The following brief and fact sheets analyze the student debt delinquency crisis and its impacts on millions of student loan borrowers in each state across the country.
The Century Foundation (TCF) and Protect Borrowers’ analysis of the University of California Consumer Credit Panel data finds that, during the Trump Administration, the student loan delinquency rate went from nearly zero to more than 25 percent of borrowers. The current delinquency rate is nearly three times higher than it was in 2019—the year before student loan payments were paused.
The student debt delinquency crisis has sweeping consequences for borrowers nationwide. Our analysis shows that Black and Native American borrowers, Pell Grant recipients, and borrowers located in the Southeast have fallen behind on their student loans at the highest rates. Further, just one delinquent student loan can make a borrower of any credit tier subprime, having an immediate and lasting impact on their credit score. An estimated 2 million delinquent borrowers have seen their credit fall from near-prime or better into subprime territory, from 680 to 580 on average. This decline in credit scores raises borrowing costs and makes it substantially more difficult—if not impossible—for borrowers to purchase a home or a car, open a credit card, obtain a personal loan, or access other loans to make ends meet.
To put together the following brief and state-by-state fact sheets, TCF and Protect Borrowers sourced the most recently available data from the U.S. Department of Education and its Office of Federal Student Aid. For more information about sources, see below.
Read the Brief: Trump’s Student Loan Delinquency Crisis, Unmasked
View the Statewide Fact Sheets: February 2026 Student Debt Delinquency Crisis Fact Sheets
Read the Press Release: NEW STUDY: Student Loan Delinquency Spikes to Record 25% Under Trump, Destroying Credit Scores and Locking Millions Out of Economy
Endnotes
- U.S. Department of Education, Office of Federal Student Aid, Portfolio by Location (DL), (accessed Jan. 2025), https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/fsawg/datacenter/library/DLPortfolio-by-Location.xls.
- Century Foundation and Protect Borrowers analysis of University of California Consumer Credit Panel.
- Century Foundation and Protect Borrowers analysis of University of California Consumer Credit Panel. The delinquency percentage is only out of borrowers who currently owe a payment, not all federal student loan borrowers.