This issue brief from the SBPC and the National Consumer Law Center highlights newly public data obtained by NCLC from the U.S. Department of Education (ED) showing that only 32 borrowers have ever qualified for debt cancellation through the federal government’s income-driven repayment (IDR) program, even as approximately 2 million borrowers remain trapped in decades-old debts. Originally enacted by Congress as a path to debt relief after 20 or 25 years of payments, IDR has failed borrowers at every turn.
The issue brief makes the case for why immediate debt relief is critical by examining how flawed program design, mismanagement by ED, and illegal practices from student loan servicers have all combined to create a broken system in need of extensive repairs.
Read the Report: Education Department’s Decades-Old Debt Trap: How the Mismanagement of Income Driven Repayment Locked Millions in Debt
Read the Press Release: New Government Data Exposes Complete Failure of Education Department’s Income-Driven Repayment Program