With Monday’s authorization and 27 previous ones, the Biden administration has forgiven over $180 billion in student loans, even as its larger policy vision never took root.
The Education Department announced on Monday that it had canceled student loans for more than 150,000 borrowers, bringing the tally of Americans whose loans were forgiven under President Biden to over five million.
The Biden administration reached the milestone even though many of its more ambitious plans to overhaul the nation’s system for administering student debt faltered over the past two years, forcing the administration to slowly but steadily process applications for relief through established channels created by Congress.
The latest cancellations were most likely the administration’s final round of relief. They covered borrowers who have worked in public service for at least 10 years, students who had applied after being defrauded or misled by their school, and some students with disabilities.
With Monday’s authorization and 27 previous ones, the Biden administration has canceled more than $183 billion in outstanding student loans.
“Since Day 1 of my administration, I promised to ensure higher education is a ticket to the middle class, not a barrier to opportunity, and I’m proud to say we have forgiven more student loan debt than any other administration in history,” Mr. Biden said in a statement.
Mr. Biden will leave office next week with many of his boldest ambitions for student debt reform stymied, after a wave of legal challenges brought by Republican attorneys general chipped away at plans that once envisioned student loan forgiveness for over 40 million people.