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ED Extends Emergency Flexibilities for Defaulted Federal Student Loans

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 30, 2020
Contact: Juan Ramiro Sarmiento
(785) 760-6567 | juan.sarmiento@younginvincibles.org

ED Extends Emergency Flexibilities for Defaulted Federal Student Loans

(Washington, DC) Earlier today, the United States Department of Education announced the expansion of emergency COVID-19 relief for federal student loan borrowers in default and a continued pause on collections and interest. Additionally, any involuntary collections or defaults executed throughout the global pandemic will be reimbursed or restored retroactive to March 13, 2020.

In response, Kyle Southern, Policy and Advocacy Director for Higher Education and Workforce for Young Invincibles, issued the following statement:

“Borrowers face the same financial challenges amid the pandemic, regardless of the type of federal student loan they may hold. This latest action by ED will provide tangible relief for student borrowers in the toughest of circumstances. Although more comprehensive action is required to provide relief to all federal student loan borrowers who should not have been put in this position to begin with, this decision is a positive step to help a subset of borrowers.

In September 2020, Young Invincibles proposed a joint 100-Day Plan for Young America that included ending federal student loan collection actions–including federal seizures of the Earned Income Tax Credit and tax refunds–that can harm working low-income borrowers who are in or at risk of default on their federal student loans. Today, we are pleased to see this policy proposal realized.”

We continue to call on President Biden and his administration to take action on higher education priorities, including:

  • Canceling student debt for the majority of student borrowers;
  • Reimplementing the gainful employment rule;
  • Debt-free public education via federal-state partnership; and
  • Tighten guidelines on academic credit for internship experience.

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