We study the distributional consequences of student debt forgiveness in present value terms, accounting for differences in repayment behavior across the earnings distribution. Full or partial forgiveness is regressive because high earners took larger loans, but also because, for low earners, balances greatly overstate the benefits of debt cancellation. Consequently, forgiveness would benefit the top decile as much as the bottom three deciles combined. Enrolling households who would benefit from income-driven repayment is less expensive and distributes more funds to lower-income households.

中文翻译：

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学生贷款宽恕的分配效应

我们以现值形式研究学生债务减免的分配后果，解释了收入分配中还款行为的差异。全部或部分减免是倒退的，因为高收入者借了更多的贷款，但也因为对于低收入者来说，余额大大夸大了取消债务的好处。因此，宽恕对顶部十分之一的好处与底部三个十分之一的总和一样多。将受益于以收入为导向的还款的家庭纳入其中的成本更低，并且可以将更多资金分配给低收入家庭。