Currently, the federal government charges tax on credit card debt forgiveness or settlements. In these times, where individual debt is crushing and many people spend most of the their income on bills, the government needs to stop trying to get their cut. This money is then free to be spent within the economy which will help maintain jobs.
in addition, the government should implement a program where any bank receiving a "bailout" must put funds directly towards forgiving the balances of debtors, specifically in the order, principal, fees, interest. In this way, federal taxpayer funds will be used to directly benefit taxpayers.