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Biden Announces $5B Student Loan Forgiveness for 74K Borrowers, Targeting Public Service Workers
(CTN News) – President Joe Biden stated on Friday that his government would cancel roughly $5 billion in student loans, affecting approximately 74,000 borrowers.
The majority of the forgiveness goes to 44,000 borrowers who have spent more than ten years in public service as teachers, nurses, firefighters, and other positions, while the remaining 30,000 borrowers have been in repayment for at least 20 years without receiving relief, according to the White House.
“From day one of my administration, I vowed to improve the student loan system so that a higher education provides Americans with opportunity and prosperity — not unmanageable burdens of student loan debt,” Biden said in a statement. “I won’t back down from using every tool at our disposal to get student loan borrowers the relief they need to reach their dreams.”
Biden’s Ongoing Efforts: Multiple Waves of Student Debt Relief Unveiled
The relief for public service workers builds on October’s efforts to make permanent changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness programme, making it easier for workers in education, healthcare, the military, law enforcement, and other fields to receive forgiveness after making on-time payments for ten years.
Following the Supreme Court’s rejection of Biden’s overall debt reduction plan, the Biden administration announced several rounds of student loan relief in various ways.
“We are continuing to pursue an alternative path to deliver student debt relief to as many borrowers as possible as quickly as possible,” Biden said in a statement. “I won’t back down from using every tool at our disposal to get student loan borrowers the relief they need to reach their dreams.”
Last week, the Education Department announced that it would begin cancelling student loans ahead of schedule for debtors enrolled in its Saving on a Valuable Education programme. That strategy targeted borrowers who had been paying for at least ten years and whose initial loans totaled $12,000 or less.
The SAVE plan was formed last year to replace the Revised Pay As You Earn Plan, which had been found unlawful by the US Supreme Court.