WASHINGTON – This evening, U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) took to the Senate floor to speak on the urgent need to enact the Congressionally-approved Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act, legislation he authored and championed to provide much-needed relief for individuals who previously consolidated their student loan debt with a spouse.  

“In 2017, I introduced the Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act to solve this problem and give borrowers a way out of these exploitative loans. It took seven years, but we got the bill through Congress with bipartisan support. This is a rare accomplishment. As a Congress, it’s not often that we pass standalone bills. Much less ones with unanimous Senate support or bipartisan House support. That’s a testament to what a critical and commonsense fix this is ­ —one that will actually change the lives of thousands of folks almost overnight,” said Sen. Warner on the floor of the U.S. Senate.

“I’d like to close in saying that this week, I called Sara back, the constituent who originally brought this to my attention,” he continued. “She told me that without this law, and even if she’d continued making all her monthly payments, it would be impossible to erase this debt in her lifetime. She would be tied to her ex-husband for the rest of her life. For Sara, and for all the thousands of borrowers impacted by this, it’s time for President Biden to sign this and finally free these borrowers.

Sen. Warner’s remarks as prepared for delivery are available below:

M. President, I rise today to celebrate a major accomplishment for thousands of Americans who have been trapped for decades in exploitative… joint student loans.

This is an issue that is near and dear to me… because I’ve been working on it for seven years… since hearing from a constituent in 2015.

Sara from Northern Virginia was part of a group of student loan borrowers who entered into something called a “joint consolidation loan,” which allowed married couples to combine their student loan debt into one loan.

In 2006, Congress got rid of this program. However, Congress did not create a way for folks to split the loan back into two.

When my constituent, Sara, divorced from her husband, she was still responsible for this loan. All of the debt had originally been his, but when he decided to stop paying… it was Sara who had to continue facing the consequences.

A single mom of two and a public school teacher… Sara was financially on the hook for the payments. Her credit suffered and she even faced the possibility of losing her teacher’s license.

After looking for a way out, she found out that the only way she could be free of her ex-husband’s debt was through an “act of Congress.” So she contacted my office, and we found out that across the country, thousands of borrowers were trapped in similar situations.

Domestic violence survivors were bound to their abusers by loans. Many were victims of financial abuse and were held completely responsible for debt they’d never taken out. Others were unable to save for retirement or their children’s educations. Public servants were left out of loan forgiveness programs because of the unique constraints of these loans.

In 2017, I introduced the Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Act to solve this problem and give borrowers a way out of these exploitative loans.

It took seven years… but we got the bill through Congress with bipartisan support.

This is a rare accomplishment. As a Congress, it’s not often that we pass standalone bills. Much less ones with UNANIMOUS Senate support or bipartisan House support.

That’s a testament to what a critical and commonsense fix this is … one that will actually change the lives of thousands of folks almost overnight. Since we introduced this law the first time, my office has heard from so many Americans that are desperate to get this done.

Chris, from Indiana, said: “I’ve spent over sixteen years thinking about this loan every day… and waking up at night trying to create a strategy to pay this loan off. For the first time, I may be able to put my mind at peace.”

Sharon… a 7th grade teacher whose former partner has not made a payment in years… told us, “I don’t have to do this anymore. I get to live my life. I get to retire this year.”

Jessica…. whose former partner refuses to pay his share of the loan…. said, “I am finally about to be free… of one last way my ex controls me.”

Amy is a public servant who has never been able to take advantage of a single debt-relief program. This bill will change that.

All these people have asked for… is a chance to take their student loans into their own hands, and not be saddled with the debt of a former partner.

Applications for the Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program close on Oct. 31 of this year.

Many of these borrowers are public school teachers and government workers. They need to be able to apply by that deadline so they are eligible for the same benefits all other Americans have enjoyed.

I am hopeful that Pres. Biden will sign this into law as soon as possible so that these borrowers can finally experience freedom from financial and domestic abuse… freedom to control their own financial future… and freedom to enjoy the same benefits as other borrowers across the country.

I’d like to close in saying that this week, I called Sara back, the constituent who originally brought this to my attention.

She told me that without this law… and even if she’d continued making all her monthly payments… it would be impossible to erase this debt in her lifetime. She would be tied to her ex-husband… literally… for the rest of her life.

For Sara, and for all the thousands of borrowers impacted by this, it’s time for Pres. Biden to sign this and finally free these borrowers. 

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