Source New Mexico is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
By Patrick Lohmann / Source NM
Speaking at the Western Governors’ Association meeting in Santa Fe on Monday, United States Education Secretary Linda McMahon defended her agency’s return to collecting student loan payments from millions of borrowers, calling the pandemic-era pause “confusing” for students and their parents.
On May 5, the Education Department announced it would resume federal student loan collections after President Donald Trump’s* administration paused them in March 2020. In a news release, McMahon said the resumption of collections meant that, “American taxpayers will no longer be forced to serve as collateral for irresponsible student loan policies.”
During her keynote address, McMahon said the Education Department had already received about $200 million in payments. The payments represent the first collection in more than five years and come after the Supreme Court stymied Biden’s efforts to forgive billions in student loan debt during his presidency.
McMahon said times have changed since March 2020, and resumption of collections, among other benefits, eliminates confusion borrowers face about whether and when to repay their loans with potential loan forgiveness hanging over their heads.
“One father told me: He said, ‘You know, my kids were covered under an educational trust fund that I set up for them, but I wasn’t sure that I wanted to pay out that money, because if it was going to be forgiven, was that short changing them in the long run?’” she said.
More than 10% of New Mexicans have student loan debt, according to EducationData.org, which says that 226,000 New Mexicans in 2024 had an average debt of $34,071.
A spokesperson for the New Mexico Higher Education Department did not respond to a request for comment from Source New Mexico about McMahon’s comments.
In addition to her comments on student loans, McMahon defended President Donald Trump’s efforts to pare back the Education Department, saying she does not see what he’s doing as a “cut to education” but, rather, a means of reducing bureaucracy and empowering states to take the lead in their students’ education.
During her speech, protesters outside the Eldorado Hotel could be heard shouting “Not for sale! Not for sale!” More than 1,000 people protested the budget reconciliation bill making its way through the United States Senate that would mandate the sale of up to 3 million acres of federal public lands.
The chants echoing through the meeting hall prompted New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham to explain the reasoning behind the protests and offer an apology “for the noise, [but] don’t apologize for community engagement.”
Really pathetic that MLG didn’t advocate for many who cannot afford to repay their student loans and how the administration is finding another way to turn the screws on the have nots.