Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director testifies on Public Service Loan Forgiveness issues
WGBH — An NPR story this week revealed that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau attempted such examinations but was thwarted by the Trump administration’s Department of Education. At issue is the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which aims to help police, military service members, teachers, people who work at nonprofits and others. If they make…
Read More about Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director testifies on Public Service Loan Forgiveness issuesU.S. Department of Education pilots debit card for student expenses
INSIDE HIGHER ED — The U.S. Department of Education is poised to begin a limited experiment with a prepaid student aid card, which would operate like a debit card for aid. Under the program, students would be able to access the funds without paying fees, and the feds would be able to learn more about…
Read More about U.S. Department of Education pilots debit card for student expensesHouse Democrats investigate U.S. Department of Education over aid to for-profit colleges
INSIDE HIGHER ED — Representative Bobby Scott, the House education committee chairman, suggested Tuesday in a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that her department had illegally awarded federal aid to two ineligible for-profit college programs operated by the defunct Dream Center. Scott, a Virginia Democrat, also threatened to issue subpoenas if the Trump administration doesn’t…
Read More about House Democrats investigate U.S. Department of Education over aid to for-profit collegesU.S. House Democrats unveil Higher Education Act overhaul bill
U.S. NEWS — House Democrats offered their vision for overhauling the federal higher education law, introducing Tuesday a rewrite that would boost federal funding for low-income students, simplify how borrowers repay federal student loans, incentivize states to make community colleges tuition-free and reestablish Obama-era regulations on campus sexual assault and for-profit colleges. Committee aides said the proposal…
Read More about U.S. House Democrats unveil Higher Education Act overhaul billConsumer Financial Protection Bureau efforts to fix student loan forgiveness program blocked by Trump Administration
NPR — Starting early last year, the nation’s most powerful consumer protection agency sent examiners into companies that run student loan call centers to try to fix a troubled loan forgiveness program. But the Department of Education blocked the bureau from getting the information it needed, NPR has learned. The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program is…
Read More about Consumer Financial Protection Bureau efforts to fix student loan forgiveness program blocked by Trump AdministrationIncome-driven student loan repayment programs are not living up to their promise
YAHOO NEWS — The idea is simple: Borrowers make payments based on how much money they earn. But these so-called income-driven repayment plans are mind-numbingly complicated. There are four different versions to sort through, all with slightly different rules. They can be tricky to get into and easy to fall out of, yet they’re becoming increasingly…
Read More about Income-driven student loan repayment programs are not living up to their promiseNew York Attorney General sues loan servicer over handling of Public Service Loan Forgiveness
MARKETWATCH — The loan servicer handling student-debt forgiveness requests is badly bungling the job and misleading borrowers who deserve a clean slate, New York’s attorney general charged in a lawsuit filed Thursday.Approximately 99% of all Public Service Loan Forgiveness applicants have been rejected and FedLoan’s alleged failures are “a significant contributor to the shockingly high rate…
Read More about New York Attorney General sues loan servicer over handling of Public Service Loan ForgivenessAdvice for applying for Public Service Loan Forgiveness
WAMU 88.5 — The Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program was established under the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007. Since the first borrowers became eligible in 2017, only about 1,200 of the 100,185 applications have been approved. If you are hoping to be approved for PSLF, there are steps you can take…
Read More about Advice for applying for Public Service Loan ForgivenessExperts discuss issues with the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program
THE KOJO NNAMDI SHOW — The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program was supposed to erase the remaining federal loan balance after 10 years for borrowers who devoted their careers to serving others.
Read More about Experts discuss issues with the Public Service Loan Forgiveness programSenator Alexander submits narrow bills to update Higher Education Act
INSIDE HIGHER ED — U.S. senator Lamar Alexander released a package of bills Thursday that would narrowly update the Higher Education Act, including how financial aid is awarded to low-income students. The 169-page bill fleshes out a proposal Alexander, the chairman of the Senate education committee, outlined last week when he blocked the FUTURE Act from…
Read More about Senator Alexander submits narrow bills to update Higher Education Act