BOISE, Idaho — Graduating law school is an investment and one that Erik Guerra fully expects to pay off.
However, he is roughly $70,000 in debt after completing three degrees.
"It does feel like a lot hanging over my head," Guerra said. "Just gonna have to pay it off."
Guerra now expects to pay less in response to the federal government's "One-time Federal Student Loan Debt Relief" program. For individuals earning less than $125,000, the Department of Education is willing to forgive $10,000 in federal student loans. Pell grant recipients can receive up to $20,000 in student loan relief.
"It took about 30 seconds [to apply]," Guerra said. "Take a little weight off my shoulders in terms of owing that much money back to the government."
An Idaho economics professor voiced concerns to KTVB in August about the debt relief plan and its negative impact on the country's federal deficit. Recent estimates from the Congressional Budget Office estimate the plan will cost taxpayers around $400 billion over the next 30 years.
However, federal loan borrowers today are not offering any complaints.
"It was a moment of joy in our home for sure. My wife and I are both in the same boat, both with about the same amount of student loan debt," 29-year-old Andre Womack said. "So, we are a household that would get about $40,000 off. Which is significant. It is half of our student loans."
But is that fair?
Take Boise attorney Joe Filicetti for example; he worked to push himself through law school and pay his own bills along the way.
"I took some loans for law school, and I paid them off right away. I got a second job to do that," Filicetti said. "At the bottom line, it is a contract. Someone signs a contract to take a loan for school thinking they will make more money at the end of it. Whether or not that was a good decision or them or not, they made a contract. They should stick to that contract."
However, the college students of today say you cannot compare them to previous generations. They attribute this to the continuously rising cost of higher education.
Guerra and Filicetti both graduated from law school and the University of Idaho. Filicetti paid $300 a semester between 1984 and 1987, he said. Guerra paid $7,000 a semester just before his graduation in May 2022.
According to an online inflation calculator, Guerra should have paid roughly $785 in tuition if the price tag only changed to keep up with inflation.
"Well I'm torn, because I have a lot of friends that are younger who see this as great relief for them and I understand that," Filicetti said.
The one-time student loan relief application is now live and available by clicking here.
"I was willing to take on the debt, and willing to pay it back completely if needed," Womack said. "Why would you pay more in taxes if you can take a break in taxes? It's the same thing. So, many people are willing to do so much to make sure they don't pay taxes. This is no different. It's a tax break essentially for us."
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