The Department of Education has announced that the Biden administration will be immediately forgiving another $39 billion in student loan debt for 804,000 borrowers.
According to a Department of Education fact sheet provided to PoliticusUSA:
The Department of Education (Department) today will begin notifying more than 804,000 borrowers that they have a total of $39 billion in Federal student loans that will be automatically discharged in the coming weeks. In total, the Biden-Harris Administration has approved more than $116.6 billion in student loan forgiveness for more than 3.4 million borrowers.
The forthcoming discharges are a result of fixes implemented by the Biden-Harris Administration to ensure all borrowers have an accurate count of the number of monthly payments that qualify toward forgiveness under income-driven repayment (IDR) plans. These fixes are part of the Department’s commitment to address historical failures in the administration of the Federal student loan program in which qualifying payments made under IDR plans that should have moved borrowers closer to forgiveness were not accounted for. Borrowers are eligible for forgiveness if they have accumulated the equivalent of either 20 or 25 years of qualifying months.
The total record of the Biden administration on forgiving student loans includes:
- $45 billion for 653,800 public servants through improvements to PSLF;
- $5 billion for 491,000 borrowers who have a total and permanent disability; and
- $22 billion for nearly 1.3 million borrowers who were cheated by their schools, saw their schools precipitously close, or are covered by related court settlements.
President Biden is correct. The only permanent solution to the student loan debt crisis that is financially crippling millions of Americans is congressional action.
However, as long as Republicans are in control of any part of Congress, there is no chance of a permanent legislative solution.
Biden seems to be doing everything he can through his use of executive authority and the implementation powers of the Executive Branch of the federal government.
The President is keeping his promise to student borrowers, even if the Supreme Court continues to make working people suffer.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
