The One-Minute Meeting

This is an important week for 40 million Americans who owe almost a half-trillion dollars in student loans that the U.S. government is willing to forgive … if the Supreme Court allows it. For some people, it could mean debts of up to $20,000 lifted from their accounts. Six states took the Biden administration to court saying the president does not have the authority to forgive student debts. They say the authority the president points to was meant to help during a war or other national emergency. If the court does not agree with the Biden administration, then borrowers could be paying on their loan balances again before summer.

As Slate notes, “About one in six adults in America holds federal student loan debt. A typical undergraduate finishes school with nearly $25,000 of debt, which takes an average of 20 years to pay back.”

We will learn more this week about a drug-resistant stomach infection that has shown up in more than 20 states. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will brief medical officials on Tuesday about the outbreak of shigellosis. In a normal year, close to a half million Americans are infected with the stomach bug. The antibiotics that usually work to relieve the symptoms don’t work against the strain that is spreading now.

Developers are keeping an eye on an idea that is not widespread enough yet to be called a “movement,” but it is interesting. As you know, some shopping malls have hit on hard times and the newest idea is to turn part of them into apartments. Some of the developments have built really tiny apartments over retail shops and restaurants and, because the homes are so small, they can be rented for way below usual apartment prices. Some lawmakers are pushing to make it easier to convert vacant strip malls into housing, too. See a video of one such project.