Student Debt and the Class of 2016 is the Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS') twelfth annual report on the student loan debt of recent graduates from four-year colleges, documenting the rise in student loan debt and variation among states as well as colleges. State averages for debt at graduation ranged from a low of $20,000 (Utah) to a high of $36,350 (New Hampshire), and new graduates' likelihood of having debt varied from 43 percent (Utah) to 77 percent (West Virginia). In 17 states, average debt was more than $30,000. Many of the same states appear at the high and low ends of the spectrum as in previous years. High-debt states remain concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest, and low-debt states are mainly in the West. At the college level, average debt at graduation covers an enormous range, from $4,600 to $59,100. This report includes federal policy recommendations to address rising student debt and reduce debt burdens, including the collection of more comprehensive college-level data. Other recommendations focus on reducing the need to borrow, keeping loan payments manageable, improving consumer information, strengthening college accountability, and protecting private loan borrowers. [For "Student Debt and the Class of 2015. 11th Annual Report" see ED570962.]