Lawmaker introduces student loan borrowers’ ‘Bill of Rights’

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WTVQ) – With classes starting at Kentucky’s colleges and universities, State Rep. Patti Minter announced on Tuesday that she is pre-filing the Student Loan Borrowers Bill of Rights, the first comprehensive student loan reform bill in Kentucky, for the 2022 legislative session.

Currently titled B.R. 96, the bill would tackle predatory lending by big student loan servicers by banning deceptive practices, increasing oversight, and requiring more transparency.

“College students and their families deserve full transparency so they can make informed decisions about their loans,” said Minter, who represents House District 20 in Bowling Green. “With this bill, student borrowers can know that their state government has their back. No one should be tricked into paying more than they should just so they can afford a college education.”

A history professor at Western Kentucky University, Minter is introducing the bill with primary cosponsor State Rep. Attica Scott of Louisville, who has been vocal about the student loan debt she continues to pay off.

More than a dozen U.S. states have enacted similar bills to protect borrowers and their families, including neighboring states Virginia and Illinois. Minter previously filed the bill during the 2021 legislative session.

Key components of the Student Loan Borrowers Bill of Rights:

• Create a watchdog official to track student loan complaints, collect data, and provide helpful student loan information to the public

• Ban fraudulent, deceptive, or abusive student loan lending practices

• Require that borrowers be fully informed of their repayment options

• Protect borrowers from coercive credit reporting practices

• Limit the amount of time a payment can be processed

• Allow borrowers to sue student loan services engaged in prohibited behavior and provide enhanced remedies