In a statement revealing the proposed expansion of student loan forgiveness programs, the Department of Education said it expected to finalize a full plan by Nov. 1, with the goal of putting the changes into effect by July 1 at the latest. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in the statement that the proposed changes “will protect borrowers and save them time, money and frustration and hold their colleges accountable for wrongdoing.” “We are committed to fixing a broken system. If a borrower qualifies for student loan relief, it shouldn’t take much paperwork or a law degree to get it,” Cardona said in a statement. “Student loan benefits also shouldn’t be so difficult to obtain that borrowers never actually benefit from them.” The Biden administration has so far canceled nearly $26 billion for more than 1.3 million borrowers since taking office, many of which included loans taken out by borrowers who were cheated out of college or dropped out before completing their education. their. Changes proposed for the federal student loan system Wednesday would make it easier for borrowers to file and pursue claims of predatory practices by colleges. The proposed rules would also help students who enrolled in schools 180 days before school closed and who did not complete their education more easily repay loans. In a statement, James Kvaal, the undersecretary for education, said “borrowers had to follow narrow rules and an unduly complicated system” when trying to cancel loans they should be able to repay easily. “Worse, borrowers whose schools lied to them cannot sue because restrictive and unfair arbitration requirements and class action bans were imposed on them by their colleges,” Kvaal said. “Borrowers shouldn’t have to jump through hoops to get the relief they deserve.” Since October, the Biden administration has approved about $8.1 billion in student loan relief for 145,000 borrowers after implementing changes to Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), which grants loan forgiveness to those who serve full-time in certain public service positions . The changes to PSLF include a waiver that waived some program requirements and granted borrowers credit for loan cancellation, regardless of the type of federal loan. The exemption will expire at the end of October. Wednesday’s announcement proposes a permanent change to PSLF that would allow more payments to qualify for the program, including partial, one-time and late payments. It would also allow certain types of deferments and forbearances to count toward PSLF and create a formal review process for applicants denied access to the program. Watch Live: Biden Remarks on Historic US Bailout Relief Black Women Demand Biden, Harris Bring Brittney Griner Home Other proposals include eliminating loan-to-capitalization rates for borrowers in certain circumstances, making it easier for permanently disabled borrowers to qualify for loan forgiveness, and giving borrowers an easier path to loan forgiveness if they were falsely certified as ineligible for a loan. The Biden administration has also floated the idea of canceling the $10,000 per borrower amid calls from progressives to cancel $50,000 or more per borrower. In May, deputy press secretary Vedant Patel said “no decisions have been made,” but sources told The Hill in late April that the president had settled on that number and was working out the details of providing such debt relief.
