Representative Jim McGovern

Hello [firstname],

At the end of June, the conservative majority of the Supreme Court struck down President Biden’s plan to cancel up to $20k in student loan debt for 43 million people.

97% of student loan borrowers are low- and middle-income Americans, and 90% of the total relief from this plan would have gone to those making under $75,000.

This was a terrible decision, but it won’t stop me from continuing to fight in Congress for immediate student loan forgiveness. And it doesn’t mean there aren’t other options for relief. President Biden has announced that he will be using the Higher Education Act to try once again to cancel student debt for millions of borrowers. In fact, the Biden-Harris administration recently announced that the Department of Education would forgive loans for 804,000 borrowers who held a total of $39 BILLION in student debt.

There are still opportunities to have some or all of your student debt cancelled.

The Department of Education has begun reviewing accounts that might qualify for a one-time adjustment of Income Driven Repayment (IDR)- qualifying payments for all Direct Loan Program and federally-owned Federal Family Education (FEEL) loans.

Even if you are not currently enrolled in an IDR plan, you will receive automatic forgiveness on any qualifying loans for which you’ve made the required number of payments (20 or 25 years). If you are working towards Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), you will receive automatic forgiveness on qualifying loans for which you’ve made the required number of payments (at least 10 years).

Even if you are not eligible for forgiveness, there are still four types of income-driven repayment plans that you may be eligible for:

Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan.
Pay As You Earn Repayment Plan (PAYE) Plan.
Income-Based Repayment Plan (IBR) Plan. With this plan, your payments could be as low as $0/month depending on your income.
Income-Contingent Repayment Plan (ICR) Plan.

You can figure out which of these plans is best for you by using this loan simulator.

I'm thankful that President Biden's new Saving on A Valuable Education (SAVE) plan makes sure that no borrower who makes less than $15 an hour will have to make any student loan payments. It will also make sure that interest doesn't pile up and increase your debt amount, and that your spouse's income can't be used to drive up your payment amount. Learn more about the SAVE Plan here.

I've heard so many stories from across Massachusetts about the weight of these student loans. They're keeping people from starting families, buying a home, building a business, or just being able to make ends meet. That's why I wanted to share the details about these plans with you—there are options available now to give you and your family more breathing room. If you have any questions or need help signing up for these programs, please reach out to my office at any time.

I'm honored to be your voice in Congress and I will keep fighting for full student debt cancellation.

Sincerely,

James P. McGovern

Member of Congress