Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts on Tuesday rolled out a proposed rewrite of U.S. bankruptcy law, including a repeal of certain provisions of a 2005 law supported by 2020 Democratic presidential rival Joseph R. Biden.
Ms. Warren’s proposal would make it easier for debt-ridden Americans to seek bankruptcy. For example, it would reverse a provision in the 2005 bill that required people to seek pre-filing credit counseling.
“Thanks in part to the 2005 bankruptcy bill, our current system makes it far too hard for people in need to start the bankruptcy process so they can get back on their feet,” Ms. Warren said on her campaign website.
She also wants to make student loan debt dischargeable during the bankruptcy process, akin to other consumer debts, and make it easier for people to keep their homes and cars during the bankruptcy process, among other changes.
Ms. Warren also recalled her past advocacy efforts on the issue that she said culminated in a “lost” fight with the 2005 law, which made it harder for certain consumers to declare bankruptcy.
She said the financial industry “rallied its allies in Congress again and managed to push through another version of its bill in 2005 with overwhelming Republican support and some Democratic support.”
One of those Democrats was Mr. Biden, with whom Ms. Warren clashed on Capitol Hill during debate over the bill.
Mr. Biden’s team has said his support of the measure helped make a GOP-written bill fairer to middle-class families.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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