IL HR0091

54% of Americans who attended college assumed some form of debt, with over 45 million people owing more than $1.5 trillion in collective student loan debt, making it the second highest form of consumer debt after mortgages.

Student loans have a delinquency rate of 10.85% (90+ days overdue), higher than auto loans (4.69%) and credit cards (8.32%), with over 1.5 million Illinois borrowers holding a collective balance of $49 billion and a delinquency rate of 11.4%.

African American bachelor's degree recipients average $34,000 in debt compared to $30,000 for white recipients, and 12 years after entering college in 2003, typical African American graduates owed 114% of their original borrowed amount versus 47% for white graduates.

Women hold nearly two-thirds of outstanding student debt ($929 billion as of early 2019) and face compounded inequality, earning 26% less than male counterparts with college degrees and 18-20% less than male peers in the first four years after graduation.

Student loan debt is linked to a 20% decline in homeownership, with 61% of millennials delaying home purchases by an average of seven years due to student debt, and the resolution urges Congress to enact legislation forgiving student loans and preventing future student debt burdens.