Figuring out cause of mounting student debt not difficult

Massive student loan debt is likely a problem that is not going away anytime soon. But Wisconsin’s Governor is hoping to start tackling the problem with the creation of a new task force. Governor Tony Evers has formed a task force to examine student debt, and what can be done to reduce it. The problem is real. More than half of Wisconsin’s 2018 college graduates owe, on average, more than $30,000 in student loan payments. Wisconsinites owe a combined $24 billion in student loans. Those bills typically come due before graduates have landed a job that pays well enough to pay them, as well as their other debts. That may prevent them from buying a car, or even starting a family. The new task force is charged with assessing the causes of student loan debt, and provide strategies for reducing education-related debt. It shouldn’t take long to find out whey this is a problem. College is too expensive. It can cost $10,000 or more just in tuition, and that is at public universities. Add on another $8000 for room and board. And that is just for one year, with college often taking 5 years to complete. While tuition costs continue to rise, the government is offering less help in the form of Pell Grants and other subsidies. One thing that would help immediately is to allow students to refinance their student loans. College grads should be allowed to shop for better rates than the terms of their initial loan. That could go a long way in solving the problem of massive student loan debt.