In a move aimed at easing the financial burden on American borrowers, President Joe Biden revealed on Friday the forgiveness of nearly $5 billion in student loan debt for an additional 74,000 recipients. More than half of the beneficiaries earned forgiveness after dedicating a decade to public service as teachers, nurses, and firefighters.
This latest announcement from the White House brings the total loan forgiveness approved by the Biden-Harris administration to a substantial $136.6 billion, benefiting over 3.7 million Americans. Among the approved borrowers, close to 44,000 have dedicated ten years to public service, while nearly 30,000 have been diligently repaying their loans for at least two decades without obtaining relief through income-driven repayment plans.
Despite facing a setback with the Supreme Court’s ruling on June 30, blocking a broader debt cancellation plan, Biden remains committed to delivering relief to student loan borrowers. The President stated, “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.”
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona affirmed that the Department of Education is moving “full speed ahead” to provide even greater debt relief and facilitate a faster track to loan forgiveness under a new SAVE repayment plan.
As of June 2023, the Federal Student Aid website reports approximately 43.4 million student loan recipients with outstanding loans totaling $1.63 trillion. This represents a notable increase of nearly $17 billion in the outstanding loan balance and almost 600,000 in the number of student loan recipients since the previous year.
The move to forgive student debt is seen as a response to progressive voters’ persistent calls, a significant part of the coalition that supported Biden’s election in 2020. The issue of student loan debt continues to hold prominence on the agenda of younger voters, many of whom express concerns about Biden’s foreign policy decisions and desire more substantial debt forgiveness measures.
Source: MSN
