Some people take decades to repay their loans and agonize over how much money they borrowed. Some realize that they are putting their life on hold because so much of their paycheck goes to their lender. Some cut costs, get a second job and go through the headache of restructuring their loan.

The nationwide burden of student loan debt in the United States has amassed to more than $1.7 trillion. This outstanding debt has more than doubled in the last decade and continues to grow at an excessive rate.

Students are borrowing exorbitant amounts of money – more than they need – because the current system encourages it. We could be doing so much more to help educate students on how to borrow money for school responsibly. Furthermore, the government prohibits university counselors from advising students against taking out the maximum amount of federal student loans even when a lesser amount will be enough to pay for their education. This is profoundly reckless and has set countless students off on the wrong foot right as they enter adulthood.

In this week's House Committee on Education and the Workforce hearing, I asked Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona about the inability of university counselors to advise students accurately and honestly on the risks associated with borrowing up to the maximum amount of a federal student loan.

Secretary Cardona shared my dismay that it is illegal for financial aid advisors at universities to use their expertise to advise students to borrow less and save themselves from the burden of mountainous debt.

We need to ensure that our universities have the right to help students be successful, and that starts with setting them on a strong financial path. This is not a partisan issue, and I am glad that the President’s top Education official agrees with me.

To help young people avoid student debt before it weighs them down, I introduced the Responsible Borrowers Act. This legislation will help solve the problems you just read about by allowing universities to limit the amount of a federal loan that an enrolled student can borrow.

It is clear that outdated policy out of Washington has contributed to the crippling student loan crisis by depriving students from necessary guidance regarding student loans. We need to act on behalf of our next generation to protect them financially and put an end to the crisis of student loan debt.

Since the outset of COVID-19, the World Health Organization put politics over its core mission of protecting global health.

This week, I stood with Congressman Ralph Norman (R-SC) in support of our American liberties.

Last weekend, I joined our Hmong community in Manitowoc to speak at Hmong American’s Day! Thank you for inviting me to celebrate your rich history and culture. 

I was happy to join the Cleveland Fire Department for their annual brat fry. Thank you all for volunteering to protect our communities during emergencies.