What a Trump or Harris presidency could mean for Mass. student loan borrowers

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It looks like it exists something strange happening in Seekonk. I’m glad they called in the professionals.

And now what’s new:

Payment plans: Election Day is almost a week away, and the race is undeniably close. However, one thing is certain: when the new president takes office, changes in taking out and repaying student loans are likely. This is an issue that affects many local voters; According to the Education Data Initiative, about 13% of Massachusetts residents have federal student loan debt, averaging about $35,000. Betsy Mayotte, founder of the Student Loan Counselor Institute, he said Radio Boston last week believes student debt will be a major issue this election: “The word crisis is not used willy-nilly, okay? But the student loan crisis is a symptom of the problem. Borrowers should know that any changes to student loans should be made prospectively. Mayotte shared her predictions for how each administration will handle student debt.

• If Harris wins: Mayotte says Vice President Harris will likely continue to support the Biden administration’s student loan forgiveness policies (i.e. plan SAVE). However, how Harris implements the legacy plan may vary. “Either SAVE will disappear completely or SAVE will remain in its current form,” Mayotte said. “I think what’s most likely is that we’ll lose some of SAVE, but we’ll keep parts of it.”
• If Trump wins: Mayotte predicts Donald Trump’s presidency could mean getting rid of President Joe Biden’s SAVE plan. “I suspect they will probably come back to old REPAYE planso income-driven plans would still be available to borrowers, and not as generous as the SAVE plan,” Mayotte said. She added that this could mean slightly higher payments than SAVE borrowers currently receive. It could also make it more difficult for borrowers who say they were defrauded to sue schools and have their debt canceled.
• Latest: Biden announced the third attempt on Friday about student loan forgiveness. This time it is a measure aimed at easing payments for borrowers facing serious financial difficulties, such as childcare and medical costs. However, as with Biden First AND second trials, will likely face trial, and it is unclear whether the cases will move forward before Biden leaves office in three months.

Before you set off on your journey: The northern end of the Orange Line remains closed this week. By November 1, rail service between Oak Grove and North Station will be replaced by shuttle buses. You can also use the Haverhill Line commuter rail service between Oak Grove and North Station for free. (Just know that you will have to pay the fee if you go outside any station.)

• Positive: After being closed this weekend, the Orange Line resumes service between Ruggles and North Station today.

Hidden Story: Last week, Bourne residents voted to allocate nearly $50,000 to better understand the area’s history Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe. Kerina Silva, a member of the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe, told WBUR’s Amy Sokolow that the money will go toward archaeological research at the tribe’s Burying Hill former cemetery it’s thousands of years old. Work begins in February as part of a partnership with UMass Boston, but it will look slightly different. All archaeological work must be non-invasive, i.e. without digging.

• How will they do it? The Cape Cod Times Report Once Burying Hill is cleared of brush and trees, archaeologists will use ground-penetrating radar to confirm how many people are buried there. Silva said the tribe also asked that any artifacts found during the study remain in place.

Show time: Governor Maura Healey will attend the ceremonial signing of the agreement today officially ban the use of large animals such as elephants, big cats, giraffes and primates in traveling circuses.

• Massachusetts is the sixth state to adopt this type of legislation, which carries fines ranging from $500 to $10,000 per animal. The law was introduced because some of the state’s most important fairs – such as King Richard’s Fair and Topsfield Fair – have not used exotic animals in shows for more than four years.

PS – If you weren’t in the room when it happened, you can now watch political activist Luis Miranda’s full CitySpace speech from last week on YouTube (with the participation of A the unexpected appearance of his son).