The Biden administration is helping out more than 80,000 people in the U.S., including 9,000 folks in Maine, by forgiving nearly $5 billion in student debt. The U.S. Education Secretary, Miguel Cardona, revealed that the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, meant to help essential workers, had only forgiven 7,000 people’s debts since 2007. That’s because the system was tricky and full of traps, making it hard for people to qualify.
Cardona mentioned that for educators, nurses, social workers, and veterans—those we called essential workers—PSLF seemed like a cruel joke. But things are changing. In Maine, over 3,700 public servants have had their student debt forgiven, thanks to changes by the Department of Education. They needed to make 120 student loan repayments on time.
Additionally, more than 5,300 student loan borrowers in Maine are getting credit toward forgiveness under the income-driven repayment plan. Cardona explained that the investigation into this plan, which ties payments to a borrower’s income, revealed failures in crediting payments. Some borrowers who made payments for decades were cheated out of credit toward forgiveness.
This announcement is part of President Joe Biden’s bigger plan to forgive $132 billion in debt for over three and a half million Americans. Exciting times for those with student loans!
