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The White House is moving forward with a proposal that would lower student debt payments for millions of Americans now and in the future, offering a new route to repay federal loans under far more generous terms.
President Joe Biden announced the repayment plan in August, but it was overshadowed by his sweeping plan to slash or eliminate student debt for 40 million Americans. Despite the low profile of the payment plan, however, some education experts see it as a more powerful tool to make college affordable, especially for those with lower incomes.
Education Department officials on Tuesday called the new plan a “student loan safety net” that will prevent borrowers from getting overloaded with debt.
“Student debt has become a dream killer,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said. “This is a promise to the American people that, at long last, we will fix a broken system and make student loans affordable.”
Biden, a Democrat, is moving forward with the repayment plan even as his one-time debt cancellation faces an uncertain fate before the Supreme Court. The White House has asked the court to uphold the plan and reject two legal challenges from conservative opponents. The Biden administration submitted its brief last week, with oral arguments slated for Feb. 28.
The Education Department formally proposed the new repayment plan on Tuesday by publishing it in the Federal Register, starting a public comment period that often takes months to navigate.
If it’s finalized, the proposal would give a major overhaul to income-driven repayment plans — one of several payment options offered by the federal government.
