US President Joe Biden addresses student loan debt relief at Madison Area Technical College in Madison, Wisconsin, on April 8, 2024.
Image Source: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | AFP | Getty Images
President Joe Biden announced in his final days in office that his administration would forgive student debt for over 150,000 borrowers.
Relief will be provided to 85,000 individuals who attended schools that engaged in fraudulent practices, 61,000 borrowers with total and permanent disabilities, and 6,100 public service workers, as stated by Biden.
Biden stated, “Since Day One of my Administration, I promised to ensure higher education is a ticket to the middle class, not a barrier to opportunity, and I’m proud to say we have forgiven more student loan debt than any other administration in history.”
Throughout Biden’s presidency, debt forgiveness has been granted to over 5 million federal student loan borrowers, amounting to $183.6 billion in relief.
In 2023, the Supreme Court halted the president’s initiative to offer widespread student loan forgiveness to tens of millions of borrowers.
Nevertheless, the Biden administration was able to reduce a significant portion of the country’s outstanding student debt by enhancing existing debt relief programs at the U.S. Department of Education.
The recent announcement includes $465 million in loan cancellation for public servants, $2.5 billion for borrowers with total and permanent disabilities, and over $1.25 billion for students who were victims of fraud.