Policy Backgrounders

New Federal Student Loan Relief Proposal

April 18, 2024

Trusted Insights for What’s Ahead^®

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Education unveiled a new proposal to deliver student debt relief to more than 30 million borrowers. The new effort was released almost one year after the U.S. Supreme Court halted broad student loan debt relief totaling nearly $430 billion. The latest set of plans takes a more targeted approach.

• The new proposal builds on a student loan relief plan implemented last Fall, the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan.
• A group of budget economists estimate the set of plans would cost $84 billion, in addition to the $475 billion expense over ten years for the SAVE Plan.
• Eighteen states have recently filed lawsuits against the Administration’s student loan relief efforts, primarily targeting the SAVE Plan.