The Blubber

The Biden administration announced on Thursday the forgiveness of an additional $4.5 billion in student debt, benefiting more than 60,000 borrowers. This latest relief comes from improvements made by the U.S. Department of Education to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, which had faced significant issues in the past.

President Joe Biden, who has now forgiven more student debt than any other U.S. president, revealed that over 1 million borrowers have benefited from the program during his administration. "Public service workers—teachers, nurses, firefighters, and more—are the foundation of our communities and country," Biden stated. "For too long, the government did not fulfill its promises."

The PSLF program, created in 2007 under President George W. Bush, allows federal student loans to be canceled for qualifying not-for-profit and government employees after 10 years of service. In 2013, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau estimated that about a quarter of U.S. workers could be eligible for the program.

However, the program was riddled with complications. Many borrowers believed they were on track for forgiveness, only to find out they didn't qualify due to technicalities like loan types or repayment plans.

Prior to Biden taking office, only 7,000 people had received debt forgiveness under PSLF. The Department of Education noted that in some years, the program had a rejection rate as high as 98%.