By Jesus Garcia
Dec 20, 2024, 05:00 AM EST
The president’s government Joe Biden released an additional $4.28 billion in student debt relief for nearly 55,000 public service workers.
“Four years ago, the Biden-Harris Administration committed to America’s teachers, military service members, nurses, first responders and other public servants to fix the troubled Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. , and I am proud to say that we achieved it,” said Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona.
This Friday’s decision Total support for 4.9 million people increases to almost $180 billion dollars with student debt at a general level.
The nine relief is part of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF). That’s $78 billion that benefits more than 1.06 million PSLF members.
“With the approval of another $4.28 billion in loan forgiveness for nearly 55,000 public servants, the Administration has secured nearly $180 billion in life-changing student debt relief for nearly five million borrowers,” Cardona added. “The US Department of Education’s successful transformation of the PSLF Program is a testament to what is possible when you have leaders, like President Biden and Vice President Harris, who are relentlessly and unapologetically focused on making the government meets the needs of ordinary working people.”
PSLF provides an incentive for Americans to pursue and remain in careers in education, public health, law enforcement, emergency response, and other essential fields of public service.
In order for people to apply for such forgiveness, they must have made the required 120 monthly payments.
As of July 2024, the PSLF Program is fully administered by the Department of Education, through StudentAid.gov, making it easier for recipients to process payments and track forgiveness.
In an interview with this newspaper, Secretary Cardona trusted that the government of President-elect Donald Trumpwhich begins on January 20, 2025, maintain the student aid program, but that is uncertain, due to the cuts planned by the Republican.
The Biden Administration sought to forgive student debt for more people, but its plan was challenged by Republicans, who found support in a conservative Supreme Court in June 2023.
Even so, the current government managed to implement some adjustments under the SAVE plan, to improve the payment plan based on the income of people with this type of debt, after abuses in the institutions that administered the loans.
Another Administration change was a $900 increase to the Pell Grant maximum, the largest increase in a decade.
Keep reading:
• Latinos face ridicule from other Latinos for not speaking Spanish; the use of Spanglish advances
• Latinos would have better opportunities being bilingual; Department of Education launches Facebook page
• Congressmen and leaders condemn Supreme Court ruling that ended student loan relief