FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 9, 2018
CONTACT: Alexis Goldstein, alexis@ourfinancialsecurity.org, 202-973-8005
Americans for Financial Reform is shocked and appalled at Mick Mulvaney’s utter betrayal of students, with his move to entirely close the Bureau’s Office for Students and Young Consumers. This is a slap in the face to America’s student borrowers at a time when borrowers need allies in government more than ever.
“America is facing an ongoing student debt crisis, with outstanding student debt surpassing $1.5 trillion and over 8 million borrowers in default on their student loans. Closing the Office for Students is like shuttering the fire department in the middle of a three-alarm fire,” said Alexis Goldstein, senior policy analyst at Americans for Financial Reform.
The Bureau’s Office for Students and Young Consumers has spurred actions that returned $750 million to student borrowers, and helped demand answers on over 50,000 complaints about student loans, making it a crucial contributor to fulfilling the Bureaus consumer protection mission. The Office for Students and Young Consumers published valuable reports and updates on the state of student lending and the types of complaints being filed by student loan borrowers, created tools like the “payback playbook” to help make student loan repayment easier and clearer, and acted as a tireless advocate for the rights of student loan borrowers. Dismantling the Office for Students and Young Consumers is yet another move by Mulvaney to deliberately stop the Bureau from doing its job to protect students and consumers.