WACO, Texas (FOX 44) – On Saturday, President Joe Biden signed the bipartisan debt ceiling deal. The compromise bill suspends the debt ceiling until January 1, 2025 after the next presidential election.
Ray Perryman with the local Perryman Group answers what this means for the everyday Central Texan. “It’s not going to have a huge amount of impact unless you want to be perhaps about all those very specific programs… They’re tinkering around the edges or playing with less than 1% of the budget.”
For individuals dependent on SNAP benefits, or food stamps, now there is new work reporting requirements. Previously, the system required adults ages 18 to 49 without dependents to show employment or job training for a minimum of 20 hours a week, after receiving benefits for 3 months. Now the debt ceiling raises the age limit for childless workers to ages 50 to 54.
People with student loans will also feel the impact of the new debt ceiling deal after a forbearance period from President Biden’s student loan pause.
“The original reason for the forbearance on the federal student loans was related to the COVID 19 pandemic… it gave borrowers an opportunity to not have to pay those loans under circumstances where they were dealing with medical issues related to the COVID pandemic and loss of job and loss of income,” says Tayne Law Group founding director Leslie Tayne.
There is not an exact date set for the start of student loan payments. However, the pause is set to end on August 30, 2023.
By the end of June, the supreme court will rule on President Biden’s request for loan forgiveness. This has the potential to wipe away each individual’s debt up to $20,000.
“From a practical perspective, now is the time to figure out how to pay. And the only way you’ll know how to pay anything is if you budget,” says Tayne.