations of Americans. Countless predatory practices have taken one of the most transformative human experiences – going to college and getting an education – and made it a burden.

Instead of making higher education a place to develop the mind, body, and soul, we've turned college and university into another barrier that keeps families out of the middle class.

That's why relief for our students can't wait, and why I'm proud to stand with my colleagues to talk about our three bills – The Clean Slate Series for Student Debt Relief. These three bills: the Student Loan Rehabilitation and Credit Score Improvement Act; the Clean Slate Through Repayment Act; and the Clean Slate Through Consolidation Act

These pieces of legislation help remove defaults from the credit reports of borrowers, and improve their credit scores.

Any Gen Xer, Millennial, or recent college graduate knows how important that credit score can be when it comes to buying a car, opening a small business, obtaining a loan or line of credit, or applying for a mortgage.

These pieces of legislation provide a true second chance – and an opportunity to ease the burden of student loan debt for generations of Americans.

I'm proud to lead the Clean Slate Series for Student Debt Relief with these talented Congresswoman, and it is my honor to turn the microphone over to my friend, Congresswoman Haley Stevens.

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