Student loan debt affects the life choices of young Americans. Tens of thousands of dollars in debt prevents or delays the average college graduate from getting married and starting a family, which is the institutional bedrock of American society and one of the primary indicators of membership in the Republican Party. Voters who are married, particularly those who also have children, are more likely to vote Republican than unmarried voters. Gallup concluded that “marital status remains one of the most reliable predictors of party identification.” //

The bipartisan Employer Participation in Repayment Act (S.460)—supported by Senator Mitch McConnell, as well as the entire Republican leadership, and 33 of the most conservative lawmakers in the Senate—would allow employers to contribute tax-free dollars towards paying down their employees’ student loans. They already can contribute—tax-free—up to $5,250 annually for workers who are still students; and this bill would expand the benefit to graduates. In total, the bill would save the federal government and taxpayers over $100 billion within this decade.

This is a free-market solution that does not expand the government’s power. Rather, it allows the private sector to help its employees. At the same time, it removes a serious financial barrier and would make it easier for Americans who graduated with student loan debt to start families. //

cosponsored the House’s version of the Senate bill, H.R.1043.