Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-NY) announced a $125 million student debt cancellation plan for City University of New York alumni.
On July 28, Cuomo unveiled the “CUNY Comeback Program” — which will eliminate unpaid debt for at least 50,000 students and graduates who saw financial challenges during COVID-19 and the lockdown-induced recession.
Proud to announce that @CUNY will forgive up to $125M in unpaid debt for at least 50,000 students—one of the largest student debt forgiveness plans of its kind.
Students were among those most impacted by COVID. This plan provides much-needed relief. #CUNYComeback
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) July 28, 2021
An announcement from CUNY says that “the initiative is one of the nation’s largest student debt forgiveness plans of its kind.”
“The COVID-19 pandemic has caused hardships in the lives of so many New Yorkers, and our students were among those most impacted,” Cuomo said in the release. “This landmark new program eliminates millions of dollars in unpaid debt, providing much-needed relief to tens of thousands of CUNY students as they work to get back on their feet after the pandemic and plan for their futures.”
The announcement explains:
Eligible students who were enrolled at the University from March 13, 2020, the date the coronavirus was declared a national emergency, through the Spring 2021 semester and accrued tuition and fee balances during that time, will have those unpaid debts to the University wiped clean. This action covers the Spring, Summer and Fall 2020 semesters and the Spring 2021 semester, including students who have graduated. It is a one-time action to aid students who faced and overcame numerous difficulties during the public health and economic crises. In most cases, outstanding student balances will be cleared without an application process, allowing students to register for Fall semester classes and obtain their official transcripts.
The plan is funded through federal dollars allocated to the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund through the American Rescue Plan, passed in March, and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act, passed in December.
The CUNY Board of Trustees approved the plan on July 6; however, it was not unveiled by Cuomo or the university system until days before the release of the independent report.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) — faced with a recall election — likewise announced the “largest state tax rebate in American history” in May. Under the plan, Californian households would receive $500 cash payments.
“California’s recovery is well underway, but we can’t be satisfied with simply going back to the way things were,” said Newsom. “We are tripling the Golden State Stimulus to get money in the hands of more middle-class Californians who have been hit hard by this pandemic.”
On Tuesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James revealed that Cuomo “engaged in unwanted and inappropriate groping, kissing, hugging, and comments that accusers called ‘deeply humiliating, uncomfortable, offensive, or inappropriate.”