Over the past 10 or more years, I have watched a lot of news stories about how student loan borrowers were impacted by changes to their payment plans, interest rates, or forgiveness programs. Changes that the government made, both positive and negative, that borrowers had no control over. Meanwhile, certain news media basically demonized all borrowers as being either lazy or wanting a get-out-of-debt pass without paying anything. Many Congressmen and women also holding these views and not discussing serious solutions that caused the $1.8 trillion dollar debt. Both Democrats and Republicans need to be held accountable for not working together to discover new solutions to this national problem.
If you knew how many other borrowers like you are in the same state, would the numbers motivate you to act in order to help shape your future? The list below of federal loan borrowers by state was updated May 2025 by Protect Borrowers. If I were in Pennsylvania, I am sure that sending 1.8 million emails or letters to your state legislator or Congress man or woman help create some action on our behalf.
And this is not just a federal problem but also a state problem also. The state legislatures have mechanisms to help reduce student loan debt and prevent it from increasing such as creating more affordable community colleges, tax incentives for companies willing to help pay down student loan debt for employees or creating more incentives for individuals to pay down student loan debt if he or she works in state government or non-profit organizations. There are 44 million student loan borrowers in America, and it is time to organize and initiate action, so we vote people to Congress that is serious about providing solutions to the student loan debt crisis.
Let’s organize and support ourselves since government alone cannot seem to do it for us. You cannot afford to stay silent on the sidelines.
State, Number of Federal Borrowers
Alabama, 657,000
Alaska, 68,000
Arizona, 914,000
Arkansas, 404,000
California, 4,000,000
Colorado, 782,000
Connecticut, 517,000
Delaware, 135,000
District of Columbia, 99,329
Florida, 2,700,000
Georgia, 1,700,000
Hawaii, 123,000
Idaho, 220,000
Illinois, 1,600,000
Indiana, 905,000
Iowa, 430,000
Kansas, 385,000
Kentucky, 612,000
Louisiana, 678,000
Maine, 189,000
Maryland, 845,000
Massachusetts, 918,000
Michigan, 1,400,000
Minnesota, 789,000
Mississippi, 449,000
Missouri, 832,000
Montana, 129,000
Nebraska, 249,000
Nevada, 363,000
New Hampshire, 192,000
New Jersey, 1,200,000
New Mexico, 227,000
New York, 2,500,000
North Carolina, 1,400,000
North Dakota, 89,000
Ohio, 1,800,000
Oklahoma, 505,000
Oregon, 531,000
Pennsylvania, 1,800,000
Rhode Island, 74,413
South Carolina, 772,000
South Dakota, 119,000
Tennessee, 891,000
Texas, 3,800,000
Utah, 332,000
Vermont, 77,000
Virginia, 1,000,000
Washington, 787,000
West Virginia, 229,000
Wisconsin, 725,000
Wyoming, 56,000
Puerto Rico, 330,000
Source:
Statewide Fact Sheets: Higher Ed & Student Debt – Protect Borrowers
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