The likely decision follows months of uncertainty over the fate of student debt for tens of millions of Americans, with Biden at times sounding skeptical of canceling loans but under pressure from his collapsing approval ratings among young voters ahead of November’s elections.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday that President Joe Biden was still considering whether to tie debt relief to borrowers’ income levels, an idea he’s floated in the past. She said it’s “certainly something he would be looking at.”
Despite fine-tuning over the years, government audits show the Education Department has provided insufficient instructions to contractors managing its loan portfolio. That oversight has resulted in inconsistent loan servicing to the detriment of borrowers.
The action applies to more than 43 million Americans who owe a combined $1.6 trillion in student debt held by the federal government, according to the latest data from the Education Department.
This is the fourth finding against Carmel-based ITT Tech that has led to the approval of debt relief claims by the department. All told, the evidence has resulted in about $660 million in discharges for roughly 23,000 students.
The Senate Education and Career Development Committee unanimously advanced a proposal Wednesday to require all high school seniors to file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as the FAFSA.
Navient, a major student loan collecting company, agreed to cancel $1.7 billion in debt owed by more than 66,000 borrowers across the United States and pay over $140 million in other penalties to settle allegations of abusive lending practices.
Interest rates will remain at 0% during that period, and debt collection efforts will be suspended. Those measures have been in place since early in the pandemic, but were set to expire Jan. 31.
Navient, one of the nation’s largest student loan companies, has major operations in Fishers. About 1,400 people work in the company’s 450,000-square-foot loan servicing and data center east of Interstate 69 and north of 106th Street.
The Education Department announced Thursday it will forgive student debt for more than 100,000 borrowers who attended colleges in the now-defunct, Carmel-based ITT Technical Institute chain but left before graduating.
The Indiana Career Accelerator Fund will award financial aid to qualified students to use for training in high-demand, high-wage sectors that leads to an industry credential in six months or less.
When the Education Department approves President Joe Biden’s request, all borrowers with student loans held by the Education Department will see their payments automatically suspended until Sept. 30 without penalty or accrual of interest.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is taking shots at student debt cancellation and tuition-free college proposals, hallmarks of President-elect Joe Biden’s agenda for higher education.
The one-semester program, which includes both on-the-road driver training and academic instruction, is set to begin in January at Ivy Tech campuses in Indianapolis, Lafayette, Fort Wayne, Evansville and Lawrenceburg.
The Education Department said many claims were submitted by borrowers who attended ineligible programs or who failed to make a valid claim for loan forgiveness.
More than 1,300 students who were enrolled at now-closed ITT Technical Institute campuses in Indiana are eligible for student loan forgiveness as part of a $330 million national settlement affecting as many as 35,000 former ITT students.
The Trump administration is fighting a class-action lawsuit for continuing to garnish the wages of defaulted borrowers in violation of a federal order.
The Kentucky Republican introduced federal legislation late Monday that would allow students to dip into retirement accounts to help pay for college or make monthly debt payments.
Americans collectively owe nearly $1.5 trillion in student loans—more than twice the total a decade ago. It’s a burden that weighs on millions of adults, shaping their life choices and often stunting their financial growth.
IBJ personal finance columnist Peter Dunn talks with podcast host Mason King about three key components of paying for college: saving in advance, paying some expenses in the moment and preparing your kids to make good choices.
