In this letter, 89 organizations representing millions of students, borrowers, workers, veterans, people of color, people with disabilities, and consumers write to sound the alarm on the unprecedented levels of confusion, misinformation, servicing errors, and administrative failures that millions of student loan borrowers are being forced to navigate as implementation of the One Big Beautiful…
Appearing in The New York Times on August 19, 2026, Tara Siegel Bernard talks to Abby Shafroth, director of the National Consumer Law Center’s Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project, about how Congress worsened terms for some existing borrowers. Now they’ll have to pay more, and for a longer term. This appears to be the first…
Read More about The New York Times: They Were Paying Their Student Loans. Then the Rules Changed.
This messaging bill sponsored by Sen. Blumenthal would repeal multiple aspects of the higher education portions of the Big Bill Act.
Read More about Endorsing OBBBA Repeal on Federal Student Aid and College Accountability
Appearing in The New York Times on July 17, 2026, Ann Carnns talks to Abby Shafroth, managing director of advocacy at the National Consumer Law Center, about how states are stepping in to help graduate students finance their studies now that federal Graduate PLUS loans have been eliminated for new borrowers. Borrowers should carefully review…
This group statement strongly opposes a package of bills (HR 9602-9611) that would provide wrongful cover for the Trump administration efforts to dismantle the Department of Education, including efforts to transfer the federal student loan program to the Treasury Department.
Beginning in July 2026, federal student loan repayment options are changing dramatically because of new “RISE” regulations implementing last summer’s reconciliation bill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) (Pub. L. No. 119-21, 139 Stat. 72), and also settlement of the litigation in Missouri v. Trump, No. 4:24-cv-00520 (E.D. Mo. Mar. 10, 2026) that resulted in the elimination of the…
Read More about Digital Library: Major July Changes to Federal Student Loan Repayment
A promised negotiated rulemaking provides an important opportunity to restore important protections for people with federal student loans. Although the SAVE Plan (Saving on a Valuable Education) is ending, the Department of Education should consider restoring regulatory provisions that apply to all IDR plans that could dramatically improve repayment options for borrowers. Background In 2023,…
NCLC submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Education recommending changes to its proposed new application form for federal student loan Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans. Our comments identify incorrect information on the form about plan eligibility requirements and recommend changes to ensure that the IDR Request Forms – and perhaps more importantly, the systems for…
On a Positive Note, Rules Ease Pathway for Borrowers To Get Out of Default
States, counties, and local governments can help protect immigrants, their families, and communities from financial exploitation and other consumer abuses.
Read More about What States & Local Governments Can Do to Support Immigrants' Financial Stability
Free Online Guide Provides New Resources for Dealing with Medical Debt, Student Debt, Disaster Relief, and Property Tax Foreclosures
Appearing in NerdWallet on April 1, 2026, Elin Johnson talks to Kyra Taylor, staff attorney at NCLC about how Parent PLUS loans will face new restrictions, as part of an overhaul of the student loan landscape. “Borrowers often don’t realize that the government has extensive power to collect what you owe if you default on…
Read More about NerdWallet: Parent PLUS Loan Limits: Guide to Borrowing Changes in 2026
