The White House continued its push to grant student debt relief, recently announcing the cancelation of nearly $5 billion for about 74,000 borrowers. Here's a look at who is eligible for savings this time around.
With this latest relief package, the Biden administration has now canceled student debt for more than 3.7 million Americans, many of whom are involved, in some capacity, in public service. That appears to be an ongoing theme with the initiative.
According to the White House, nearly 44,000 of these borrowers are teachers, nurses, firefighters and others with 10 years of public service. The other 30,000 are people who’ve been paying back their loans for at least 20 years and haven’t seen relief through income-driven repayment plans.
If people are unsure of their eligibility for relief, or whether they’re included in the latest group, experts said to check with your loan servicer.
“These are the government-based backed loans, so it’s important to understand what kind of loan you have in the first place. Again, reaching out to the servicer is a good place to start, but if you are part of the group, you will receive a notification from the Department of Education,” said Leslie Tayne, a debt-relief attorney.
The administration has received a fair amount of criticism on the issue. There have been Supreme Court challenges, and Republican lawmakers crafted legislation that would repeal many of Biden's plans. It would even prevent future administrations from taking similar action without congressional approval.
Tayne is wary of widespread relief. She says it’s designed to help many who are struggling, but at the end of the day, someone needs to pay the bill.
“There is billions of dollars of student loan debt out there, and a shortfall or forgiveness widespread could cause challenges with the programs already in place. And also, ultimately somebody has to make up the shortfall the government monies would have received and that likely could end up with taxpayers.”