CNBC | Jaden Urbi

Outstanding education debt has outpaced credit card and auto debt. The average college graduate leaves school $30,000 in the red today, up from $10,000 in the 1990s. Every day, 3,000 borrowers go into default. Which proposals come to fruition remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: As discontent with the current system remains, discussions about changing it will, too, wear on.

A fresh start

U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez & U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders on stage at Bernie Sanders Rally "Bernie's Back" in Queensbridge Park. She endorses him for President of USA. Lev Radin | LightRocket | Getty Images

Most people struggling with student loans probably didn't imagine debt forgiveness could be in their future. Now, leading Democratic presidential candidates are calling for such a reset. Sen. Bernie Sanders has proposed wiping out the country's $1.6 trillion outstanding student loan tab. Essentially, all borrowers would be freed from their debt. "This is truly a revolutionary proposal," Sanders told The Washington Post. Under Sen. Elizabeth Warren's plan, borrowers with household incomes of less than $100,000 would get $50,000 of their student debt forgiven. People who earn between $100,000 and $250,000 would be eligible for forgiveness on a sliding scale – that $50,000 in debt relief drops by $1 for every $3 a person earns over $100,000. And those who earn more than $250,000 would be ineligible for debt forgiveness. At a recent campaign event, Sen. Kamala Harris hinted that she'd be rolling out a plan soon to forgive the student loan debt of families who earn less than $100,000 a year. Last month, a senior government official appointed by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos resigned, saying the current student loan system is "fundamentally broken" and calling for billions of dollars in debt to be forgiven. A. Wayne Johnson proposes to forgive $50,000 in student debt for all borrowers, about $925 billion. "It's the first Republican support for widespread student loan forgiveness," said Mark Kantrowitz, a higher education expert. "That makes it a bipartisan issue." Johnson argued last week at the American Enterprise Institute that his student debt cancellation plan was rooted in fiscal conservatism.

Higher Education Act