Is a student loan bill of rights coming to California?
Here’s what you need to know.
Student Borrower Bill of Rights
On Tuesday, the California Assembly passed a first-in-the-nation “Student Borrower Bill of Rights,” which aims to protect borrowers with student loans. Sponsored by Assemblyman Mark Stone, the bill, AB 376, primarily targets student loan servicers, which are responsible for collecting student loan payments and managing student loan accounts.
If the California Senate passes the bill before this September, California Governor Gavin Newsom could sign the legislation before year end.
“Multiple investigations have shown that loan servicers routinely lose paperwork, misapply payments, provide borrowers inaccurate information, and even steer them into more costly repayment options with virtually no accountability,” said Suzanne Martindale, senior policy counsel and western states legislative manager for Consumer Reports, which co-sponsored the legislation. “At a time when the U.S. Department of Education has refused to set loan servicing standards to help borrowers, it’s critical for states like California to lead the way and address these longstanding abuses.”
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