When Congress passed President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” in July, one of its most profound changes flew under the radar.

The new law includes a set of reforms to fix one of the worst-run federal government programs: the federal student loan system. Under the law, federal student loans will be less burdensome and easier to repay in full.

Attempts at student loan forgiveness under former President Joe Biden sidestepped the underlying problem in the student loan system: The government hands out loans to young people with no questions asked, regardless of whether their borrowing levels are reasonable or whether their chosen degree is likely to pay off.

Consequently, many borrowers can’t afford to pay down their debts. Outstanding balances rise. Either the students languish, or the government steps in to forgive remaining debts that borrowers cannot pay — at considerable cost to taxpayers.

Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act overhauls this broken system. First, the law reforms student loan repayment to ensure borrowers pay down their debts. Then the law strategically limits new loans to ensure that fewer borrowers take on debts they cannot afford.

Under the Obama and Biden administrations, policymakers’ student loan repayment strategy was to slash monthly payments, then forgive remaining debt after a set number of years. But this........

© The Hill