The group that helped draft the report is among the most prominent across higher education and includes the American Association of Community Colleges, the American Council on Education, the Association of American Universities, the Center for American Progress, the Education Trust, NASPA, the National Association of College Admission Counseling, National College Attainment Network, National Association of College and University Business Officers, and The Institute for College Access and Success. Together, they developed a series of themes on potential policy changes—with dozens of recommendations in each area—to ensure a more comprehensive and forgiving federal student loan system. They include:

Making income-driven repayment plans far easier to access, while ensuring students have more flexible options for repayments
Providing a more robust system to help borrowers understand and make payments
Forging strategies that help struggling borrowers instead of penalizing them
Strengthening the positions of low-income borrowers

In the proposal, there are highly progressive ideas, including lowering interest rates, wiping out origination fees and negative amortization and having only "three easy-to-understand" payment plans: income-driven, a 10-year plan and a 25-year extended plan for those who owe $30,000 or more on direct loans. They also are pitching a one-time reset for all borrowers who are in default. All of this is being developed because there has been no action for more than a decade.

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The priceless plan from 22 higher ed groups that might trump $1.7T student loan fix

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