CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Nueces County employees will have to dip back into their own pockets to pay off their student loans. The county decided to temporarily pause its student loan repayment program for all workers.
The incentive was initially presented in December 2019 to encourage employees to pursue higher education.
“We encourage our employees to get an education and to further their education, but also to move up in different positions with that same education," Nueces County Judge Connie Scott said, "The more training and education that our employees have, the better off the county is.
But due to county-wide budget cuts, they’ve decided to put a pause on helping their employees pay back Sally Mae.
Scott mentioned that Nueces County had to decide on keeping their workers or eliminating funding for things that weren't necessary.
"This was a benefit to some of our employees, but we weren't considering to drop them, so this had to go," Scott said.
The county says it initially put $130,000 aside for the program. Each employee received up to $1,300 annually to help with their repayments. The temporary pause is expected to last a year, but that could change with the quick flip of a coin.
Scott added if the county has another budget cycle like the most recent, then bringing back the student loan repayment program could possibly take longer if the county's money isn't in good standing.
Other departments, including law enforcement, were also involved in the budget cuts. With student loans on the minds of millions of Americans, the hope is that Nueces County can repair its own wallet, to help stretch the pockets of its employees.
The county says they will discuss during the next budget cycle whether or not to bring the student loan reimbursement incentive back.
