Higher Ed Policy Roundup: Vol. 6 - Issue 13

The Education Department (ED) released data for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program outlining the performance of the program between November 2020 and May 2022. According to the data, more than $9.5 billion in forgiveness was provided to over 146,000 borrowers who applied for forgiveness through PSLF, Temporary Expanded PSLF and the temporary PSLF waiver. Additionally, of the 146,000 borrowers who received forgiveness, 128,000 did so through the temporary PSLF waiver. Recall that, in early October, ED announced the temporary PSLF waiver which was intended to overhaul the PSLF program and extend relief to additional student borrowers who had not previously qualified for forgiveness. 

Former students of four for-profit law schools will have their loans forgiven under borrower defense to repayment rules.

About two million borrowers are about to get a new student loan servicer.

Black women have disproportionately struggled to repay student loans amid the pandemic, according to a new report by the Center for Responsible Lending.

The following bills have been recently introduced for consideration by the 117th Congress (2021-2022):

S. 4483 – Debt Cancellation Accountability Act [Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL)] would require the Department of Education to obtain a congressional appropriation to pay for borrowers’ debt forgiveness discharge if the total amount is greater than one million dollars.

H.R. 8098 – [Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO-4)] would remove qualifying payment eligibility for PSLF to borrowers of federal student loans during any period that their adjusted annual gross income exceeds $173,000.