Student Loans

student loan debt, Student Loans

Student Loan Payment Pause Extended to 2022

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The Biden administration has announced that the moratorium on federal student loan payments would be extended through January 31, 2022. This announcement came just over a month before the pause was set to expire at the end of September. According to the Department of Education, this extension is the final one that will be issued.

The moratorium was first put in place in March 2020 after Congress passed the CARES Act. The moratorium paused payments through the end of September 2020, keeping all federal student loan interest rates at zero percent, affecting approximately 42 million federal borrowers. President Trump then issued an executive order to extend the student loan payment pause through January 2021. As soon as President Biden took office, he issued another executive order extending the pause through September 30, 2021.

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student loan debt, Student Loans

Biden Administration Cancels Additional $55.6 Million in Student Loan Debt

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The Biden Administration canceled an additional $55.6 million in student loans for 1,800 students who were found to be victims of fraud. This additional amount brings the total amount of student loan debt cancelled by the Biden administration to $1.5 trillion. 

Since entering office, President Biden has made it his mission to stand up for the thousands of students who were taken advantage of by for-profit colleges. This most recent effort was focused on students who attended Westwood College, Marinello Schools of Beauty, and the Court Reporting Institute. Previously, the administration had approved loan forgiveness for students who attended ITT Technical Institute, the American Career Institute and Corinthian College. This is the first time the Department of Education has approved loan forgiveness for students attending for-profit schools not including these three.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

Former ITT Tech Students Receive Debt Relief from Biden Administration

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The U.S. Department of Education announced Wednesday that 18,000 former ITT Technical Institute students who were found to be defrauded by the shuttered for-profit university will have their federal student loans cancelled in full. This move is a step in the right direction. The for-profit school closed permanently in 2016, leaving tens of thousands of students with massive student loan debt, and no degree.  

More than 30,000 former students petitioned the Department of Education to cancel their debt under the “borrower defense to repayment law.” However, even after being defrauded by ITT Tech, their claims were denied by officials under the Trump administration.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

Do Student Loans Have a Statute of Limitations?

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When it comes to most debts, any time the individual who owes the debt stops making payments, the debt will then go into collections. At that point, the original creditor can make the decision to sue the person owing the debt for the remaining balance. However, the creditor only has so long to file that lawsuit. Like any other cause of action, a statute of limitations places restrictions on how long the creditor has to pursue collection of what is owed.  

Each state has its own statutes of limitations, but when it comes to federal student loan debt, federal law governs how this debt is collected. Federal student loans are not governed by the same rules as most consumer debts. In fact, federal student loans do not have a statute of limitations at all, no matter how old they may be.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

What $10,000 in Student Loan Cancellation Would Look Like

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Lawmakers have been calling upon President Biden to move forward with an executive order that would cancel up to $50,000 in federally backed student loan debt. Other amounts have been considered, the lowest amount being $10,000. How this cancellation would look across the country would vary, however, depending on the state and the borrower.  

According to the Student Loan Hero, $10,000 in student loan forgiveness would cost approximately $315 billion. This amount of loan forgiveness would erase outstanding student loan balances for 34 percent of all student loan borrowers, according to their review of Department of Education data.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

Debt Cancellation for Disabled Borrowers Reinstated by the Department of Education

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The U.S. Department of Education announced recently that they will cancel federal student loan debt for borrowers who are no longer able to work due to disabilities. This announcement affects tens of thousands of borrowers currently paying on outstanding federal student loan balances.   

Student loan advocates say that this small step is the first of many to help reform the student lending system, including opening debt forgiveness to groups who are legally entitled to receive it but have not yet received debt forgiveness.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

Student Debt Cancellation Bill Scheduled to be Signed into Law this Week

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Congress has passed a $1.9 trillion stimulus package that includes important provisions concerning student loan cancellation, as well as increased federal regulations on for-profit colleges.   

Several different objectives were met by Congressional leaders through the passing of this legislation. One of the biggest goals was to address the tax burden that student loan borrowers face when receiving any portion of their student loan debt forgiven. Up until now, whenever a borrower received forgiveness for any portion of his or her student loan debt, the amount that was forgiven was considered taxable income. Under this legislation, tax forgiveness will be treated as tax free for the next several years.  

Debt Relief, student loan debt, Student Loans

White House Considering Executive Action to Cancel Portion of Nation’s Federal Student Loan Debt

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The Biden administration is considering issuing an executive order that would effectively cancel some portion of the $1.6 trillion in federal student loan debt held by 43 million Americans. This statement comes as no surprise as student loan forgiveness and student loan reform were consistently topics of discussion during the 2020 Presidential campaign.  

The statement came last Thursday from White House press secretary Jen Psaki. She indicated the administration was looking into whether President Biden had the executive authority to cancel a portion of the nation’s outstanding student loan debt. However, they also indicated that they would welcome any legislation brought forth by Congress to do the same.  

student loan debt, Student Loans

Beware of this Student Loan Debt Relief Scam in 2021

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Student loan borrowers look for ways to save on their loan payments, including having their loans forgiven. However, for the 10 million student loan borrowers who were part of the recent Navient settlement, they now find themselves at risk of falling prey to a new scam.  

This recent Navient settlement came as part of a student loan forgiveness lawsuit. Navient is one of the country’s largest student loan providers, and while the settlement does not necessarily affect how much each borrower owes, scammers are targeting borrowers, by offering false claims of debt forgiveness.  

Debt Relief, student loan debt, Student Loans

Student Loan Changes on the Horizon in 2021

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Changes are on the horizon for student loans in 2021. Student loan reform has been an issue discussed for years, if not decades, but several events that occurred in 2020 have pushed the issue to the forefront. The presidential election, the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, and the current economic climate have all pushed lawmakers to realize that student loan reform is a very real issue, and one that requires immediate action. The following possible changes could be coming in the new year.  

Student Loan Cancellation 

A number of recent legislative proposals have brought up the idea of student loan forgiveness. One proposal was included in the Heroes Act stimulus package proposed by House Democrats. In the legislation, lawmakers proposed to cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt for borrowers who could demonstrate that they were struggling financially. Unfortunately, even though the legislation moved forward to the Senate, this portion of the original bill was removed. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Chuck Schumer (D-MA) have proposed legislation that would cancel $50,000 in student loan debt for borrowers who earn less than $125,000 in annual income. Lawmakers have pushed on President Elect Joe Biden to make a statement as to whether he supports or does not support student loan cancellation. Biden has stated that he would not likely pursue an executive order to cancel student loans, but rather, he encouraged Congress to consider immediate cancellation of $10,000 of student loans across the board. However, the fate of this proposal hinges on whether Republicans will retain control over the Senate. If they do, it is unlikely that student loan cancellation will move forward.