And while the department acquired some of the outstanding FFEL loans, many are still privately owned and were not affected by the earlier pause on federally owned student loan payments. So the president clearly without congressional authority has extended repayment relief for months to the tune of billions of dollars every month, didn't ask Congress, didn't check in with, maybe they sent up a memo, but just did it. What really would have made a difference for us is lowering the interest rates. "I work in public higher education. It makes up, I don't remember what they said, like 15% of our portfolio and it's 99% of our headaches. Graduate student borrowing data, however, offer a note of caution. "The payment pause has been a lifeline that allowed million of Americans to focus on their families, health, and finances instead of student loans during the national emergency, " Cardona said. We have put so much work into this, and it is such a relief to suddenly owe $30K less as we start our lives together. On August 24, Biden announced up to $20, 000 in student-loan forgiveness for Pell Grant recipients making under $125, 000 a year, and up to $10, 000 in relief for other federal borrowers. She criticized the administration's decision to impose limits on who would receive loan forgiveness based on salary, noting that while some of her peers earned a healthy income, they would also be responsible for supporting younger siblings who might borrow to attend college.
"Brave men and women in uniform serving our country can now focus on doing their jobs and coming home safely, not filling out more paperwork to access their hard-earned benefits, " FSA Chief Operating Officer Richard Cordray said in a statement. And then on the other say, but really we're going to give you a few more months, but I do think that there's going to be some leniency here. And I know Justin, you probably watched the hearing in the house, was it last week with the under secretary talking about HEERF spending, but some of the questions were all over the place. I think the teachers would completely rebel. Service members deployed to areas that qualify them for "imminent danger or hostile fire pay, " according to the Higher Education Act, should not accrue interest on student loans that were first disbursed on or after October 1, 2008. So we think it's really important that those two things be kept together. Relief makes real difference but ignores structural issues. The Educational Credit Management Corporation is the product of a scandal that almost brought down the government's student loan program two decades ago. "The financial aid community, I think, feels really good about this. Jon Fansmith: It's a great reference, which actually kind of brings me to, first of all, I admire your confidence in that this will be a fairly smooth transition. Jon Fansmith: Why haven't you solved this yet, Sarah? They avoid a government shutdown. Then, on August 19, Cardona wiped out student debt for 323, 000 additional borrowers with disabilities, resulting in $5. Erica L. Each year the payments increase and it seems like the debt is insurmountable.
There's arguments to be made that we are still in the pandemic. He's been in the financial aid world since 2002 in administering, interpreting, communicating, developing student financial aid policy. So that would be presumably 2023 or even 24. And for people listening, you can find a copy of that letter, as well as AC updates on all of these issues on our website. So I don't know, I think this opens up a lot of legal questions like, well, where does the president's authority begin and end when during a time of national emergency? "I have about $185K left in student loan debt (started at $220K) between undergrad and law school. She does drive my car around. Well social motivation. Mr. Biden also proposed various changes to the repayment system — which would need to be enacted through rule-making by the Education Department — that would slash many borrowers' monthly bills. Many of those people carried fairly small balances and will now be eligible for loan cancellation. It is expected that the federal government will run out of money possibly on December 3rd and without an increase in the debt ceiling, we'll need to do... We'll essentially stop fulfilling their financial obligations, which can be very critical, right?
Hilary's professional license to practice in her field was denied renewal because of her student loan debt. So all of that to say is these things were backlogged because they were caught in these regulatory schemas and bureaucracy, just pushed through $12 billion in loan forgiveness. So I hope I didn't mess anything up and- Jon Fansmith: It's the only reason soon I came on. This government loan was taken from my taxpayer funds at nearly 0% yet I, the taxpayer, was charged 6. For one thing, Biden's plan cuts less than 20% of America's $1. Some research has pointed to positive economic outcomes for those who receive debt relief, such as less future indebtedness, greater job mobility and higher salaries. It's another thing to say, what statute dictates, we're simply going to ignore and do what we think is best anyway.
6 million borrowers closer to relief. I want to become a psychologist and help others. The man I love won't marry me because of the dent we both have. Troy B. I'm living paycheck to paycheck. The first step of the process will be through holding hearings in June to receive feedback on "regulations that would address gaps in postsecondary outcomes, such as retention, completion, student loan repayment, and loan default, " according to a press release. Every year my payment goes up even though my income doesn't! And the under secretary say, we are. He may never be able to find a job because the longer between graduation and employment, the less relevant his skills are. But, the base problem is a very, very complicated loan system, that's sort of a... We haven't started from scratch. We're also really thankful to have such a talented podcast guest and host, I should reference you host your own podcast, which occasionally has some incredibly talented guests on, but thank you for making the time to come and join us on ours. It's this realm of executive authority. So, if you build a contract and a servicer's going to get more money for putting students into a forbearance than they would by spending a significant amount of time exploring deferment options, then I understand that companies played it to incentives. Jon Fansmith: Thanks Justin. And so by going through this rulemaking process, the department of Homeland Security believes that it will strengthen the program against future court cases.
More details on how to access the relief will be made in the coming weeks. Part of that was just like you said, though, it wasn't like there was a judgment call being made. I've deeply enjoyed being able to help our hosts cover vital higher education issues and learn a thing too about Philly and LA sports teams. I think if you're at an institution, so we're ACE, NASFA, we're working together to try track all these issues.
Loan forgiveness could fuel inflation. This debt has been my greatest burden, regrettably. We're not treating them as if they took out a loan in the private market with underwriting that determine how much they could take out in loans. This was a group discharge and impacts those who did not submit applications themselves.
"We didn't realize the full extent to which our actions would lead to some activities that would be unfair to borrowers. So prior to the pandemic, lots of scrutiny from Democrats and Republicans, one of those rare areas where there's bipartisanship, that a program is not working and PSLF, prior to the pandemic, had a 98% rejection rate. I'll just point out, let's use now we're jumping ahead to the future here, but for those who are following this sort of thing, services are leaving the program at this point. These are blunt instrument loans, and people have varying ability to repay. The White House sought to address the economic concerns by targeting the relief. Start saving some money and dream of having enough for a down payment on a house one day. You've heard this one before — on August 24, Biden announced his "final" extension of the pause through December 31. They have collection costs. We both worked during college, we're relatively frugal, and worked our asses off to be hired before graduating.
"Borrowers with total and permanent disabilities should focus on their well-being, not put their health on the line to submit earnings information during the COVID-19 emergency, " Cardona said in a statement. And we know that there are a lot of other dreamers that could be covered under the DACA program.