*By Justin Chermol*
The daunting task of paying back astronomical student loans may soon be less taxing, California Congressman Scott Peters tells told Cheddar Tuesday.
Rep. Peters (D-Calif.) has received 99 co-sponsors on his bipartisan Employer Participation in Repayment Act, which would allow employers to contribute to their employees' student loan payments, tax-free.
"The idea is this: if you go to work for a company, they can pay off up to $5,250 of your student loans in a year without it being income to you, so it's not taxable to you," Peters told Cheddar's J.D. Durkin.
"If you talk to any young person about ... the big thing on their mind: it's student loan debt. They're not buying a house, they're not getting a car, they're living with their parents, all because they have this burden."
According to a recent [report](https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/consumer-community-context-201901.pdf) from the Federal Reserve, the rise in student loan debt from 2005 to 2014 has contributed to a decline in home ownership.
Nearly one in four American adults are paying off student loans. That amounts to over 44 million citizens who hold collectively almost $1.5 trillion in student debt.
"The average debt now, out of a public university: $30,000 for each kid," Peters said.
Peters also said that the bill could benefit the employer as well ー as educated talent will be attracted to jobs that offer this tax-free incentive.
Peter said he feels good about the bill's chances of at least making it to the House floor for a vote.
"I am more optimistic about that in this Congress with Mrs. Pelosi, rather than Mr. Ryan. I think that we are likely to deal with this issue in a serious way," Peters said. "That's the first step."
The mayor of Portland, Oregon, was tear-gassed by the U.S. government late Wednesday as he stood at a fence guarding a federal courthouse during another night of protest against the presence of federal agents sent by President Donald Trump to quell unrest in the city.
Using alarmist language, Trump on Wednesday painted Democrat-led cities as out of control, even though criminal justice experts say the increase in violence in some cities defies easy explanation.
The poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds that only about 1 in 10 Americans say daycare centers, preschools and K-12 schools should start the school year like any other.
Sorrento Therapeutics has been approved by the FDA to move forward with Phase 2 trials of its 'Abivertinib' study. ICU patients in some SoCal hospitals will undergo testing of the orally administered drug.
The U.S. says it has ordered China to close its consulate in Houston “to protect American intellectual property" and the private information of Americans.
The largest teacher's union in Florida is suing the state after Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran signed an executive order requiring schools to reopen for in-person learning in just a few weeks.
President Donald Trump sought to paint a rosier picture of the coronavirus for the nation on Tuesday but conceded the pandemic is likely to “get worse before it gets better.”
The Senate Banking Committee approved President Donald Trump’s controversial nominee for the Federal Reserve, Judy Shelton, on a party-line vote Tuesday.
In a newly introduced bill, North Carolina Congressman, Ted Budd, is calling on the TSA to implement temperature checks at airport security check points.
The Justice Department says hackers working with the Chinese government targeted firms developing coronavirus vaccines and stole hundreds of millions of dollars worth of intellectual property and trade secrets from companies worldwide.
