Actions Highlight Lasting Importance of Debt Relief and Strong Support for President Biden’s Student Debt Hardship Rule
December 2, 2024 | WASHINGTON, D.C. — A diverse coalition of 238 national, state, and local groups joined borrowers today to share their strong support for the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) proposed rule to provide student debt relief for borrowers experiencing economic hardship. The comment was submitted to the Federal Register as part of the 30-day public comment period announced by ED at the end of October.
In the coalition comment, the groups commended the Biden-Harris Administration’s historic efforts to alleviate the student debt crisis, while also reaffirming the ongoing, urgent need for relief. Borrowers themselves echoed this message through powerful comments submitted in support of President Biden’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to provide debt relief to borrowers experiencing hardship. As drafted, the proposed rule would provide a pathway for student debt relief to approximately 8 million borrowers.
A copy of the coalition comment is available here.
From the comment:
“The Department’s proposed hardship rule represents critical progress in the fight to combat the student debt crisis and protect borrowers from the crushing burden of student debt. We thank the Biden-Harris Administration for heeding the calls of tens of thousands of borrowers and hundreds of national, state and local organizations to unveil such a bold and life-changing proposal and stand ready to work in partnership with your Administration to do as much as possible to protect borrowers and alleviate the burden of the student debt crisis.”
The coalition comment and borrower input are the latest in a long list of efforts to highlight the enduring necessity of addressing the student debt crisis including: a July 2024 coalition letter urging ED to unveil its hardship proposal, and a May 2024 petition, signed by 22,337 borrowers and including nearly 5,000 individual borrower testimonials in support of the Biden Administration’s first package of rules to provide relief to 30 million Americans with student debt. The petition was submitted to the Federal Register in response to the NPRM 30-day public comment period earlier this year.
Further Reading
Coalition press release on July 2024 letter calling for ED to unveil its hardship proposal: As Right-Wing AGs Gut Aspects of SAVE Plan and Throw Millions of Borrowers Into Limbo, 200+ Groups Urge ED to Release Promised—and Now Even More Critical—Hardship NPRM
May 2024 comment, which includes a cover letter that spotlights 15 borrower stories, and a petition signed by 22,337 borrowers and nearly 5,000 individual borrower testimonials in support of Biden-Harris “Plan B” debt relief plan: See Here
May 2024 coalition comment in support of Biden-Harris “Plan B” debt relief plan: See Here
May 2024 SBPC public comment offering technical feedback on Biden-Harris “Plan B” debt relief proposal: See Here
SBPC press release on the 2023 SCOTUS ruling: Supreme Court Sides with Right-Wing Special Interests, Blocking President Biden’s Student Debt Relief Plan
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About Student Borrower Protection Center
Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) is a nonprofit organization focused on eliminating the burden of student debt for millions of Americans. We engage in advocacy, policymaking, and litigation strategy to rein in industry abuses, protect borrowers’ rights, and advance racial and economic justice.
Learn more at protectborrowers.org or follow SBPC on Twitter @theSBPC.