Latest news with #HEROESAct
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Riley supporting loan forgiveness for volunteer first responders
WASHINGTON, FC (WIVT/WBGH) — Congressman Josh Riley is making sure volunteer heroes receive the respect and support that they deserve. Riley announced his co-sponsorship of the Helping Emergency Responders Overcome Emergency Situations, or HEROES, Act. The initiative is a bipartisan bill that would extend eligibility for the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to include volunteer firefighters and emergency medical responders. 'If you've put on the gear and answered the call, you shouldn't be buried in debt,' said Riley. 'The HEROES Act gives volunteer firefighters the respect they've earned by making their service count toward student loan forgiveness. They don't do it for the money—they do it because they love their communities and want to keep their neighbors safe.' According to Riley, the HEROES Act would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to recognize the service of unpaid emergency responders as qualifying public service under the PSLF program, making them eligible for federal student loan forgiveness after ten years of service and qualifying payments. Riley supporting loan forgiveness for volunteer first responders P. East Trading Corp recalls Salted Smoked Split Herring 'It Ain't Necessarily So' discusses American Black history A mix of sun and showers today News 34 Pizza Week returns Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump asks appeals court to keep tariffs in place or risk 'irreparable economic and national security harms'
The Trump administration on Monday argued to an appeals court that a lower court's invalidation of the president's "Liberation Day" tariffs was "illegal" and that that reimposing a halt to those duties would risk "irreparable economic and national security harms." The administration made these statements in a document filed Monday with the US Federal Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C., saying the court should keep Trump's tariffs in place while considering the president's wider legal arguments about his trade policies. The president is seeking a new legal victory after a three-judge panel at the US Court of International Trade (CIT) said in May that he lacked authority to impose his "Liberation Day" duties under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act (IEEPA). That decision was temporarily put on hold by the appeals court, pending further arguments. The appeals court could issue a decision at any time either keeping the tariffs in place or putting them back on hold, pending the outcome of the administration's appeal. The argument made in favor of keeping them in place is that reimposing the CIT's injunction that invalidated the tariffs would risk "irreparable economic and national security harms," according to the court document filed Monday. "The injunction unilaterally diminishes America's bargaining position during sensitive trade negotiations, encouraging other countries to hold our nation hostage," the administration said. The CIT's decision, it said, usurped political choices, putting the judiciary in a central role in managing foreign negotiations, the national economy, and national security. In addition, the administration said, it would likely prevail over the lower court's ruling on appeal because the lower court misapplied the text of the IEEPA. That court's interpretation of the law would "unnaturally cabin" the president's tariff authority, the administration said. The CIT ruled that the president lacked power under IEEPA to impose the duties, saying "any interpretation" of IEEPA "that delegates unlimited tariff authority is unconstitutional." The ruling touched on key issues in the underlying case that will likely determine the ultimate fate of the administration's tariffs. In its decision striking down many of Trump's tariffs it avoided directly applying the 'major questions doctrine,' which limits the authority of federal agencies to take action on issues of "vast economic and political significance" except where Congress has explicitly authorized the action. In 2022, the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 ruling dominated by the court's conservative majority, used the major questions doctrine to find that Biden's EPA lacked clear congressional authorization to regulate certain greenhouse gas emissions. A year later, the court held that Biden's secretary of education lacked clear authority under the HEROES Act to forgive $400 billion in student loan debt. Like the EPA case, the court said Biden's debt relief regulation was so major that it would need explicit authorization from Congress. Alexis Keenan is a legal reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow Alexis on X @alexiskweed. Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices Sign in to access your portfolio
Newsweek
13-05-2025
- General
- Newsweek
Student Loans Could Be Forgiven in Exchange for Volunteer Work
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The dwindling ranks of first responder volunteers would be boosted if those giving up their time were eligible for student loan forgiveness, according to a Democratic congressman. New York Representative Dan Goldman has authored a bill allowing volunteer firefighters and EMTs to obtain federal student loan forgiveness after meeting certain criteria. He is calling the bill the Helping Emergency Responders Overcome Student Debt (HEROES) Act of 2025. Newsweek reached out to Goldman via email for comment. Why It Matters Volunteer firefighters account for 65 percent of all crews across the United States. Of all the fire departments registered in the U.S., 69.8 percent are wholly volunteer outfits, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. Just 9.6 percent were listed as career departments, with the others containing a mix of staff; 15.5 percent were "mostly volunteer," while 5.1 percent were "mostly career." But the number of volunteers has been steadily declining in a worrying national trend. Goldman hopes his HEROES Act loan forgiveness plan, if passed, will encourage more people to sign up as volunteers and stay with it long-term. Firefighters arrive to battle a blaze in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan on February 26, 2025. Firefighters arrive to battle a blaze in the West Village neighborhood of Manhattan on February 26, To Know Some 90.7 percent of fire departments in New York are defined as volunteer departments, with just 4.2 percent listed as career departments by the U.S. Fire Administration. The remaining percentage comprises departments that say they are a mix of the two. But fewer people are signing up as firefighter volunteers. New York State Assemblyman Bill Conrad told the BBC last year that since the late 1990s, "we've seen a 32 percent decrease in the amount of volunteering. It's a state-wide problem, and what's also shocking is that the amount of calls has gone up 29 percent." John D'Alessandro, a volunteer firefighter in Saratoga County and the secretary of the Firefighters Association of the State of New York, told Spectrum News 1 that there were around 120,000 volunteers across the state 20 years ago, whereas today that number stands at just 80,000. This is despite the increasing volume of calls, he said. Goldman's bill seeks to expand the existing Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which already offers student loan forgiveness to various public service employees, such as career firefighters. But he believes volunteers who do the work for free across the U.S. should enjoy similar benefits after they've provided a decade of service and 120 qualifying payments. He told Spectrum News 1: "This would both recognize [volunteers'] public service by giving them a benefit that other public service officials get. It would also help recruit and retain volunteer firefighters so that the smaller fire departments that rely on them have enough people to deal with emergencies when they pop up." A cost estimate has not yet been revealed. D'Alessandro, who supports Goldman's bill, argues it would actually represent value for money in the Empire State by investing in the volunteers who save New York taxpayers "$3.8 billion a year just in salaries and benefits alone." The student loan forgiveness plan is already available to millions of people, including veterans and serving members of the military. What People Are Saying Congressman Dan Goldman, in a statement: "Volunteer firefighters and EMTs risk their lives every day to keep us safe, yet they're too often denied the recognition and support granted to other public servants. As the number of volunteer firefighters and EMTs continues to decline, we must prioritize the first responders who keep communities across our city, state, and country safe. Those who put their lives on the line deserve nothing less than the full support and resources afforded to all public servants." A spokesperson for the Firefighters Association of the State of New York (FASNY), in a statement: "One of the biggest challenges facing volunteer response agencies is the critical need to attract new members. Including volunteer firefighters and EMS personnel in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program would be an effective addition to their recruitment toolbox. It would also assist them in retaining existing volunteers, who often work several jobs in addition to volunteering. We commend Congressman Goldman for recognizing the value of volunteer first responders and for his efforts to support them." What Happens Next The bill is currently in the earliest stages on Capitol Hill and is now set to wind its way through the legislative process as lawmakers debate whether to implement the proposals.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Opinion - The Democrats' hypocritical constitutional crisis
The U.S. Court of Appeals just averted a constitutional crisis — Democrats should be relieved. That it came from blocking yet another attempt by former President Joe Biden to shift billions in debt from college students to the general taxpayer should make no difference to those with such acute constitutional concerns. Right? On Feb. 18, the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Biden's Education Department had exceeded its authority in attempting to shift college debt on a scale similar to that provided by Biden's initial 2022 massive college debt shift. In 2023, the Supreme Court had ruled against Biden's effort to permanently cancel up to $430 billion in loan debt for as many as 43 million borrowers under the HEROES Act. Undeterred, Biden sought multiple times to stretch other laws to shift college debt. By the time he left the White House, he was trying to cancel $184 billion in debt owed to taxpayers by approximately 5 million borrowers. So to recap, there was a definitive Supreme Court ruling followed by repeated attempts by a president to circumvent it. The judicial branch determined and the executive branch ignored it. Were the Biden-Harris administration still in office, there's no reason to believe — based on repeated prior attempts — that the executive branch would not still be ignoring the judicial branch. If ever there were the makings of constitutional crisis, this would seem to have it. For weeks, Democrats have been echoing the mantra of 'constitutional crisis' over the Trump administration's DOGE efforts to cut spending, personnel, and regulations. However, there is no Democrat roar of approval here. In fact, the silence is deafening. Democrats could also be cheering the avoidance of fiscal and economic crises with the appeals court ruling. Biden's debt shift from college borrowers to general taxpayers would have meant adding billions more to a burgeoning budget deficit. And had that debt been shifted, it would have amounted to a windfall to borrowers who assuredly would have spent some or all it, further adding to price pressures that have been sizzling since Biden took office in 2021. Strangely, Democrats are not cheering the avoiding of these crises, either. When Biden first announced his mammoth college debt shift, Democrats cheered. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called it 'one of the biggest acts of consumer debt relief in American history.' In April 2024, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) applauded Biden's attempts to circumvent the judicial decision through executive action, saying 'the president is heeding Congress's call and Democrats will continue to be relentless in doing everything we can to lower costs and make college more affordable.' That the president was using executive action — not seeking legislation from Congress — then, despite the nation's highest court having blocked the executive branch's earlier attempt did not bother Democrats. That the president's attempted circumvention of the judicial decision and legislation to shift debt to the general taxpayer from college borrowers also did not bother Democrats — despite only 38 percent of Americans having earned a college degree. This at a time when the Biden administration was running up $7.5 trillion in deficits over fiscal 2021 through 2024. Yet they decry as fiscal calamity the extension of Republicans' 2017 tax cuts that are simply an extension of current policy. Democrats were unbothered by the president's unilateral executive action to provide a financial windfall to borrowers, even as the withering inflation of the Biden-Harris era was savaging taxpayers. For years, the left's overarching talking point on the subject of President Trump has been 'crisis.' Today, they declare that he is producing a constitutional crisis. They said he was 'an existential threat to our democracy' and a 'fascist' in 2024. The truth is that Democrats can see no crisis unless they can attribute it to Trump. They see no crisis in trying to increase government, federal spending, federal deficits, and federal debt — only in Trump's attempts to decrease them. Amazingly, Democrats missed all the crises — constitutional, fiscal and economic — that Biden created by attempting to circumvent the judiciary with his college debt chicanery. Democrats' copious tears over the Constitution are strictly crocodilian. They are blatantly partisan, utterly hypocritical and thoroughly exhausted of efficacy from years of overuse. The real crisis that Democrats understand all too well is their own lack of an agenda outside of opposition to Trump and a defense of the unsustainable status quo of big government, big spending, high taxes, and more deficits and debt. J.T. Young is the author of 'Unprecedented Assault: How Big Government Unleashed America's Socialist Left.' He has over three decades' experience working in Congress, the Department of Treasury, the Office of Management, and Budget, and representing a Fortune 20 company. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
26-02-2025
- Business
- The Hill
The Democrats' hypocritical constitutional crisis
The U.S. Court of Appeals just averted a constitutional crisis — Democrats should be relieved. That it came from blocking yet another attempt by former President Joe Biden to shift billions in debt from college students to the general taxpayer should make no difference to those with such acute constitutional concerns. Right? On Feb. 18, the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Biden's Education Department had exceeded its authority in attempting to shift college debt on a scale similar to that provided by Biden's initial 2022 massive college debt shift. In 2023, the Supreme Court had ruled against Biden's effort to permanently cancel up to $430 billion in loan debt for as many as 43 million borrowers under the HEROES Act. Undeterred, Biden sought multiple times to stretch other laws to shift college debt. By the time he left the White House, he was trying to cancel $184 billion in debt owed to taxpayers by approximately 5 million borrowers. So to recap, there was a definitive Supreme Court ruling followed by repeated attempts by a president to circumvent it. The judicial branch determined and the executive branch ignored it. Were the Biden-Harris administration still in office, there's no reason to believe — based on repeated prior attempts — that the executive branch would not still be ignoring the judicial branch. If ever there were the makings of constitutional crisis, this would seem to have it. For weeks, Democrats have been echoing the mantra of 'constitutional crisis' over the Trump administration's DOGE efforts to cut spending, personnel, and regulations. However, there is no Democrat roar of approval here. In fact, the silence is deafening. Democrats could also be cheering the avoidance of fiscal and economic crises with the appeals court ruling. Biden's debt shift from college borrowers to general taxpayers would have meant adding billions more to a burgeoning budget deficit. And had that debt been shifted, it would have amounted to a windfall to borrowers who assuredly would have spent some or all it, further adding to price pressures that have been sizzling since Biden took office in 2021. Strangely, Democrats are not cheering the avoiding of these crises, either. When Biden first announced his mammoth college debt shift, Democrats cheered. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called it 'one of the biggest acts of consumer debt relief in American history.' In April 2024, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) applauded Biden's attempts to circumvent the judicial decision through executive action, saying 'the president is heeding Congress's call and Democrats will continue to be relentless in doing everything we can to lower costs and make college more affordable.' That the president was using executive action — not seeking legislation from Congress — then, despite the nation's highest court having blocked the executive branch's earlier attempt did not bother Democrats. That the president's attempted circumvention of the judicial decision and legislation to shift debt to the general taxpayer from college borrowers also did not bother Democrats — despite only 38 percent of Americans having earned a college degree. This at a time when the Biden administration was running up $7.5 trillion in deficits over fiscal 2021 through 2024. Yet they decry as fiscal calamity the extension of Republicans' 2017 tax cuts that are simply an extension of current policy. Democrats were unbothered by the president's unilateral executive action to provide a financial windfall to borrowers, even as the withering inflation of the Biden-Harris era was savaging taxpayers. For years, the left's overarching talking point on the subject of President Trump has been ' crisis.' Today, they declare that he is producing a constitutional crisis. They said he was 'an existential threat to our democracy ' and a ' fascist ' in 2024. The truth is that Democrats can see no crisis unless they can attribute it to Trump. They see no crisis in trying to increase government, federal spending, federal deficits, and federal debt — only in Trump's attempts to decrease them. Amazingly, Democrats missed all the crises — constitutional, fiscal and economic — that Biden created by attempting to circumvent the judiciary with his college debt chicanery. Democrats' copious tears over the Constitution are strictly crocodilian. They are blatantly partisan, utterly hypocritical and thoroughly exhausted of efficacy from years of overuse. The real crisis that Democrats understand all too well is their own lack of an agenda outside of opposition to Trump and a defense of the unsustainable status quo of big government, big spending, high taxes, and more deficits and debt. J.T. Young is the author of 'Unprecedented Assault: How Big Government Unleashed America's Socialist Left.' He has over three decades' experience working in Congress, the Department of Treasury, the Office of Management, and Budget, and representing a Fortune 20 company.
