President Obama is preparing to take executive action on Monday to help millions of Americans struggling to pay off student loans, The New York Times reported.

According to the Times, an anonymous White House official said that the president is scheduled to announce "new steps to further lift the burden of crushing student loan debt."

Obama allegedly plans to expand the reach of the 2010 "Pay As You Earn" program that restricted borrower's repayments to 10 percent of their monthly income. The expansion will allow for previously ineligible students -- those who borrowed before October 2007 or stopped borrowing by October 2011 -- to receive such relief. However, borrowers will not be able to experience the new benefits until December 2015 at the earliest.

"This is commencement season, a time for graduates and their families to celebrate one of the greatest achievements of a young person's life," Obama said during his weekly address this Saturday. "But for many graduates, it also means feeling trapped by a whole lot of student loan debt."

As noted by Politico, federal student loan debt has topped an alarming $1 trillion. Economists have expressed worry that the debt is having a significant impact on spending and home buying.

Obama is also taking steps to decrease the likelihood of borrowers defaulting on their loans by renegotiating contracts with federal student loan servicers. The Treasury and Education departments will work along with tax-preparation firms, such as H&R Block and Intuit (makers of TurboTax), to raise awareness of repayment options and tax credits for college tuition.

In addition, the president is calling on Congress to help introduce legislation that will tackle federal student loan debt. Obama plans to throw his full support and influence behind a bill sponsored by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who plans to ease the burden of student debt by refinancing loans at lower interest rates -- a measure already put in to place for new borrowers in 2013.

Warren's proposal will likely encounter opposition from Republicans in Congress since the bill will have to be financed by raising taxes on the wealthy.

According to Yahoo News, the president is also scheduled to take questions about student loans on Tumblr this Tuesday.

Related