In response to advocacy by NASW and our coalition partners, the Department of Education announced an extension of the pause on student loan repayment, interest, and collections that was set to expire on December 31, 2022.
On August 24, President Biden and U.S. Department of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona announced plans to provide targeted student debt relief to borrowers with loans held by the Department of Education. Targeted student debt relief addresses the financial harms of the pandemic, provides borrowers with smooth transition back to repayment and helps borrowers at highest risk of delinquencies or default once payments resume.
To date, over 26 million people have provided the Department of Education with the necessary information to be considered for debt relief, and 16 million borrowers have been approved. But court orders are blocking the Department from discharging student loan debt and accepting additional applications.
The Administration is taking their fight to provide debt relief for tens of millions of Americans to the Supreme Court. The pause will be extended to give the Court an opportunity to decide on the program this term – but no later than June 30, 2023. Payments will resume 60 days after the pause ends.
NASW supports this move by the Administration to help student loan borrowers as we await the resolution of the student loan cancellation program.
The Administration’s student debt relief plan will provide 40 million working and middle-class Americans a little extra breathing room as they recover from the pandemic and prepare to resume loan payments.
Lawsuits have been filed that put on hold the Department of Education’s ability to discharge loan debt. The Administration does not believe it is fair to ask tens of millions of borrowers to resume payments on student debt that would be forgiven were it not for these baseless lawsuits.
NASW will continue to monitor student loan debt relief programs and will provide updates to the membership as new developments occur.