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Federal student debt forgiveness program receives massive makeover

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By NNPA Newswire

President Joe Biden and his colleagues at 1800 Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, D.C. are making strides toward alleviating the stress of student loans for thousands of Americans.

Biden and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona have made steps toward changing a troubled student loan program called Public Service Loan Forgiveness. According to NBC News, the program launched in 2007 with the hopes of getting more college graduates involved in public service, but it has only helped 5,500 borrowers erase their student debt. Public Service Loan Forgiveness is designed to alleviate federal loans for those who spend 10 years working in public service after graduation. However, NBC News reports that more than 90 percent of borrowers have been rejected after making years of payments because their loans did not meet the program’s requirements.

The newly revamped Public Service Loan Forgiveness program will eliminate federal loans for all applicants after borrowers make 10 years of payments. An estimated 22,000 borrowers are eligible to get their loans canceled and an additional 27,000 borrowers could be deemed eligible if they get their past payments certified. Overall, a total of 550,000 borrowers are expected to be positively impacted by these changes.

“Borrowers who devote a decade of their lives to public service should be able to rely on the promise of Public Service Loan Forgiveness,” Cardona said, according to the Associated Press. “The system has not delivered on that promise to date, but that is about to change for many borrowers.”

Active duty military members and federal workers will also have an opportunity to join the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Education will automatically count payments by federal workers and military members toward the required 10 years.

Many of these changes are being categorized as short-term solutions as the federal government works toward long-term adjustments.

“Today we breathe a collective sigh of relief as the Kafkaesque system that dashed the dreams of far too many finally starts to be dismantled,” American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten told NBC News.

Unfortunately, all lawmakers were not on board with these changes. Several Republican lawmakers criticized Biden’s use of executive power to make this change rather than work with a divided group of legislators on Capitol Hill.

“We agree this program is in desperate need of reform; however, such reforms require congressional action, and we encourage you to work with us to fix the federal loan and repayment program,” Rep. Virginia Foxx of North Carolina wrote in a letter to Cardona.

Moving forward, Cardona and several other top officials will participate in congressional hearings regarding the nation’s education system.

The post Federal Student Debt Forgiveness Program Receives Massive Makeover appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

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Congressional bills can

hurt small businesses

nRegulation legislation

by Armando Salazar

Op-ed special to OW

The COVID-19 pandemic has led millions of businesses to conduct more of our business online. Many small business owners have only been able to survive by accessing the online marketplace. This is going to be one of the lasting impacts of the pandemic, and restaurants like mine are going to need continued access to the online services that we have come to rely on.

Despite this, Congress is currently considering tech regulation legislation, the “American Innovation and Choice Online Act,” (HR 3816/SR 2992) and the “Ending Platform Monopolies Act,” (HR 3825), that will disrupt the digital tools that businesses in our communities depend on at a time when our economic recovery is anything but certain.

HR 3825 would prohibit any potential “conflict of interest” and would force Google to sell off products like Gmail, YouTube, and Google Maps. If passed, HR 3825 would put these free services at risk and eliminate one of the ways that businesses reach and retain their customers. HR 3816 and SR 2992 would forbid platforms from prioritizing their own products and services. This would mean that Amazon would be banned from providing free two-day shipping for Prime products, and that Google would be stopped from displaying shopping results, Google maps, or local business reviews.

During the pandemic, businesses banded together to support each other and our customers, but this bill would make it harder for those customers to find information about us through Google searches.

Now is not the time to create new costs and burdens for business. Congress should stand up for the businesses in their districts and oppose HR 3816, SR 2992, and HR 3825.

Borrowers were previously rejected

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