Why Public Service Loan Forgiveness Is So Unforgiving
6 years, 2 months ago

Why Public Service Loan Forgiveness Is So Unforgiving

NPR  

Why Public Service Loan Forgiveness Is So Unforgiving Enlarge this image toggle caption Cameron Pollack/NPR Cameron Pollack/NPR Update: Many student borrowers have responded to this story by sharing stories of their struggles with PSLF. This is the story of Seth Frotman, the mangling of the program known as Public Service Loan Forgiveness, and what it says about America's student loan industry. And these servicers, Frotman found, with a big assist from the Education Department, were wreaking havoc with the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Like Frotman's team, GAO found evidence of student borrowers thinking they were on the path to loan forgiveness, only to "find out months and potentially years later that don't qualify and that not actually eligible for forgiveness," says GAO's Melissa Emrey-Arras, who led the investigation.

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History of this topic

We asked experts to grade Biden's job on education. They gave it a C average
12 hours, 4 minutes ago

We asked experts to grade Biden's job on education. They gave it a C average

NPR  

We asked experts to grade Biden's job on education. Sponsor Message The grades: No A's, two F's and a lot of in-between Of the 14 experts NPR consulted for this wholly unscientific poll, the Biden administration got no A's, a bunch of B's, two hedgie B-/C+'s, two C's, two D's, two F's and one "incomplete" for work left unfinished. "It's …

Biden’s parting gift: Student loan debt relief
3 days, 12 hours ago

Biden’s parting gift: Student loan debt relief

Politico  

Education Department officials said that “many” borrowers had already been notified that they received relief, and some will be notified in the coming days. Key context: More than 5 million borrowers have had about $183.6 billion in student loans forgiven since Biden took office, according to Education Department officials. During Trump’s first administration, then-Education Secretary Betsy DeVos denied nearly 130,000 …

More student loans canceled in Biden’s final round of forgiveness before leaving office
3 weeks, 6 days ago

More student loans canceled in Biden’s final round of forgiveness before leaving office

The Hindu  

The Biden administration is canceling federal student loans for another 55,000 workers through an existing program known as Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Under Mr. Biden, the Education Department loosened the rules for Public Service Loan Forgiveness, which previously had a 99% rejection rate amid burdensome rules and widespread confusion over eligibility requirements. With the latest round of relief, Mr. Biden …

Biden scraps plans to cancel widespread student loan debt
3 weeks, 6 days ago

Biden scraps plans to cancel widespread student loan debt

Salon  

The Biden administration has withdrawn its proposals for large-scale student loan relief programs, closing the door on mass loan forgiveness in the remaining weeks of his term. The U.S. Department of Education is rescinding two of its major student loan proposals, which would have considered some amount of loan forgiveness for at least 38 million Americans, according to Politico. In …

What a Trump presidency might mean for student loan forgiveness
2 months ago

What a Trump presidency might mean for student loan forgiveness

NPR  

What a Trump presidency might mean for student loan forgiveness toggle caption Moor Studio/Getty Images Millions of federal student loan borrowers are facing uncertainty — or, rather, even more uncertainty — after last week's presidential election. Biden's signature student loan repayment plan, the Saving on a Valuable Education Plan, slashed borrowers' monthly payments while also preventing interest from growing what …

My Family And I Were Trapped In A Financial Prison. Then I Received A 6-Word Letter That Changed My Life.
3 months, 2 weeks ago

My Family And I Were Trapped In A Financial Prison. Then I Received A 6-Word Letter That Changed My Life.

Huff Post  

Three generations of women: the author in the middle, her mother on the left and her oldest daughter on the right. Your student loans have been forgiven.” Thanks to the Biden-Harris administration’s student loan forgiveness program, my monumental debt was erased. Biden’s student loan forgiveness didn’t just erase a number from my balance sheet — it gave me back my …

Biden administration cancels another $1.2bn in student loans for public service workers
5 months, 4 weeks ago

Biden administration cancels another $1.2bn in student loans for public service workers

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The Biden administration is cancelling an additional $1.2bn in student …

Biden administration cancels another $1.2 billion in student loans for public service workers
5 months, 4 weeks ago

Biden administration cancels another $1.2 billion in student loans for public service workers

Associated Press  

The Biden administration is cancelling an additional $1.2 billion in student loans for borrowers who work in public service through changes to an existing forgiveness program. The relief for roughly 35,000 borrowers was announced Thursday by the Education Department and made through changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which benefits workers such as teachers, nurses and firefighters. “These …

35,000 more public servants see their student loan balances reduced or erased
5 months, 4 weeks ago

35,000 more public servants see their student loan balances reduced or erased

NPR  

35,000 more public servants see their student loan balances reduced or erased toggle caption LA Johnson/NPR Thousands more public servants will soon see their student loan balances reduced or erased, the Biden administration announced on Thursday. “This is relief that will bring real change in lives, and marks another win for this Administration’s relentless and unapologetic work to fix a …

Granderson: Biden tries to forgive student loans as costs surge
9 months, 1 week ago

Granderson: Biden tries to forgive student loans as costs surge

LA Times  

Sure, Nashville is lovely. Last summer, the Supreme Court ruled that he couldn’t use the HEROES Act — passed after 9/11, just as the Iraq War was escalating — to forgive federal student loan debt for roughly 20 million borrowers. However, the most prevalent response to Biden’s attempt to forgive student loan debt is summed up in this quote from …

Republican states file lawsuit challenging Biden’s student loan repayment plan
9 months, 2 weeks ago

Republican states file lawsuit challenging Biden’s student loan repayment plan

Associated Press  

TOPEKA, Kan. — A group of Republican-led states is suing the Biden administration to block a new student loan repayment plan that provides a faster path to cancellation and lower monthly payments for millions of borrowers. It argues that the new plan is no different from Biden’s first attempt at student loan cancellation, which the Supreme Court rejected last year. …

78,000 more public workers are getting student loans canceled through Biden administration changes
9 months, 3 weeks ago

78,000 more public workers are getting student loans canceled through Biden administration changes

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — Another 78,000 Americans are getting their federal student loans canceled through a program that helps teachers, nurses, firefighters and other public servants, the Biden administration announced Thursday. The Education Department is canceling the borrowers’ loans because they reached 10 years of payments while working in public service, making them eligible for relief under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness …

Student loan forgiveness isn't dead yet, and other takeaways from 2023
1 year ago

Student loan forgiveness isn't dead yet, and other takeaways from 2023

NPR  

Student loan forgiveness isn't dead yet, and other takeaways from 2023 Enlarge this image Margaret Flatley for NPR Margaret Flatley for NPR Federal student loan borrowers have had quite a year. Margaret Flatley for NPR Many, perhaps most borrowers will tell you that 2023 was the year the idea of "student loan forgiveness" died atop the mahogany bench of the …

Borrowers reassess their budgets as student loan payments resume after pandemic
1 year, 3 months ago

Borrowers reassess their budgets as student loan payments resume after pandemic

Live Mint  

Millions of Americans must start repaying their federal student loans again in October, with monthly payments averaging hundreds of dollars. “If they were forgiven out of the blue, I'd be ecstatic.” The Supreme Court in July rejected a plan by President Joe Biden's administration to wipe away $400 billion in student loan debt. On an earnings call last month, the …

Biden is trying again on student loan forgiveness. Here’s where the process stands
1 year, 3 months ago

Biden is trying again on student loan forgiveness. Here’s where the process stands

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — President Joe Biden is making another attempt at student loan cancellation after the Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that his administration couldn’t forgive $400 billion in student loan debt using a 2003 law called the HEROES Act. “The HEA gives the Secretary of Education the authority to ‘enforce, pay, compromise, waive, or release any right, title, …

Biden’s student loan forgiveness program was rejected by the Supreme Court. Here’s what borrowers need to know
1 year, 6 months ago

Biden’s student loan forgiveness program was rejected by the Supreme Court. Here’s what borrowers need to know

CNN  

Washington CNN — The Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program Friday, blocking millions of borrowers from receiving up to $20,000 in federal student debt relief, just months before student loan payments are set to restart after a yearslong pause. Ways borrowers can still seek debt relief The Biden administration has made it easier for many …

What should borrowers do now that Biden’s college debt forgiveness plan is dead?
1 year, 6 months ago

What should borrowers do now that Biden’s college debt forgiveness plan is dead?

LA Times  

Student debt relief advocates gather outside the Supreme Court on Feb. 27 ahead of arguments over President Biden’s loan forgiveness plan. President Biden plans to do just that; the White House said Friday that the Education Department started developing a new rule under the Higher Education Act “aimed at opening an alternative path to debt relief for as many borrowers …

Supreme Court could soon rule on Biden’s student loan forgiveness program. Here’s what borrowers need to know
1 year, 7 months ago

Supreme Court could soon rule on Biden’s student loan forgiveness program. Here’s what borrowers need to know

CNN  

Washington CNN — Millions of borrowers may learn soon whether they could receive up to $20,000 in debt relief under President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program. The forgiveness program, which is estimated to cost about $400 billion, would fulfill Biden’s campaign promise to cancel some student loan debt and would delight progressives, as well as put some borrowers in …

The US has approved $42 billion in loan forgiveness for public service workers. Here’s what to know
1 year, 8 months ago

The US has approved $42 billion in loan forgiveness for public service workers. Here’s what to know

Associated Press  

The U.S. has approved more than $42 billion in federal student loan debt forgiveness for more than 615,000 borrowers in the past 18 months as part of a program aimed at getting more people to work in public service jobs, the U.S. Department of Education said this week. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program is open to teachers, librarians, nurses, …

Student loan forgiveness: Why the idea of it makes some people boiling mad.
1 year, 10 months ago

Student loan forgiveness: Why the idea of it makes some people boiling mad.

Slate  

The Supreme Court is expected to focus its decision in Biden v. Nebraska, the student loan forgiveness challenge, on the “major questions doctrine,” a contested and somewhat obscure rule that the court has recently embraced to limit the authority of executive agencies. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar was arguing for the Department of Justice on behalf of the president’s plan when …

More relief for student borrowers could come under new rules
2 years ago

More relief for student borrowers could come under new rules

LA Times  

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, shown testifying on Capitol Hill in September 2021, unveiled more details Tuesday on a plan to lower monthly student loan payments for many borrowers. The U.S. Department of Education laid out a proposed rule Tuesday to simplify and expand eligibility for its income-driven repayment programs, which tie monthly payments on federal student loans to the borrower’s …

EXPLAINER: Where does student loan forgiveness stand?
2 years, 2 months ago

EXPLAINER: Where does student loan forgiveness stand?

Associated Press  

A federal appeals court in St. Louis has created another roadblock for President Joe Biden’s plan to provide millions of borrowers with up to $20,000 apiece in federal student-loan forgiveness. Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson, a Republican, said in a statement that the ruling “recognizes that this attempt to forgive over $400 billion in student loans threatens serious harm to …

US judge in Texas strikes down Biden loan-forgiveness plan
2 years, 2 months ago

US judge in Texas strikes down Biden loan-forgiveness plan

Associated Press  

A U.S. judge in Texas on Thursday blocked President Joe Biden’s plan to provide millions of borrowers with up to $20,000 apiece in federal student-loan forgiveness — a program that was already on hold as a federal appeals court in St. Louis considers a separate lawsuit by six states challenging it. The HEROES Act “does not provide the executive branch …

Student loan forgiveness application website goes live
2 years, 2 months ago

Student loan forgiveness application website goes live

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday officially kicked off the application process for his student debt cancellation program and announced that 8 million borrowers had already applied for loan relief during the federal government’s soft launch period over the weekend. “It means more than 8 million Americans are — starting this week — on their way to receiving life-changing …

Student loan forgiveness applications now open online. Here are the details
2 years, 3 months ago

Student loan forgiveness applications now open online. Here are the details

LA Times  

The U.S. Department of Education on Friday started accepting applications from federal student loan borrowers for up to $20,000 in debt forgiveness. The U.S. Department of Education officially opened the window Monday to applications for student loan debt relief, following a weekend test of the online application form. The weekend beta test was aimed at avoiding the problems the department …

Biden’s student-loan forgiveness test: Processing millions of applications
2 years, 3 months ago

Biden’s student-loan forgiveness test: Processing millions of applications

Live Mint  

WASHINGTON : The Biden administration is gearing up for a major test of the federal government’s bureaucracy: tens of millions of applications for student debt relief. Previous student loan programs have been marked by delays and confusion, such as a loan-forgiveness program for people with public-service jobs that the Biden administration overhauled last year, after the Education Department revealed that …

Biden administration scales back eligibility for student loan forgiveness. Here’s who’s affected
2 years, 3 months ago

Biden administration scales back eligibility for student loan forgiveness. Here’s who’s affected

LA Times  

The Biden administration reined in its pledge to forgive up to $20,000 in federal student loans Thursday, narrowing the types of loans eligible for relief. Initially, the administration said that qualified borrowers with these privately held loans could consolidate them into a federal direct loan and obtain debt relief. The Education Department “is assessing whether there are alternative pathways to …

How public service workers can get student loan forgiveness
2 years, 4 months ago

How public service workers can get student loan forgiveness

LA Times  

Student loan forgiveness is available to those who work 10 years in public service jobs. The basics of the program called Public Service Loan Forgiveness, or PSLF, seem clear: Government and nonprofit workers who make monthly payments on their federal loans for 10 years are eligible to have the rest of their debt wiped clean. More than 600,000 borrowers — …

Conservatives Throw A Fit Over Biden's Student Debt Forgiveness Plan
2 years, 4 months ago

Conservatives Throw A Fit Over Biden's Student Debt Forgiveness Plan

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING President Joe Biden’s announcement Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Education would cancel $10,000 to $20,000 in student debt for millions of people was good news to many who took out federal loans to go to school. Biden's student loan forgiveness plan may win Democrats some votes, but it fuels inflation, foots taxpayers with other people’s financial …

The road to student loan forgiveness
2 years, 4 months ago

The road to student loan forgiveness

LA Times  

On Wednesday, President Biden announced that $10,000 of student loan debt per borrower will be forgiven for individuals earning less than $125,000 annually. Pressure from the public — and fellow Democrats — to cancel student debt has been constant since Biden took office. At that point, then-President Trump had announced a pause on student loan payments due to the coronavirus …

What to know about public service loan forgiveness
2 years, 6 months ago

What to know about public service loan forgiveness

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — More than 145,000 U.S. borrowers have had the remainder of their student loan debt canceled through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, and officials say many more likely qualify. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, launched in 2007 to steer more graduates to public service, cancels the remainder of a borrower’s federal student loan debt after they …

Work at a school or nonprofit? You could erase student loans
2 years, 6 months ago

Work at a school or nonprofit? You could erase student loans

Associated Press  

NEW YORK — When Melissa Martinez applied to have her student loan debt forgiven more than a decade ago, the U.S. Department of Education told her she was ineligible. She wasn’t alone — according to new federal figures, more than 145,000 borrowers have had the remainder of their federal student loan debt canceled through a program for people who work …

After years of public service, some still can't claim student loan forgiveness
2 years, 7 months ago

After years of public service, some still can't claim student loan forgiveness

NPR  

After years of public service, some still can't claim student loan forgiveness Enlarge this image Delphine Lee/NPR Delphine Lee/NPR A short-lived program in the early 2000s allowed married couples to consolidate their student loans for a lower interest rate. Teachers, firefighters and government workers are clamoring to disentangle their student loans from those of their spouse in time to erase …

Where does student loan forgiveness stand? Borrowers wait anxiously on Biden
2 years, 8 months ago

Where does student loan forgiveness stand? Borrowers wait anxiously on Biden

LA Times  

Kayla Camacho took the advice she was given in high school: Enroll in the best school possible, regardless of the cost. — Marc Goldwein, Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget Supporters of debt cancellation want the president to go higher than $10,000, to ensure the break is granted automatically without an application process, and to remove the income cap, which …

Feds: Thousands may have student debt that should be erased
2 years, 8 months ago

Feds: Thousands may have student debt that should be erased

Associated Press  

Record-keeping failures by the federal government may have left thousands of Americans saddled with student debt that should have been automatically canceled through a benefit for low-income borrowers, according to a new federal study. In a scathing report released on Wednesday, the Government Accountability Office faulted the Education Department for sloppy oversight of its income-driven repayment program — a collection …

EXPLAINER: What’s behind changes in student loan forgiveness
3 years, 3 months ago

EXPLAINER: What’s behind changes in student loan forgiveness

Associated Press  

A student debt forgiveness program with notoriously complex eligibility rules is getting an overhaul from the Biden administration, with the intent of extending debt relief to thousands of public workers. The Education Department announced Wednesday that it will lift some rules for Public Service Loan Forgiveness while it works on permanent improvements through a rulemaking process. Borrowers with FFEL loans …

Troubled student loan forgiveness program gets an overhaul
3 years, 3 months ago

Troubled student loan forgiveness program gets an overhaul

Associated Press  

The Biden administration is temporarily relaxing the rules for a student loan forgiveness program that has been criticized for its notoriously complex requirements — a change that could offer debt relief to thousands of teachers, social workers, military members and other public servants. The Education Department said Wednesday it will drop some of the toughest requirements around Public Service Loan …

Troubled student loan forgiveness program gets an overhaul
3 years, 3 months ago

Troubled student loan forgiveness program gets an overhaul

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The Biden administration is moving …

What borrowers need to know about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness overhaul
3 years, 3 months ago

What borrowers need to know about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness overhaul

NPR  

What borrowers need to know about the Public Service Loan Forgiveness overhaul Enlarge this image toggle caption Joshua Roberts/Getty Images Joshua Roberts/Getty Images Zahra Nealy was in the shower, listening to the radio, when she heard NPR reporting on Friday that the U.S. Department of Education would use its authority to help borrowers and relax the rules of the troubled …

Military members promised student debt relief in exchange for ten years of public service say promise is often broken
3 years, 3 months ago

Military members promised student debt relief in exchange for ten years of public service say promise is often broken

CBS News  

Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program not living up to its name Student debt is a crushing burden on millions of Americans. Charles Olson – a Marine; Carson Sprott – Air Force; and in the Army: Heather Tregle, Jonathan Hirsch and Brandon Jones. Jonathan Hirsch, Carson Sprott, Heather Tregle, Brandon Jones and Charles Olson Lesley Stahl: How many of you in …

NPR Exclusive: Troubled Public Service Loan Forgiveness program will get overhaul
3 years, 3 months ago

NPR Exclusive: Troubled Public Service Loan Forgiveness program will get overhaul

NPR  

NPR Exclusive: Troubled Public Service Loan Forgiveness program will get overhaul Enlarge this image LA Johnson/NPR LA Johnson/NPR A troubled student debt relief program for teachers, police officers and other public service workers will soon get the makeover that borrowers have been demanding. According to the program's Education Department website, public service includes anyone working for "a U.S. federal, state, …

US eases student loan relief for those with disabilities
3 years, 9 months ago

US eases student loan relief for those with disabilities

Associated Press  

The U.S. Education Department is canceling student debt for more than 40,000 Americans who were previously granted loan forgiveness because of disabilities but later had their debt reinstated after they failed to submit certain paperwork, the agency announced Monday. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said borrowers with disabilities should not “put their health on the line” to submit earnings information. Alex …

Could Biden’s student loan freeze argue for bigger debt relief?
3 years, 11 months ago

Could Biden’s student loan freeze argue for bigger debt relief?

Al Jazeera  

The US government doesn’t expect to collect hundreds of billions of dollars from people who took out student loans, leading some to ask ‘Why not try to erase those debts now?’ Thanks to vagaries of the accounting world, Donald Trump’s administration had a chance in the final weeks of the presidential race to cancel more than $200 billion of student …

Trump administration suspends student loan payments through January
4 years, 1 month ago

Trump administration suspends student loan payments through January

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} Donald …

Report: Confusing rules deny loan forgiveness to students
5 years, 4 months ago

Report: Confusing rules deny loan forgiveness to students

Associated Press  

The vast majority of applications for a student loan forgiveness program are still being rejected, even after Congress set aside $700 million to temporarily expand it, according to a federal report. Congress approved the temporary funding last year after finding that only 1% of applicants for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness met narrow eligibility rules, often because they had certain …

Congress Promised Student Borrowers A Break. Education Dept. Rejected 99% Of Them
5 years, 4 months ago

Congress Promised Student Borrowers A Break. Education Dept. Rejected 99% Of Them

NPR  

Congress Promised Student Borrowers A Break. Ninety-nine percent of loan-forgiveness requests under that new Temporary Expanded Public Service Loan Forgiveness were rejected during the program's first year, from May 2018 to May 2019. In its rush to implement this expansion of Public Service Loan Forgiveness, the Education Department decided to require borrowers who believe they qualify for TEPSLF to first …

Lawmakers debate future of loan relief for public workers
5 years, 8 months ago

Lawmakers debate future of loan relief for public workers

Associated Press  

In 2007, the U.S. government made a promise to public service workers: Make 10 years of payments on their federal student loans and any remaining debt would be erased. The Trump administration and some Republican legislators see it as a lost cause, arguing that the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program is misguided and has proved too complicated for borrowers to …

'I Am Heartbroken': Your Letters About Public Service Loan Forgiveness
6 years, 2 months ago

'I Am Heartbroken': Your Letters About Public Service Loan Forgiveness

NPR  

'I Am Heartbroken': Your Letters About Public Service Loan Forgiveness Enlarge this image LA Johnson/NPR LA Johnson/NPR "Thank YOU," writes Cara Christensen, a first-grade teacher in Washington state who read NPR's deep dive into the troubled Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. PSLF offers the promise of loan forgiveness to nurses, teachers, first-responders and other student borrowers who work in public …

New Education Budget; Yale Discrimination Investigation; Faults In Loan Forgiveness
6 years, 3 months ago

New Education Budget; Yale Discrimination Investigation; Faults In Loan Forgiveness

NPR  

New Education Budget; Yale Discrimination Investigation; Faults In Loan Forgiveness Enlarge this image LA Johnson/NPR LA Johnson/NPR You're reading NPR's weekly roundup of education news. Report finds faults in student loan forgiveness program A new report from the Government Accountability Office finds that a popular student loan forgiveness program has been badly mismanaged. Education Data Shows 99% Of Applicants For …

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