Bill Introduced to Help Employers Offer Student Loan Repayment Benefit

The legislation would permit employers to contribute up to $5,250 tax-free to their employees’ student loans.

Senators John Thune, R-South Dakota, and Mark Warner, D-Virginia, have introduced the Employer Participation in Repayment Act, which would permit employers to contribute up to $5,250 tax-free to their employees’ student loans.

The bill would expand the Employer Education Assistance Program, which only provides assistance for workers who are seeking additional education, but does not benefit individuals who already have incurred student loan debt. The legislation has also been introduced in the House of Representatives by Reps. Rodney Davis, R-Illinois, and Scott Peters, D-California, and has support from numerous educational organizations.

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANSPONSOR NEWSDash daily newsletter.

The senators issued a press release noting that one in four Americans have student loans, and that these loans total $1.5 trillion in the U.S.

“Today’s economy is strong, and I believe we should keep our foot on the gas by passing commonsense bills like the one Senator Warner and I have proposed that would give young career seekers additional tools to help overcome the burden of student loan debt and empower employers to attract future talent,” Thune said. “It’s no secret that as today’s college graduates look toward the next chapter in life, they often trade their cap and gown for debt and uncertainty. This bipartisan legislation, which I view as a win-win for graduates and employers, is good policy and one that I hope garners strong support.”

Warner added: “As the first in my family to graduate from college, I relied on student loans when college tuition was much lower than it is today. Unfortunately, as the cost of higher education continues to skyrocket, so has the rate of Americans who turn to student loans to pay for college. That’s why I’ve teamed up with Senator Thune to create an innovative, bipartisan approach to help ease the burden of student loans. By making employer student loan repayments tax-exempt, employers will have a new tool to recruit and retain a talented workforce while also helping working Americans manage their financial future.”

Full text of the legislation can be found here, and a summary can be found here.

A Little Friday File Fun

And now it's time for FRIDAY FILES!

In Baysville, Ontario, Sybil Marie Hicks’ children wrote a very amusing obituary for her. “Mom was never boring,” Hicks’ daughter told Yahoo Lifestyle, explaining the obituary. “Mom lived large. She would do anything for anyone. It was rare for Mom not to have a smile on her face. Mom was always ready for a laugh.” Written in first person, among other things, the obituary says, “I finally have the smoking hot body I have always wanted… having been cremated.”  https://www.thespec.com/announcements-obituaries-memorials/obituaries-death-notices/9160336-hicks-sybil-marie-nee-lyons-/

 

Get more!  Sign up for PLANSPONSOR newsletters.

In Phoenix, Arizona, a volunteer was sorting books for a charity book sale when she found $4,000 in a chamber cut inside “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.” KPNX-TV reports that the former owner also left a letter and an address label inside the book. The man’s family was contacted and the money returned. The volunteer said she suspects the family went home and opened up every other book in the man’s house.

 

In Towson, Maryland, a woman in her 50s wearing a multicolored scarf approached students in two campus buildings at Towson University last week, showing them a picture on her cellphone and asking if they would date her son. After receiving multiple complaints from the mother’s picks, campus police issued an “incident advisory” that included a link to pictures of the woman so that she might be identified, according to the Baltimore Sun. University officials say the woman isn’t being sought for a criminal investigation, but they do want her activity to stop.

 

In Houston, Texas, a group of people looking for a place to hang out entered an abandoned house and found a big surprise. The Houston Chronicle reports animal rescue workers arrived to see a well-fed animal resting on a bed of hay inside a cage they said could be easily opened. Authorities say the animal weighs 350 pounds. Investigators have leads into who owned the tiger but say it may not be the person who owns the property. The tiger has been moved to an animal sanctuary.
This inebriated man is very polite—to himself.

If you can't view the below video, try https://youtu.be/V38p_H0MUkc.
I don’t even know what to say about this woman watering the lawn. Just shaking my head.

If you can't view the below video, try https://youtu.be/YuLt7QUe7EE.
The negatives of exercising.

If you can't view the below video, try https://youtu.be/Tr7bSxabnjg.
Reported by
Reprints
To place your order, please e-mail Reprints.

«