By Lauren Burke
Millions of student loan borrowers in default will begin to get notices starting May 5, that they are being placed into a collections process. The student loan repayment system has always been confusing to many. Delays related to COVID and other policies passed by the Biden Administration were meant to assist borrowers. But now the grace period for student loan borrowers is over after a five-year pause in collections. From 2021 to 2024, federal student loan debt grew by more than $60 billion annually. According to NBC, only a third of “the nearly 43 million borrowers who have student loan debt have made regular payments.” On April 21, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education, Linda McMahon, announced in a statement that the Trump Administration would restart the payments.
In late February of this year, the Department of Education ended the process for loan repayment plans. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit agreed with a suspension of the Saving on a Valuable Education plan — also known as SAVE. The income-driven repayment program, which was a key initiative of the Biden Administration with over eight million borrowers enrolled, offered lower monthly payments than previous plans. However, the SAVE plan faced legal challenges in the spring of 2024 because of high costs. States led by Republican Governors and Attorney Generals sued and argued that the administration had exceeded its legal authority. The argument of the executive branch “exceeding authority” hasn’t come up from those same Republican-led states. But President Trump is moving facts to mandate that those who have a student loan outstanding must repay it.
According to the information provided by the Student Borrower Protection Center:
- A typical current student loan borrower with a college degree will be forced to pay an additional $2,928 per year in student loan payments should Congress enact this proposal, when compared to the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan.
- A typical current student loan borrower with some college but no degree would be forced to repay an additional $1,761 per year in student loan payments should Congress enact this proposal, when compared to the SAVE plan.
Virginia Rep. Bobby Scott, who is the ranking member of the House Education Committee, has been a vocal advocate for student loan borrowers. He introduced legislation aimed at lowering the cost of college and assisting with loan repayment. His legislation has included the Lowering Obstacles to Achievement Now (LOAN) Act, which aims to double the Pell Grant, improve Public Service Loan Forgiveness, lower interest rates, make loans less expensive, and repeal origination fees. Rep. Scott also supported proposals to expand access to Pell Grants, make student loans more affordable, and improve the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. But in a survival of the fittest world in part created by citizens united, having access to large amounts of money is typically a huge factor in attending college. “Forgiving student debt would be a great gift to graduates, but so would having your mortgages, car loans, and credit card debt forgiven. Debt forgiveness is a slap in the face to all who sacrificed and worked extra jobs to pay off their student loans,” argued businessman and media owner Armstrong Williams on social media on May 5. But the question of whether those in default can repay at an unpredictable economic time is unknown.
