The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program was created in 2007, promising college graduates that the remainder of their federal student loans would be zeroed out after 10 years working in government or nonprofit jobs. But starting in 2017, the vast majority of applicants were rejected because of certain eligibility rules.
A 2018 report from the Government Accountability Office found that 99% of applicants were denied, often because they weren’t in the right loan repayment plan or because their payments had temporarily been paused through deferment or forbearance — periods that weren’t counted toward the 10 years of public work.
The GAO faulted the Education Department for failing to make the rules clear.
After facing legal challenges to Biden's own student loan plans, his administration has increasingly shifted attention to the record sums of loan cancellation granted through existing programs.
In total, the administration says it has now canceled $175 billion for about 5 million borrowers.
Biden campaigned on a promise of widespread student loan cancellation, but last year the Supreme Court blocked his proposal to cancel up to up to $20,000 for 40 million Americans. Biden ordered his Education Department to try again using a different legal justification, but a judge in Missouri temporarily halted the plan after several Republican states challenged it.
