MADISON, WI (WSAU) Democratic lawmakers Wisconsin are once again pushing a proposal that would allow student loans to be refinanced at lower interest rates. The bill would create a Wisconsin Student Loan Refinancing Authority. That group would be in charge of creating a system to buy federal and private loans and refinance them at lower rates.
State Senator Dave Hansen of Green Bay and State Rep. Cory Mason of Racine have sponsored the bill. The measure may have trouble gaining traction in the Republican-led legislature.
Governor Scott Walker has also expressed skepticism. He says credit unions would be more effective at refinancing student loans. He says a new state agency would create another level of bureaucracy. He told the Wisconsin Credit Union Association last month that loan refinancing is “something that is not really our business or our mission.”
The typical four-year college graduate in Wisconsin leaves school with $28,000 in student-debt.
The MetroSource news wire contributed to this report.
