How Not to Erase Student Debt

Even by government standards, it is a colossally dumb idea: revoking someone's license to work as a way to get them to pay off their student loans. Yet many states do just that.

Student loan debt has more than doubled since 2009 to $1.3 trillion today. The average borrower in the class of 2016 left campus more than $30,000 in debt -- triple the level from 1990, while earnings for newly minted grads have remained flat. Many are struggling to keep up with payments. Of the 22 million Americans with student loan debt, 30 percent are in default (at least a year behind on a payment) or delinquent (at least a month behind). The tax bill passed by the House, which would eliminate deductions for interest on student loans, may worsen this situation.