Once again, politicians seeking to slash federal funding and remove government support programs have placed PSLF in the crosshairs. The recent move by The U.S. House of Representatives to slash billions of dollars in federal spending has outlined several areas in Education as potential targets, including: eliminating the SAVE IDR plan, reforming Pell Grants, removing in-school interest subsidies, placing annual and aggregate limits on undergraduate and graduate borrowing, eliminating Parent and Graduate PLUS Loans, and reforming Public Service Loan Forgiveness, “including limiting eligibility for the program.” Further, the Department of Education has announced a Negotiated Rulemaking process that it proposes will take up:
1. Refining definitions of a qualifying employer for the purposes of determining eligibility for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
2. Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and Income Contingent Repayment (ICR) repayment plans.
3. Potential topics that would streamline current federal student financial assistance program regulations while maintaining or improving program integrity and institutional quality.
And if that weren’t enough, a proposal from the political think tank The American Enterprise Institute suggests eliminating PSLF altogether in favor of grants to the States.
Depending on which of these proposed changes see the light of day, borrowers currently in repayment may not be affected at all. The proposal from AEI, for example, would only impact future borrowers. Changes to payment plans, for example, could also take years. The recent political kerfuffle over SAVE is an excellent example. While some of the proposed changes to PSLF could affect current borrowers, it’s important to remember that none of the discussed policies have yet become law. Further, as we saw with the abrupt rollback of income recertifications following their chaotic return and subsequent lawsuit, it’s likely that any significant effort to change PSLF—especially if the change is targeted to affect certain borrowers and not all—will be met with legal challenges.
Meanwhile, as part of the Negotiated Rulemaking process, the Department of Education is required to collect public comments prior to their hearings on April 29 and May 1. Navigate, and our friends at the PSLF Coalition, will be submitting comments as industry professionals and those who serve borrowers seeking PSLF. Since it is a public comment opportunity, however, that means you can also comment! You can submit your thoughts here, or you can contact your student loan professionals and share your concerns, too.
We are proud to work toward a future where public servants have fair and easy access to affordable higher education. We’re always here if you need help—just drop us a line!
