Biden-Harris Administration Proposes New Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) Plan
The Biden-Harris Administration today announced a new proposal to reduce the cost of federal student loan payments, especially for low- and middle-income borrowers.
While AACTE is generally supportive of the proposal, which according to a fact sheet will make college more affordable for perspective educators, additional steps must be taken to address the nationwide shortage of highly qualified, diverse teachers in our classrooms. AACTE looks forward to working with the Administration, Congress and state officials to develop and implement policies that achieve these goals.
According to the Department of Education, “The proposed regulations would amend the terms of the Revised Pay As You Earn (REPAYE) plan to offer $0 monthly payments for any individual borrower who makes less than roughly $30,600 annually and any borrower in a family of four who makes less than about $62,400. The regulations would also cut in half monthly payments on undergraduate loans for borrowers who do not otherwise have a $0 payment in this plan. The proposed regulations would also ensure that borrowers stop seeing their balances grow due to the accumulation of unpaid interest after making their monthly payments.”
Today’s proposal also includes details about the Department’s plan to publish a list of the programs at the colleges and universities that provide the least financial value to students to ensure that borrowers are not left with unaffordable debts. Once the Department completes this list, institutions with programs on this list will be asked to submit improvement plans to the Department to improve their financial value.
This proposal builds upon the Administration’s work to improve the student loan program and make colleges more affordable, including forgiving federal student loan debt of certain, eligible borrowers.
The Department expects to finalize and begin to implement the proposed rules later this year.
Tags: federal issues, funding, higher education
